Rare does not mean golden in life. They are not un-fired, new in the box and can not be priced as such. Plus there is just no great collector interest in them like there would be with a Winchester, Parker or even Browning. Being 26" barrels is a truly tough sell these days. If they do not speak to you, then I would just tell the owner they are lovely and politely not buy them. Funny thing is if they were 28" barrels there would be a lot more interest in them, but when they were bought 26" was easier to sell than those longer barrels like 28 or 30". 30" doubles were hard to sell then and command a premium now. Times change and what is in style comes and goes.
