Trash for one, another's treasure

By Bina Brown
For CNN

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(CNN) -- One person's trash is another's collectable treasure. Whether it be coins, comics or cars, you can rest assured that someone is preparing to bid at an auction or go online in search of a new item.

As long as collectors hang onto their finds and keep them in reasonable condition, just about anything is almost certain to win the heart and wallet of someone else at a later date.

That is what collecting is all about and, according to auctioneer and valuer Antony Davies, you only have to wait about 20 years before your collection becomes sought after.

A specialist in antiques, Davies says collectables go in and out of fashion in roughly 20 year cycles.

"New collecting areas tend to start in Europe, catch on in America and then return globally in a more general sense a few years later," he says.

The difference between a collectable and trash is not always clear, but desirability and rarity play a big part.

Rarity is much easier to define than desirability but any item is more likely to appeal if it is in reasonable condition. Other qualities include form, color, size and materials, which tend to change with popular tastes.

Cartoon comics are among those ephemeral collectables which are cheap to make and cost little to buy. Most have a short life before being thrown away. However, comics which are tightly stacked in bundles may be protected by compression from the effects of air and damp, and can turn up decades later in apparently pristine condition.

It's these examples which attract collectors. Irrespective of their nominal purchase price, rare comics in fine condition are fetching huge prices in America and England.

Consider the experience of movie star Nicholas Cage. While all his fellow actors were out spending their money on paintings, antiques and fast cars, Cage acquired a core collection of exceptionally fine and rare comic books.

It may not have been as impressive to look at, but it was highly portable, international, very rare and very popular.

Comic record

Cage's 141 comic books sold in 2002 for more than $2.25 million, setting a world record for comic book auctions.

The record prices paid apparently saw collectors scouring garages and junk shops in the hope of finding rare comic editions.

Davies says most international comic book collectors rely on the American "Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide", to check current prices. The guide is a subsidiary of the world's largest comic book distributor, Diamond Distribution, which is itself attached to Disney -- a marketing phenomenon in its own right and the creator of many things collectable.

Mickey Mouse, the most famous of Walt Disney's cartoon creations, enjoys a financial investment niche all of his own.

Barbara Crews, a U.S. based collector with a passion for cookie jars, has some tips for those who think they may have an item or two that is worth a few dollars.

1. Accurately and unsentimentally assess your item for manufacturer's marks, condition and size.

2. Take a picture to post on forums and/or take to the library or a bookstore.

3. Visit local bookstores or the library to check out their collector books for more information on your items.

4. Look on eBay; put an item description in the "search" feature and see if any similar items are found in the completed auction area.

If you think you may have something worthwhile, the obvious places to try to find a buyer are at a local auction house, online, such as through eBay, and at collectors' clubs.

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