Rinker on Collectibles

Chancing It

The media loves stories about individuals who went to a flea market or garage sale and purchased an object for a few dollars only to sell it later for thousands, tens of thousands, and even hundreds of thousands of dollars. Discovery of the “great bargain,” also known as the “hidden treasure,” is the dream of everyone who hunts collectibles.

The September 5, 2007, issue of Antique Trader contained an article about an Austrian woman who was seeking old crockery in a trash container and found instead a cross from Limoges, France, dating to about 1200. Relatives of a deceased owner were cleaning out his home and tossed the piece. The woman who discovered the cross even showed it to the niece of the deceased man who promptly told her to take it. The cross is estimated to be worth $500,000. The smile on my face turned sour as I continued reading. When a friend of the woman took the cross to a nearby museum, the curator alerted police. As luck would have it, the cross was part of a Polish art collection belonging to Izabella Elzbieta of Czartoryski Dzialinkska that was confiscated by the Nazis. How the cross wound up in the possession of the deceased owner is unknown.

The cross currently is housed at the museum. Heirs of the former owner have asked the London-based Commission for Looted Art in Europe to assist them in securing the return of the cross. It is not clear at this point whether or not the woman who saved the cross from the trash will receive any reward other than “thanks.”

Sometimes when you take a chance, things do not turn out as you expect. In the case of collectibles, the expected turns out to be negative far more often than it turns out to be positive.

I see basically three types of objects during the appraisal clinics that I conduct. The first are family heirlooms. Most have a strong family provenance and are fun to handle. Occasionally the family stories that accompany them are false, more often than not dating the object far older than it is. The second group is objects about which the owner is fully knowledgeable and simply wants to show them off and/or share them with the appraiser. Once again, these are fun.

It is the third group of objects, those that individuals purchased believing they were one thing and now have serious doubts, that relates to this column’s theme. Ninety percent or more of the time, I confirm their suspicions. They did not buy what they thought they did.

During a recent appraisal clinic I did at the Saucon Valley Farmers’ Market in Hellertown, Pennsylvania, a WHATCHA GOT? listener who hears my nationally syndicated antiques and collectibles call-in radio show on Sunday mornings on WAEB-AM in Allentown, Pennsylvania, brought a group of four Barnum and Bailey circus posters she had recently purchased for me to inspect. She had called in to the radio show to ask about the posters. Playing “guess the goodies” on the radio is a challenge. Based upon the information the listener gave me over the telephone, I strongly suspected the posters were mass-produced reproductions designed to hang on the wall. However, I told her that if she brought the posters to the appraisal clinic, I could most likely take one look and tell her if they were period or reproduction.

One of the things you learn after being around antiques and collectibles is that reproductions (exact copies) and copycats (stylistic copies) are not necessarily poorly made. The quality of printing on these posters was extremely high. They had the brilliance and clarity normally associated with early twentieth century lithographs.

Earlier in the appraisal clinic, a person came with one of the reproduction Bull Durham Black-themed posters that had been put into a frame and sold at auction. The color registration was terrible. The image was fuzzy. There was no need to use a loupe to see if the colors were the result of the modern four color dot printing technique. They most definitely were. The person took a chance it might be period. Fortunately, he paid under fifty dollars, a clear sign to anyone in the trade that it was definitely wrong. “Beware of bargains” is a good basic rule in the collectibles business.

In the case of the WHATCHA GOT? listener’s circus posters, they were the wrong size and printed on the wrong paper to date from the early part of the twentieth century. When I did put a loupe on the colors, I saw dots. I did consider the possibility that they may have been modern posters used to promote a present day appearance. However, they had no blank area for the insertion of the location where the circus was playing. Clearly, they were simply well made reproductions, albeit not true to size. I never did ask the listener what she paid—hopefully less than fifteen dollars each.

Individuals in search of hidden treasure cannot resist taking the occasional chance in hopes of striking it rich. Time to lay down a few ground rules that will help them avoid mistakes and possibly find that treasure they are seeking.

Very few hidden bargains are found at auctions. Novice collectors and dealers often find themselves watching a piece being sold at auction and think: “that piece is selling for too little. I should buy it.” No, it is not, and you should not buy it. It is naïve to think for one moment that advanced collectors and dealers have missed a piece. If they are not bidding, there is something wrong with the item, i.e., it is damaged, incomplete, or a reproduction/copycat. “Do not buy what you do not know” is a good rule for those wishing to avoid getting stung.

Never pay more than you are prepared to lose when buying an object on the chance that it is a hidden treasure. I refer to buying mistakes made by collectors and dealers as tuition, one of the prices they pay to learn the trade. Your goal is to keep you tuition payments low.

Of course, the fun in finding a hidden treasure is to find it at a bargain price. Yet, discovering an object priced significantly below its standard secondary market retail value should set off a series of alarm bells transmitting a very simple message to your brain—SLOW DOWN. Inspect the object closely. Inspect it several times. Be highly suspicious that the object is a reproduction, copycat, or fake. Buy it only after your careful examination has assured you that it is period, i.e., what it purports to be.

“The more established the venue, the greater the risk” is the rule. Professional dealers and advanced collectors haunt established venues such as antiques shows, auctions, and flea markets. There is little, if anything, they miss. When attending an auction, keep your eyes open for pickers, individuals buying on behalf of non-present dealers. Having stated this, I have found more than my fair share of great buys at antiques shows, auctions, and flea markets. The key is my knowledge base. Also, remember I keep what I buy. I do not resell. As a result, my bargain price is not necessarily the same as that of a person who is planning to resell an object.

If you are going to take a chance, do it at a garage sale or buying from a private individual. If you do not go to garage sales, you should. They test your collectibles market knowledge base more than any other venue. Garage sale hunting is time consuming, and the chance of finding something to justify your time and expenses is minimal. Yet, garage sales are fun and can be rewarding if you ask the right questions of the seller and other attendees. Leads you obtain may be far more valuable than anything you buy.

The goal of every buyer is to obtain the objects “coming out,” i.e., purchased from a private individual. There are risks. First, if you pass yourself off as a collector or dealer, you are required to level the knowledge playing field when buying. You cannot say to the elderly person with a pair of eighteenth century Chippendale chairs, which you know are worth $25,000.00, “what do you want” and be thrilled and promptly pay the $100.00 asked. This is a fast invitation to be sued. Second, do not confuse an estate/tag sale with a private sale. These are professionally done. Finally, beware of little old ladies. They are not as dumb as you might think.

Have you taken a chance on an object and found out later that you bought something spectacular? If yes, I would love to hear about it. E-mail your story to me at harrylrinker@aol.com or send it to Rinker on Collectibles, 5093 Vera Cruz Road, Emmaus, PA 18049. Thanks.

Rinker Enterprises and Harry L. Rinker are on the Internet. Check out www.harryrinker.com.

You can listen and participate in WHATCHA GOT?, Harry’s antiques and collectibles radio call-in show, on Sunday mornings between 8:00 AM and 10:00 AM Eastern Time. If you cannot find it on a station in your area, WHATCHA GOT? streams live on the Internet at www.goldenbroadcasters.com.

SELL, KEEP OR TOSS?: HOW TO DOWNSIZE A HOME, SETTLE AND ESTATE, AND APPRAISE PERSONAL PROPERTY (House of Collectibles, an imprint of the Random House Information Group,$16.95), Harry’s latest book, is available at your favorite bookstore and via www.harryrinker.com.

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