THREE Ancient Oriental ceramics on display at the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge were left in tiny fragments after a visitor accidentally knocked them off a window sill.

The late 17th or early 18th-century Qing Dynasty works were on display at the bottom of a marble staircase when a member of the public stumbled and fell. He barged into a pair of large vases and a baluster jar, knocking them on to the floor.

The museum, owned by Cambridge University, refused to put a value on the antiques, but the cost could run into millions.

An ambulance was called for the unnamed man, but he was unharmed. He will not be expected to pay for the damage. The museum declined to say if the items were insured.

Fiona Brown, head of media for the museum, said that conservators would try to restore the items. “They were very seriously damaged, but conservators these days can do amazing things,” she said.

The museum began a review of its policy of keeping valuable objects unprotected after the incident on Wednesday.

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