CAN you help solve a truly heartbreaking romantic mystery which spans more than 100 years?
The mystery began at a recent Shepton Mallet Antique Fair, where a dealer from loveantiques.com purchased a set of drawers.
Inside, the new owner made a shock discovery in a hidden, locked drawer - a letter and a diamond ring.
The letter appears to be from someone named 'George' and looks to have been written in March 1916, just before he left to fight in World War I, and seems to have been given to his mother to send on to his presumed girlfriend, 'Eileen'.
In the letter, George apologises for leaving so suddenly but states that when he returns, he wants to marry her, leaving his grandmother’s ring to her as a promise.
However, it’s unclear if Eileen ever saw the letter and diamond ring...
Now, the dealer is out of luck in the quest to find any information on George and Eileen - and their love story - and is appealing to the public for any information.
Grant Nicholas, of LoveAntiques.com, said: “You can imagine our surprise when the dealer managed to open the drawer only to find a letter and engagement ring.
"We have come across some weird and wonderful things while collecting antiques, but this is really something special that should be returned to George’s or Eileen’s family, as it was clearly a ring that was meant to be passed on through generations.
"There’s definitely a story behind this find and we would love to get to the bottom of it.
"Perhaps George’s mother didn’t have chance to deliver it, Eileen didn’t accept the proposal and kept the letter in this drawer to give back to George when he returned, Eileen accepted the proposal and waited for George but he never returned.
"Or perhaps, Eileen returned the ring and letter to George and George put the letter away.
"If you have any information about the ring, letter, or George and Eileen, we would love to hear from you. It would be wonderful to reunite the ring and letter with the rightful owner.”
If you think you could help in the quest to solve this romantic mystery, call 01823 365101 or click here to email us
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