When someone that does not know much about antiques hears a talk about antique items, the first thing that pops in that persons mind is “ANTIQUES ARE EXPENSIVE”…Now that is today, in our 2014, so lets go back to 1886, the year when a lady by the name of Mary Morgan sold her Chinese Ming Dynasty (peachblow) colored porcelain for $18,000!!!! Yes, that is EIGHTEEN THOUSAND U.S. dollars in 1886. That price launched many artistic imintations like red tinted to white amberia “peach blow” art glass that is highly valued by most of the antique collectors today.
Currier & Ives, the Lithographers of the 19th century america, produced almos 10 million prints on 10 thousand various subjects. Astonishing, most of these prints are highly valued by collectors today. A large folio “American Forest Scene-Maple Sugaring fetched $10,350 at auction in 1995, a representative high price for the firm’s better prints.
While Barry Bond’s outstanding post 35 age statistics are skyrocketing the values of his baseball card and related sports collectibles, the most valuable baseball star of them all remains Babe Ruth. Talk about statistics, in 1921, his 2nd year with the Yankees, the Babe hit 378, batted in 171 runs, scored 152 runs, and whacked 59 home runs in 152 games. All in a dead-ball long-fence era when 10 round trippers was considered a feat.
Vincent Van Gogh began to draw as a child, and he continued to draw throughout the years that led up to his decision to become an artist. He did not begin his painting career until his late twenties, completing many of his best-known works during the last two years of his life. In just over a decade, he produced more than 2,100 artworks, consisting of 860 oil paintings and more than 1,300 water colors, drawings, sketches and prints. His work included self portraits, landscapes, still lifes, portraits and paintings of cypresses, sunflowers and wheat fields. Of all the 860 oil paintings completed by Vincent Van Gogh in his depressed and short life, he only sold one single painting, the Iris sold for $75,000,000 in 1990…YES..that is seventy five million U.S. Dollars…Time has treated the sensitive artist with more compassion than his own days bestowed upon him, like it does to many struggling artists
The “Teddy” bear assumed his name in 1902 after rugged outdoorsman, Teddy Roosevelt refused to shoot a cub aides tethered to a tree to insure success on a Mississippi hunt. Cartoonist Clifford Berryman drew up the incident entitled “Drawing The Line in Mississippi” where it would become widely circulated in papers. The popular stuffed toy would be introduced simultaneously in America and Germany shortly thereafter.
A mint condition 1974 first edition of Steven King’s first book, “Carrie” can bring upwards of $1500 to collectors. And no one will “laugh at you” for asking such a price.
And the last one but not the leas.
How to know if you are approaching antique status: If you can remember opening a can of beer or soda with a pointed end can opener. Remember how common such openers once were? lol
Leave a comment and who knows, we might be able to sell you for a reasonable price.
Tomball Elite Books 
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