A Fisher AG-7 Zero Gravity pen, developed and patented by Paul C. Fisher in 1965. If a pen like this had “flown,” meaning it traveled into space, it would increase its value some 20-fold.

To collectors of items related to space flight, nothing is nearer and dearer to their hearts than the word “flown.” While any item related to space exploration from the early days of NASA to the latest space shuttle flights are sought after, “flown” items are the most desirable.

What the term “flown” refers to are items that actually made it into space, and is what makes the difference between the ballpoint pen used by an astronaut to write out the list of what everyone wanted on their sandwiches at the local deli and the same pen used on a shuttle mission. In many cases, it’s items from the earlier missions that are the most sought after, as there was not very many items to make it into space at the time of the Mercury and Gemini missions that were not absolutely needed on the flight.

The most famous of flights was, of course, the Apollo 11 mission—the first human spaceflight to land on the moon. Launched on July 16, 1969, it carried Mission Commander Neil Alden Armstrong, Command Module Pilot Michael Collins and Lunar Module Pilot Edwin Eugene “Buzz” Aldrin, Jr. On July 20, Armstrong and Aldrin became the first humans to land on the moon, while Collins orbited above. Flown items used by any of these men on this mission
or other Apollo missions would be considered the pinnacle for a collector.

The pen illustrated at the top of the page is an example of a “flown” item. It is a Fisher AG-7 Zero Gravity pen, developed and patented by Paul C. Fisher in 1965. The design of this pen allows the use of pressurized ink cartridges that allows it to write in zero gravity, underwater, upside down and in extremes of hot and cold. Every astronaut from the Apollo 7 mission on used this type of pen in space, as have the cosmonauts of the Soviet space program.

In the current market, the difference between a Fisher Zero Gravity pen used in the office at NASA and one that was actually “flown” is substantial. A Fisher Zero Gravity pen that never made it off the ground and with some vague connection with NASA or an astronaut might sell for less than $200. But a pen that was used on an Apollo mission could sell for more than 20 times that amount. One such pen, used astronaut James McDivitt on the Apollo 9 mission, sold this past April at auction for $4,182.50. One actually carried on the surface of the moon by astronaut Gene Cernan on the Apollo 17 mission sold for $23,900.

Mike Wilcox, of Wilcox & Hall Appraisers, is a Worthologist who specializes in Art Nouveau and the Arts and Craft movement.

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The top lot at an August Petroliana & Gas Station Collectibles Auction was this Mohawk Gasoline single-sided porcelain neon sign, which soared to $30,250.

DES MOINES, Iowa – A Mohawk Gasoline neon single-sided porcelain sign, graded 9 on a scale of 1 to 10 for condition and with exceptional gloss, sold for $30,250 at a Petroliana & Gas Station Collectibles Auction held here on Aug. 7.

“This was one of our best auctions ever, at what is the biggest sale in the country for gas station collectibles and petroliana,” said Dan Matthews of Matthews Auctions, LLC, which hosted the three-day Iowa Gas Show. “Some 570 lots—mostly cans and signs—changed hands, and we had close to 200 people in attendance. Bidding was brisk online, too, through Proxibid. We had over 140 registered online bidders. They bought 22 percent of the lots.”

Matthews said he detected some buying trends at the sale. Globes, common signs and readily available collectibles, for example, brought soft prices, while signs, oil cans and hat badges commanded nice high prices. “Overall, though,” he added, “the sale actually did a little better than I thought it would do. We were all done in six hours and fifteen minutes. Everybody went home happy. It was a good day.”

The Mohawk sign, which would have achieved a 10 rating were it not for a few minor edge chips, was the top lot of the auction. Additional highlights included (all prices quoted include a 10 percent buyer’s premium):

Indian Gasoline milk glass globe with Running Indian logo.

• An Ace High Motor Oil single-sided tin sign in a wood frame (48 inches by 96 inches), graded 8.75 for condition, was the second top lot of the day, bringing a respectable $23,100. Also, an Indian Gasoline one-piece etched milk glass globe, with Running Indian logo and Havoline etched vertical on each end, climbed to $9,900. Both sides of the piece had been repainted and the body was in good shape.

• A Signal single-sided porcelain sign, graded 9.5 and measuring 28 inches by 4-¾ inches, realized $5,060; an Oilzum Motor Oil single-sided tin sign in a wood frame, dated 1948 and measuring 19 inches by 61 inches, rated 9.75 and with the slogan “If motors could speak we wouldn’t need to advertise” with logo, brought $4,510, and a Bee Line Capco neon sign, 13 ½ inches, both lenses excellent, made $4,400.

A can of Husky Motor Oil of Cody, Wyo.

• A Wasatch single-lens neon sign on a reproduction blue ripple body in good condition, gaveled for $4,400; a Perfect Circle single-sided tin sign with a graphic of a large car (36 inches by 29-½ inches), graded 8 and with good color, coasted to $4,400; and an extremely rare Texaco single-sided porcelain sign, advertising the Texaco Easy-Pour 2-quart can of motor oil, graded 8.5, rose to $3,575.

• A Mobil Gargoyle one-piece embossed milk glass cabinet globe, graded 9.5, demanded $3,300; a Piggly Wiggly single-sided porcelain sign, 27 inches tall, graded 8.75, with some touch-up work done to the grommet holes, fetched $3,410; a Sunset Gasoline hat badge in excellent condition (2 inches by 2 inches) hammered for $3,520; and a Seaside Gasoline hat badge, also in excellent shape, made $1,980.

• Tops among the oil cans was a full one-quart round metal orange can of Husky (Cody, Wyo.) Motor Oil, graded 8.5 (it soared to $2,090. Also, an empty one-quart round metal can of The Bomber motor oil, graded 8.5, breezed to $990; a full one-quart round metal can of Ace High motor oil, graded 9.5, commanded $1,045; and an empty one-quart round metal can of Skunk Oil, graded 8.5, made $900.

Oilzum Motor Oil tin sign (1948)

Matthews Auctions, has another big sale planned, for Saturday, Oct. 16, when it will hold its annual Fall Peotone Petroliana & Advertising Auction in Peotone, Ill., one day before the start of the Fall Chicagoland Advertising Show (Oct. 17-18). The firm will conduct a smaller petroliana and gas station collectibles auction, in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., in early November.

For more information, call Matthews Auctions at (217) 563-8880 or (217) 259-7059, or e-mail to info [at] matthewsauctions [dot] com.

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New York Governor

Kentucky Chief Justice

Ever since the days of early motor vehicle registration there has always been fierce competition amongst drivers to obtain a low-number license plate. In many states, to many motorists, bearing a low-number plate has an instant connotation of status, power, wealth, and even political connections. While there are some states where this phenomenon is more prevalent than others, here I will examine the collectability of the elusive political license plate.

Arkansas House Parlament	Arkansas House of Reps	Ark. Secretary of State	Ark. Speaker of the House
Arkansas Senator	Connecticut Congress	Idaho Governor	Illinois House

As soon as license plates were adopted for use on automobiles, very often it was the governor, motor vehicle commissioner or some other political person of influence who would receive low-number license plates. It is true that traditionally the governor of each state does receive a license plate bearing the number one. As time passed, and the number of license categories has proliferated (i.e. passenger car, bus, truck, motorcycle, veteran, senate, purple heart, handicapped, etc.), we now have low-number and number one license plates for many of these categories. Here I will use the state of Rhode Island as a prime example. In Rhode Island, not only does the governor use the number one registration (this particular plate bearing the number one flanked by two state seals), but look at the other categories of number ones: Sheriff, U.S. Senate, U.S. House, School Bus, Purple Heart, Ex Prisoner of War, News Photographer, State Police , etc.). Collectors always get excited over a number one license plate, and when it comes to collectability, it seems that the political plates are the most sought after. In our post September 11th world, fewer political figures are using political license plates. Many simply do not want to be a possible target of an attack or crime, and therefore prefer to keep a low profile. As such, political license plates have become a bit mores scarce these days. Of course, those using these plates never seem to have a problem when it comes to parking! Number one and or governor license plates can usually be found in nice condition and, depending on the state, can sell for between $50 and $500 each. Senate and legislative plates with higher numbers can often be found for as little as $15-$25 each. Often a collector will ask the political figure to autograph the license plate.

Idaho U.S. Rep.	North Carolina House	N.H. Governor	Maine Horseless Crg.
Tennessee Legislature	N.Y. U.S. Congress	Tennessee U.S. Senate	New York U.S. Senate

In the low-number realm, certain states have a policy that allows a low-number plate to be willed to a family member (this is true in almost all of the New England states) and others, such as Delaware, have a policy that dictates that a license plate remains with the vehicle when the vehicle is sold. As a direct result, Delaware has created a scenario where the pursuit of a low-number plate is somewhat of a religion. Often, one can see a vehicle for sale for several thousands dollars more than its true worth, simply because there is a hefty premium on the attached low-number license plate. On Feb. 7, 2008 the number six registration was sold in Delaware for a record $675,000. It is important to note here that in these cases it is the rights to the registration and not the actual license plate as a collectible is what command such a high price.

Rhode Island Governor	Rhode Island House	R.I. Purple Heart	Rhode Island Sheriff
Rhose Island House	Rhode Island Senate	R.I. State Police	New Jersey Governor

So you may ask at this point, what license plate does the president of the United States use in the District of Columbia? Currently, President Barack Obama’s car (alias The Beast) bears a generic Washington, D.C. license plate. It is actually the Mayor of Washington .D.C., Adrian M. Fenty, who is assigned the number one license plate!

Maine House Indian Representative	Maryland House of Delegates	Rhode Island News Photographer	New Hampshire Governor's Council
Texas U.S. Senate	Utah U.S. Senator	Vermont Senate	Utah Governor

Political and low-number plates are interesting and challenging categories for collectors of both license plates and political memorabilia. If these areas is of particular interest to you, be prepared to write a lot of letters!

Andy Bernstein is a Worthologist who specializes in collectible license plates.

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From Auction Central News:
Seattle buyer returns 1919 car to France

The Seattle man who purchased a 1919 Turcat-Mery roadster in France for almost $1 million has decided to return the car to its native country after the French government claimed it as a national monument. Charles Morse will ship the car back to France, hoping to find a buyer an antique-car show in Paris. The car was originally built for a descendant of Louis XVI, and as an original part of the Randan royal estate, is considered a French national monument.

From Bloomberg:
Koons Snubbed for Cheaper Art in London as Bargains Sought

In what was expected to be the highlight of Phillips de Pury’s London sale, Jeff Koons’ glass-vitrine sculpture failed to receive a single bid from buyers. Koons’ work was estimated to bring in at least $2.6 million at the sale, which sold two-thirds of the lots for a total of £4.2 million ($6 million). The Phillips de Pury sale is yet another indication that the contemporary-art market is far from healthy.

From ARTINFO:
Lincoln Reelection Speech Sets Auction Record

The handwritten text of Abraham Lincoln’s re-election speech sold at Christie’s in New York for $3,442,500, a new record at auction for an American historical document. Lincoln delivered the speech two days after his re-election to the presidency at the White House in 1864. The document’s previous owner was the Southworth Library Association, which had owned it since 1926. It was part of a sale that brought in a total of $5,565,063.

From The New York Times:
Glamour Girls for the Middle Class

Through April 7, the Center for Jewish History’s Leo Baeck Institute is hosting an exhibit of Goldscheider ceramics. The popular, kitschy collectibles were made in Vienna from 1885–1938 and are from the collection of Kathryn Hausman, who serves as president of the Art Deco Society of New York. Goldscheider figures were splashes of glamour that decorated middle-class homes. More than 9,000 different models were made, ranging from the Hollywood starlets of the 1920s to North Africans in native costumes.

From BBC News:
German court orders poster return

A Florida man whose German father’s collection of vintage posters was seized by the Nazis during World War II has won the court decision over the ownership of the posters. The 4,000 posters, currently in the German Historical Museum, will be returned to Peter Sachs. It’s only a piece of the 12,500 posters that made up his father’s collection, but Sachs is hopeful that the German court decision will help bring the rest of the collection together. The entire collection is thought to be worth about £4 million ($5.7 million) and includes a 1932 “Die Blond Venus” movie poster, featuring Marlene Dietrich, which was used at court to argue Sachs’s case.

From Bloomberg:
Hirst Opens Second Shop, Defies Slump With £3.50 Keychains

British artist Damien Hirst has no doubt been affected by the contemporary-art market slump and has decided to do something about it. Hirst recently opened a new shop, Other Criteria, in London’s Marylebone district, selling smaller, affordable items for as little as £3.50 ($5). The cheapest of Hirst’s wares are the £3.50 Hirst-designed key chains, limited-edition prints, books and sculptures.

From WTHR-TV (Indianapolis):
Fate of antiques at children’s home debated

An Indianapolis children’s home that started as an orphanage for children of Civil War veterans is may close its doors, and with that comes the question of what to do with the home’s vast collection of antiques. Items amassed at the home since its opening in the 1800s include old clothing, bathing suits, a box of diapers from the early 1900s, original artwork, antique fireplaces, handmade clocks and furniture, and stained-glass windows. For now, the antiques will stay put thanks to a lawsuit filed in hopes of keeping the items in place.

From The (Colorado Springs) Gazette:
Antiques preserve experience of world’s first skiers

Most collectors keep their antiques in their homes on shelves where the collectibles can be admired. A Carbondale, Colo., man who possesses one of the most extensive collections of vintage ski gear in the world, likes to use his antiques for their intended purpose: on the slopes. Richard Allen owns a ski shop in Carbondale and organized antique-ski races in Aspen, as well as renting out equipment from his extensive collection—boots, skis, hats, gloves, poles, posters, patches and pins, to name a few—for commercials and the like.

From BBC News:
Gandhi’s spectacles up for sale

Mahatma Gandhi’s iconic glasses, along with a pair of leather sandals and a pocket watch, will be auctioned in New York next month. The spectacles, which Gandhi once said gave him “the vision to free India” from British colonial rule, are valued at $42,000, partly because he had so few material possessions. The Zenith pocket watch, made in 1910, is expected to be the biggest sale at the auction.

From The Chicago Sun-Times:
Cars, collectibles worth millions saved from fire

A fire at an auto showroom in suburban Chicago went up in flames Monday night, but the business’ $500,000 Ford Mustang was saved from the blaze. Another Mustang—this one a 1964 car that was the first Mustang to ever come off the manufacturer’s assembly line and worth about $5 million—was also saved, along with multiple signed rock ’n’ roll records from Elvis, the Beatles, Buddy Holly and others. The fire department that responded to the call reported that the blaze started in a 1968 Oldsmobile in the showroom. The Oldsmobile was worth $75,000.

From Luxist:
Watch Owned by Kennedy and Onassis Up at Auction

A 14K gold watch that belonged to both John F. Kennedy and Aristotle Onassis is scheduled to be up for auction at Antiquorum in March. Estimated to bring in bids up to $200,000, the watch has 57 gemstones on it and has two inscriptions. Kennedy’s personal secretary found the watch in his desk after he was assassinated and gave the timepiece to Jackie Kennedy. She later gifted the watch to Aristotle Onassis.

From The Art Newspaper:
Design forgery ring uncovered in France

Double-check your collection if it contains pieces by Jean Prouvé, Charlotte Perriand, Alexandre Noll and Pierre Chareau. French police have busted a counterfeiting scheme that reproduced objects by these famous 20-century designers. The artist behind the fake pieces died several years ago, but members of his family, in addition to other associates, were arrested on charges of counterfeiting, receiving counterfeit goods and fraud.

From The New York Times:
Artist Sues The A.P. Over Obama Image

Shepard Fairey has had quite a week so far. After being arrested in Boston—on his way to a retrospective in his honor at the Institute of Contemporary Art—for illegally papering the city with posters of his artwork, Fairey, in a pre-emptive strike against the Associated Press, has filed a lawsuit asking to be protected from a claim of copyright infringement. Fairey’s now-iconic poster of President Obama is based on an AP photograph of the then-candidate. Fairey’s lawyers believe he falls under the fair-use exemptions of copyright law. The AP has not taken legal action to date but contacted Fairey’s studio last month asking him to pay for the use of the image.

From The Associated Press:
Rare trove of Hebrew books displayed in NYC

The Valmadonna Trust Library, estimated to be worth $40 million, went on display at Sotheby’s in New York this week. The 11,000 works are thought to be the greatest collection of privately owned Judaica. Among the rare Hebrew books and manuscripts on display are a 16th-century Hebrew bible once used at Westminster Abbey, a 10th- or 11th-century Franco-German Hebrew bible and an almost-perfect complete edition of the Babylonian Talmud, printed in 1519-1523. The collection is the life work of London collector Jack Lunzer, who wanted it to end up eventually at the Library of Congress. Per his request, Sotheby’s will sell the collection as a whole to either a private collector or public institution.

From The New York Times:
Rare N.Y. Photo to Be Offered by Sotheby’s

A rare photograph of New York City, dated 1849, will be up for sale at Sotheby’s next month. The auction house claims that the daguerreotype is the oldest photograph found of the city, a landscape of what is now Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Because antique daguerreotypes of the New York City are quite rare, experts at Sotheby’s don’t have an estimate of how much the photograph will sell for at auction.

From Auction Central News:
Santonio Holmes’ Super Bowl gloves in charity auction

Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver and Super Bowl star Santonio Holmes has donated his Reebok-made gloves to an auction to raise money for the Sickle Cell Disease Association of America Inc. The gloves, worn by Holmes when he made the touchdown catch to seal the Steelers’ victory over the Arizona Cardinals, have a current high bid of $15,200 on the Reebok Web site that is running the auction through Thursday. Holmes’ son suffers from sickle cell disease.

From BBC News:
Classic Bugatti makes 3.4m euros

After being discovered by its late owner’s children in a musty garage in England, a classic Bugatti automobile sold for 3.4 million euros ($4.43 million) at a Bonhams auction in Paris. The 1937 Type 57S Atalante has not been driven in more than 50 years and is considered to be one of the most coveted cars among automobile collectors.

By Elizabeth Hendley, a WorthPoint writer based in Seattle

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One of the most common questions I am asked as a license plate collector is: “What is the most interesting license plate in North America?” Without a doubt the answer to this question is: “The very famous and conspicuous polar bear license plates of the Northwest Territories Canada.”

One great aspect of license plate collecting is the keen understanding and appreciation one gains for the geography of the world and a specific culture or subculture of a specific country or region. To get a greater sense of appreciation of the polar bear license plates as a collectible one has to look at this vast isolated remote territory of the Canadian Artic.

The Northwest Territories was established in 1869 and encompasses approximately 1,322,900 square miles within its borders. According to the 2006 census, the population was less than 42,000 people. In comparison for this same year, Alaska with 589,757 square miles had a population of 670,000 people. The discovery of gold in 1937, which attracted many miners and prospectors, fueled the population growth of this northern region of Canada for many years. Winters often last more than eight months of the year and there were few roads on which to travel. It was not until 1960, when the Mackenzie Highway was open, that it was possible to reach the Northwest Territories by other than water or air. As a result of geographical isolation, severe weather and the lack of adequate roads, the development of registering automobiles came much later than that of any other jurisdiction in North America.

The first license plates were not issued until 1941, and needless to say, there are only a handful of these black on white plates known to exist in collections today. Motorists with 1942 license plates were issued a windshield sticker in 1943 to revalidate their plates as a means of conserving metal for the Canadian was effort of World War II. For those registering a vehicle for the first time in 1943, new yellow-on-black plates were issued. Talk about a collectible license plate, as there are only two of these rare 1943 Northwest Territories know today! In 1954 the first slogan of “Canada’s Northland” was introduced. This slogan was retained through 1969.

During 1969, the government of the Northwest Territories proposed a contest for school children throughout the territories to create a unique license plate that would symbolize their homeland. The winning design went to a 7th-grader from Yellowknife. This license plate, showed a walking polar bear with a blue background to represent the sky, on white numbers to represent the snow-covered ground.

In April of 1999, the eastern three-fifths of the Northwest Territories separated and became a new territory called “Nunavut.” For a while, both territories were arguing over as to who would retain the famous popular polar bear license plate design. It was finally decided and agreed that BOTH the Northwest Territories and Nunavut would keep the polar bear design and so, yet another very, very ,collectible license plate appeared and was issued in late 1999, that of Nunavut Territory, Canada. A very interesting anecdote illustrates just how collectible the license plates of these Canadian Territories are. If you travel up to either the Northwest Territories or Nunavut and attempt to rent an automobile, rental agencies will charge a deposit to ensure that the polar bear license plate will still be on the back bumper when you return the vehicle!

As for value, a current style Northwest Territories license plate in very good or better condition would be worth between $25 and $40, while a Nunavut plate would be worth at least twice that amount. Because so few of the early issues of the 1940’s are available to assess a fair market value, but for a plate in original condition from the 1945-1950 era, expect to pay at least a few thousand dollars each.

Worthologist Andy Bernstein specializes in automobile license plates

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‘Red Flag Law’ Figurine

By Dave Bausch

Automobilia art objects take several forms, some are made just for pleasure to the eye, but others were made to tell a story or help record a historic event. This art item was made to tell a story about “Red Flag Law.”

In 1865, a law was passed in England that limited speed to not more then four miles per hour in the country and two miles per hour in the city. It also required a walking attendant to carry a red warning flag or lantern preceding the vehicle. This law remained on the books until 1896.

This porcelain is in the shape of a chauffeur with a lantern and horn. The quality of this figurine is very much like Royal Doulton, but, on this example there are no markings. The figure is 10-and-three-quarter-inches high and an automobile object of this quality would be priced in the range of $3,000 to $5,000.

Automobile Flower Vases

By David Bausch

The flower vase is both an automobile accessory and an object of auto art. The flower vase added a touch of elegance to a rather dull interior of many of the cars of the 1920’s.

While many of the expensive sedans and limousines sported flower vases as part of standard equipment, the more common automobile lacked that grace. So, companies like Sears offered flower vases in their auto supply section of their catalogue. The prices of such elegance would cost in a range of 75cents to more than $3, depending on the quality of glass and the engraving and the mounting frame. I have a pair of sterling silver vases that are embossed with automobile scenes, and to be sure it was a custom design and was quite expensive. The vases come in many designs and colors including carnival glass, green, blue, Vaseline, amber, mercury glass and other colors I have not seen in my years of collecting.

Prices rage from $10 to $65, depending upon the quality of the item. As always, condition is important.

Caution: Just because the vase is cone-shaped, it doesn’t always mean it was designed for an automobile. Many glass vases of similar shape were made to be used in epergnes. Most car vases were small and had a ridge for the bracket that held the vase. Try and collect vases with their brackets for easy display. Some of the brackets are quite decorative with etched designs.

For Bernstein, it all began when as a 9-year-old at summer camp, the cook staff gave him outdated Florida and Mississippi license plates. That acquisition turned Bernstein into a boy with a mission.

Andy would cruise through shopping-mall parking lots on his bike, and if he spied an out-of-state plate, he’d linger until the driver came back to his car and ask if he could have the plate when it expired. “Often they were people who had just moved, and they had to get new plates,” Bernstein said.

1958 plate depicting a favorite Colorado pastime (left), New Hampshire’s Live Free or Die plate (is that referring to the moose?) (right)

Though, it wasn’t all that easy. “People’s reactions were usually suspicious, ‘Why do you want those plates?’ or ‘You can’t have them, they have to be turned in,’” Bernstein said. A couple of times a week, he would pedal over to the local junkyard in search of plates on wrecks. “At first, the owner was pretty unfriendly. He didn’t want a kid in there where he could be hurt,” Bernstein said. “But over time, we became friends.”

“It was a long uphill battle, but after about five years, I had managed to collect a license plate from every state and the District of Columbia,” Bernstein said. It was also around this time that a now teenage Bernstein discovered the Automobile License Plate Collectors Association. “I couldn’t believe it,” Bernstein said. “I realized I wasn’t in this alone. I wasn’t the only crazy one.”

Bernstein immediately joined and began building a network of friendships that has been even more valuable than the licenses plates he has collected—and he has amassed more than 65,000 plates.

Texas plate remembering the space-shuttle disaster (left), a to-drool-for Maine lobster plate (right)

The license plate, as we know it, began in Massachusetts in 1903, and by the late teens, all the states had adopted some type of standardized license plate. The most sought-after plates are from this early period, particularly those that were porcelain or enamel, which were soon replaced with painted, metal plates. For more on license-plate history and markets, see Bernstein’s blog, The Lure of Collecting Automobile License Plates.

There has been an explosion of varieties and styles of license plates—with specialized plates, vanity plates, and changing styles and graphics. “It is quite common now that when a state is going to change its license plate, it posts several designs on a Web site and lets people vote,” Bernstein said.

A vanity plate from Alabama where someone loves Jon (left) and one from Kentucky showing allegiance to the Louisville Cardinals (right)

The rise of Internet selling, (including at Bernstein’s site, Plate Hut), the variety of plates and the advent of new collectors—including a rise in international collectors—have all led to the creation of “micromarkets,” Bernstein said. “For a 1931 Model A Ford owner in Illinois, the finishing touch is getting 1931 Illinois plates. That is a specialized market.”

In fact, Bernstein sometimes gets calls from film companies looking for period plates to put on a car being used in a scene. License-plate art and handicrafts is another market, as license plates have been used to make items as varied as CD cases, purses, dustpans, toolboxes and birdhouses, Bernstein said.

Europeans have been especially fascinated with American license plates, Bernstein said. “License plates in Europe tend to be long and black with just numbers and maybe a letter to indicate the country, so our plates with their designs and colors really catch the eye.”

The prices for license plates, as a result or these complex and varied markets, have remained strong, Bernstein said. Still, while the rarest porcelain plate can fetch $10,000, a beginner starting out with a one-plate-per-state goal can manage for between $150 and $350.

As for his own collecting, Bernstein is in the hunt to add commemorative, political and picture plates to his collection—as well as those rare and elusive porcelain plates. And where does he store them all? Well, some are with his parents and some with a friend. But a large portion are arranged on a bookshelf in his apartment. “My brother says he feels sorry for the people who live downstairs,” Bernstein said, “because one day they are going to be buried in an avalanche of license plates.”

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Automobilia China Part Two

By David Bausch

While most of the early china objects depicting the automobile were from Europe (the home of the automobile), it wasn’t long until the automobile fever caught on here in the U.S. of A. While Royal Doulton of England, and Villeroy and Boch of Germany were making china picturing the automobile, it was Roseville of Zanesville, Ohio, that took up the effort to portray the automobile on China in America.

Roseville produced a large series of pottery known as “Tourist.” There were 29 different shapes of pottery that carried the Tourist design. I should say designs, because there was more then one design in the series. Usually, two autos are found on the larger items and one on the smaller pieces. Some of the cars are roadsters and others are touring cars of different styles; one of the series shows a car broken down with a flat tire. A flat tire was not an unusual problem; at least not in the very early days of motoring. I am sure many of the motorists could relate to that experience.

A large jardinière on a pedestal base will command a price of $2,500 to $3,000. A small bowl can run around $300 to $500. Condition is very important, crazing is very common on this pottery, and crazing reduces the value of any item in this series.

License plates have fast become moving billboards for all kinds of messages and causes. As Americans vow to never forget the events of Sept. 11th, 2001, colorful patriotic license plates displaying slogans such as “United We Stand,” “We Will Never Forget,” “Fight Terrorism,” and “God Bless America” have become very popular throughout the United States. As I have stated before, with license plate collecting, one can focus on a myriad of categories and themes and the “United We Stand” or Sept. 11th plates clearly demonstrate this point.

Shortly after Sept. 11th, 2001, legislation was introduced in most states to issue specialty license plates incorporating a patriotic message along with a prominent image of the American Flag. These commemorative plates have proven to be quite popular among collectors. In nice condition, prices for these plates generally run between $25 to $150 each.

Interestingly enough, one state which has yet to issue a 9/11 license plate—as these are commonly referred to by collectors—is New York. One would think that it would stand to reason that New York would have been the first state to issue such a plate but this was not the case. There indeed has been much discussion in Albany with DMV officials about a license plate for Sept. 11th, however I have been informed that there has been quite a bit of controversy over the exact design and several sensitivity issues to family members of those touched by these tragic events. About three years ago I saw a prototype of a New York 9/11 plate which featured an image of the two Twin Towers with a ribbon around them but, unfortunately, the state of New York has yet to finalize and issue a license plate for Sept. 11th.

I would speculate that when a design is finalized that such a specialty plate would be one of the most popular specialty license plates ever in the state of New York and without a doubt a very collectible license plate for collectors.

Early Car Makers Desired Hit Song to Boost Sales

By Dave Bausch

In the field of Automobilia, the one subject most collected is advertising. Advertising took many forms: posters, prints, toys, magazine ads, postcards just to name a few. But the one that most of the automobile makers yearned for was to have their specific model of car depicted on sheet music.

If the tune was catchy, and the words embellished the car and the effect the owner/driver had on the young ladies, it would be a sure winner for the automobile manufacturer. Many examples of early songs can still be found at antique paper shows and even at garage sales, and still at an affordable price. The rarer the featured automobile, the more pricey the sheet music.

The most common sheet music would be “In My Merry Oldsmobile,” a tune which was used over and over again for many years. A more scarce piece of music would be “In My Mercer Racing Car,” or “Packard and the Ford,” from 1913 and 1915, respectively.

Condition, like for most collectables, is important. If the featured car in the music is rare enough, though, condition may be less important. But surely the price will certainly be higher for those in better condition.

Graphics on the cover of the sheet music will also contribute greatly to the value. There were more then 100 different song sheets picturing early automobiles. The range for automobile sheet music is anywhere from $5 to $125. You just might be lucky and find a rare copy at a good price. That, after all, is the fun of collecting.

This scenario is certainly not the case today. No other hobby related to the automobile has become more popular in the past 10 years or so than the collecting, studying, researching, trading, buying, selling and the quest for valuable automobile tags, with shiny new plates sought after as avidly as the rusty older ones.

With the advent of the silk-screening process in license-plate manufacturing, thousands of colorful elaborate designs now adorn the bumpers of automobiles in the United States, Canada, Mexico and many other foreign countries. These newer attractive designs are being used to generate what has become a plethora of optional issues. Optional-issued license plates are plates issued for an additional fee, whereby motorists can opt to support all kinds of environmental organizations, a particular university or college, or simply show an affiliation to a particular group. Specialty or optional license plates have proliferated at an unprecedented rate, and it is this phenomenon that has further fueled the interest in license-plate collecting.

Valuation of license plates

Like many collectibles and antiques, the value of a license plate depends greatly on supply and demand. Key factors in determining value include age, the number of plates issued in that particular year and jurisdiction, condition, whether plates for the year in question were issued in pairs or singles, the type of material from which it was manufactured and the desirability of colors, slogans and/or number combinations.

While mass production of state-issued license plates began in Massachusetts in 1903 (see photo), by the late teens, all states had adopted some style of standardized license plate. It is from this period that today’s most sought-after plates originated. The true gems of this period are the porcelain or enamel license plates. These are often quite colorful, durable, attractive to display and very scarce. By the mid-teens, most of the porcelain-style issues had been replaced with cheaper, painted metal plates. Prices of even common porcelain license plates like those of Pennsylvania have definitely escalated, but many can still be purchased in nice condition for $75 or less. (See photo.) On the other end of the spectrum, we find that the scarce and more elusive porcelain license plates can easily fall into the $5,000-$10,000 range. (See photo.)

It is worth noting that as in any hobby or collecting realm, reproductions have also surfaced, but this on a much smaller scale. Often these can readily be identified by a “new” appearance and lack of a maker’s seal on the reverse of the plate.

License-plate collecting approaches

Collecting license plates is one of the most challenging hobbies around. With so many thousands of categories to choose from, it is important to focus on collecting goals, as well as to a set budget. Probably one of the most common projects a collector embarks on is that of completing a “one-per-state” display, usually composed of passenger license plates of recent vintage. One can easily complete this goal with a budget of $150-$350 depending on the type of plates sought. The toughest plate to complete a U.S. set? The elusive Washington, D.C., license plate! This is due to the fact that few of these are issued and that plates in the District of Columbia are permanent.

While the “one-per-state” project is going on, the average collector usually begins his own state “run.” A “state run” consists of one passenger-car plate for each year of issue since the first plates came into use in that particular state. If your state began motor-vehicle registration in 1910, you would seek a plate for each year with the eventual goal of an almost 100-year span!

A popular third goal for many collectors is a “birthyear set” with one-plate-per-state for the year of your birth. If you were born in 1929, you were lucky in the sense that every state did issue a plate that year. For those born during the 1941-1946 era, this would represent an extremely challenging endeavor due to the fact that most states issued windshield stickers, tabs or decals during the war years as a result of the metal shortage. Many of these windshield stickers that validated the license plate would bring $100-$250 each when available.

The main thing to remember is to keep within your budget and storage space. You can have just as much fun in the license-plate hobby with a few limited goals as the collector who collects everything in sight.

What links the history of the automobile and the history of automobilia? The answer is the love/hate relationship with the automobile. Much autombilia–prints, sheet music, steins, postcards, valentines–illustrates the conflict between automobile lover and hater.

One such item is the pictured beer stein, made in Germany around 1905. It depicts an early motorist who has just run over a farmer’s goose, a common event in the early days of motoring.

The value of such a stein is in the range of $350-$550, dependent upon the detail of the scene and the condition of the stein. A number of steins have been made in the past 20 years. Steins made in South America for companies such as Avon and some beer companies have little or no value to the antique stein collector. Many of the newer steins, though nice and well made, command no more then $35-$45.

P.S. I have some of the later steins in my collection because I collect almost anything picturing an early automobile.

“Automobilia” comes in many forms. Often, these objects are cross collectibles (i.e. ashtrays). One of the most interesting early ashtrays is the one pictured.

The tray is from the early 1900s and made of cast metal. It has no manufacturer’s mark, but is probably French. It depicts a very early motorist driving his car at a great rate of speed (somewhere around 35 miles per hour). Embossed on the ashtray is a road sign reading “1.000km” and some geese scattering.

Much early automobilia depicts the age of speed and the dangers the speeding auto brought to the rural countryside. It is no wonder the farming community pushed for restrictive motoring laws such as the Red Flag Law in England, which required a person to walk in front of the auto carrying a red flag to warn anyone of the approaching motorcar.

The value of this ashtray is in the range of $250-$350, if you can find a good example.

Not too many years ago the automobile was considered the work of madmen, determined to corrupt the morals of our society, not to mention upset the enterprise of the blacksmith, the horse breeder and the harness maker. (They weren’t far from the truth.) It is difficult for the current generation to understand how the automobile caught the world’s imagination.

The artist with his canvas was best to capture the new found exciting event. No one artist was able to capture the excitement better then Ernest Montaut of Paris, France. Ernest Montaut, artist and lithographer, was the first to mass produce automobile art. Not only were his lithographs sold in Europe, but Motor Magazine of the United States used some of his images, in printed form, as inserts in some of their early issues.

Pictured is a 1908 lithograph showing an early race car with a blue bird on the righthand corner of the lithograph. These, like so many early lithographs, fade quickly if not properly displayed, always away from direct sun light.

The value depends upon the condition, but his lithographs sell for around $250-$350.

Call this the Big-Bucks-Oops Department

As the VietnamNet Bridge, an English-language online news site, tells it, Vietnam discovered a ship about 10 years ago that had sunk between 1727 and 1735. Remains of its cargo included thousands of what-are-now antiques, some of them precious Chinese pottery.

So far so good. The Vietnamese provinces of Ca Mau and Binh Thuan got the go-ahead to sell the trove. So what do they do? Decide to auction 76,000 pieces at Sotheby’s in Holland, that’s what.

Now that all the figures have been added and subtracted, the decision doesn’t look like such a great idea. The auction brought in 3 million euros—that’s$4.4 million. Then the Dutch income tax was subtracted. Now we’re down to $3.7 million. And of course, there’s the 20% that goes to Sotheby’s, the fees for protection, maintenance, etc. In the end, the Vietnamese saw less than $1.5 million.

It’s felt that Vietnam could have held the auction on its own turf and would have pocketed a lot more money.

$1-million doorstop

Are you, by any chance, missing a Picasso or two? Maybe a Giacometti?

This might be good news then. A large stash of stolen art has been located reports The Guardian . This bizarre theft story unfolded after the death of one William M.V. Kingsland. (He claimed the M and V stood for Milliken and Vanderbilt.)

Kingsland died without a will, and it was ordered that his collection of 300 art pieces be sold at auction. That’s when things got strange. A representative from one of the assigned auction houses went to take inventory in Kingsland’s Upper East Side Manhattan apartment and found artwork crammed all over, even under the bed. A Giacometti sculpture valued at $1 million was serving as a doorstop.

A gallery owner, who bought a John Singleton Copley portrait for $85,000, decided to check its provenance and discovered it had been stolen from Harvard University.

Other pieces were checked and came up also stolen. Then it was found that Kingsland had been living a lie. In rubbing shoulders with New York blue bloods, he claimed to be a Harvard graduate, been married to French royalty, lived in a fancy Fifth Avenue apartment. He was, in fact, the son of Jewish refugees from Europe who lived in the Bronx, not exactly blue-blood territory.

The FBI is looking for the rightful owners of the purloined pieces.

And the winner is . . .

A beautifully restored 1938 Alfa Romeo. And the competition is . . . the 58th Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

As The New York Times notes, “owners don’t just take the muscle car they owned as a teenager and give it a shine” when they enter this crème-de la-crème event.

The Concours is definitely for serious collectors of classic cars who can afford authentic restoration. That’s authentic down to knowing that Phillips-head screws weren’t used before the 1930s, so they better not show up in a 1926 Rolls-Royce.

Restorers search out original brochures and manuals, photos of the car being manufactured, the tools that were used and pictures of the first owners. The more documentation the better because the judges want proof that the restoration was done accurately.

Oh, the owner of the winning Alfa? That would be Jon Shirley, who was the president and CEO of Microsoft. Guess he can afford having megapricey collectibles if anyone can.

In 1961 Yuri Gagarin became the first human to enter space and orbit the globe for 108 minutes aboard Vostok 3KA-2 (Vostok I) and returned safely to earth. What a brave cosmonaut!!

The Perth Mint (Australia) is in the process of minting their “Orbit and Beyond” series. Last year a Sputnik commemorative was issued. Remember the sensational 1958 Sputnik launch which started our space race with the USSR?

These coins have revolutionary design in which the .999 silver dollar rotates about a brass core. The core has colored views of “The Blue Marble” from space. The reverse of the silver collar shows images depicting Gagarin’s historic flight: The blasting of the Vostok rocket, Vostok I in orbit, separation of the instrument and re-entry modules, fiery re-entry, and the independent parachute landings of Vostok and Gagarin. The border inscription reads: 1961 – FIRST MAN IN SPACE – YURI GAGARIN.

The craft experienced failure during re-entry causing the capsule to spin wildly during re-entry and would only settle down when wires were burned through during this phase. During re-entry Gagarin experienced 8 G’s but did not lose consciousness.

Yuri lost his life in 1968 during a crash of an MIG test flight. He will, however, never lose his title of FIRST MAN IN SPACE – YURI GAGARIN.

As a dealer and collector, I am not usually interested in dealing with anything that is larger than a bread box, with the exception of paintings. But, every once in a while, I stumble across something and I’ve got to reconsider — at least for that particular item. No, I’m not interested in making furniture one of my primary items to deal with, but I might make an exception, if the money is right.

I’m talking about cars today. You see, a friend asked if I would buy or sell her daughter’s car, because she was away at college and didn’t need it. My first inclination was to say no. I appreciated that she had thought of me, so I had second thoughts. I wondered what kind of car it was, so I asked. Turns out it’s an early Cadillac convertible from 1968 in great shape.

Wow! I had just read where these convertibles from the 50′s and 60′s, with their huge tail fins and big headlights, were in big demand. All of a sudden my thoughts changed. I could just envision that Cadillac being a mile long with those huge fins as I took it for a drive down the highway. A real treasure was being dropped into my lap.

Today, that Classic Cadillac is listed in our new expanded Gallery and Marketplace. But many things can be gleaned from reading the back story.

When this car was being dropped in my lap, I had to decide what I’d do with it. Whether I bought the car myself or sold it on consignment, it was going to be a great find.

You see, if people know what you’re doing, don’t be surprised what happens. I just happened to be at church, and she approached me with this proposition. Keep in mind that we are in the money growing business. I wouldn’t want to become a used car salesman, but if I can purchase a real classic car or even sell it for someone, I would be a fool to turn it down.

Remember, it is always about what the item is. If I get a call on an old pump organ, I usually ask the person what they would pay me to junk it, but if the call is about a Steinway piano, then that is a different story. The rare and expensive items will make all the extra work you might have to do worth it. Don’t prejudge until you know what is being offered.

All the big name celebrities collect cars, and I am sure you’ve heard that Jay Leno has one of the biggest car collections in the country. When I was a child, it was the Model A’s and Model T’s that people collected, but today, the muscle cars and the large touring cars are popular and in demand.

When I was interested in cars as a teen, I dreamed about Alburns, Packards, Cords and other cars of that vintage. Not collectors today. They want the Corvette, GTO, Mustang and other vintage muscle cars. Even if you find a car with a with a special engine, it can add thousands of dollars to its value today. Believe it or not, I have even seen cars that needed total restorations sell for thousands of dollars.

Get a car magazine and just list the cars that are in demand. Then keep your eyes open. There might be one sitting right in your neighborhood that could be a great treasure for you. There might be one sitting in the driveway of the next estate sale you attend. Browse the Internet for prices of these treasures.

If you’d like to learn more about the antique & collectible business visit my 31 Club website at www.31corp.com

Cadillac Details:

http://www.31corp.com/marketplace/detail/52

While you are out there finding all those great license plates I talked about in the blog the other day, be sure to keep your antenna up for other collectible automobile items. There isn’t a larger group of collectors than the car enthusiasts, with the exception of sports collectors.

My neighbor,”Miss Susan,” as my son Joshua calls her, has been writing about this very subject for many years. In fact, she has a website called Women With Wheels, and I hope she will be a frequent guest writer on our blog in the future. The 31 Club may be involved with her in a joint venture in the near future, and I hope you will be hearing more about that. Listening to her has taught me that the number of items collected by the car enthusiast is almost unlimited.

I have known about the special hood ornaments sought after by collectors for a long time, and the value of these can be tens of thousands of dollars. If you go to eBay’s Completed Sales list and do a search, you will find Lalique ornaments of a nude sold for over $$2200, and one in the shape of an Indian face for $2000.

Let’s look at some other items to keep your eye out for. Tin Signs from the car factories, especially automobiles that are no longer manufactured are prized, as well as hub caps, gasoline station tin signs, and pieces from famous race cars such as fenders grilles and hoods are also collected. Oil and gas cans, replacement parts for older cars and auto industry paper collectibles also have a place on this list. Antique gas pumps are a great collector item, and the glass globes from these antique gas pumps are collectible. This is only a partial list, and truthfully, it would take many blogs to cover them all.

Paper collectibles has been something that Miss Susan has been selling for years. Some of the most collectible items are the owners manuals for special models. These can bring in some fancy money if they are for the right car. Also, dealer signs and advertisements often catch the collectors fancy. Magazine ads are also serious collectibles.

I have been a car enthusiast since I was a teenager, and while still in high school, can remember meeting a man at an auto show in Indiana who had driven his Cord to the show from Kansas City wanting to sell it. It was the model with the huge supercharger pipes and retractable head lights. He was asking only $1,800 for it, and I almost died when I had to tell him I just didn’t have the money for it.
My love of the automobile has continued even till this date. I have owned a MG-TD, supercharged Corvette and several Mercedes, however my favorites have always been what I call my “junkers.” I’m still searching for a 1953 Super 88 Oldsmobile. If you want to make a true friend for life, just tell me where I can find one of these. This is the car I drove in high school, and most people wouldn’t believe the stories it could tell.

Don’t just follow the daily Blog. Join with like-minded 31 Club Members. Turbo charge your treasure hunting. Learn Inside the Industry Secrets. Learn to build a bank account to last a lifetime, buying and selling antiques, fine art, and collectibles. My 220 page book, 31 Steps to Your Millions in Antiques & Collectibles is FREE with your membership. The book is also available on Amazon.com. If you buy the book on Amazon, then the membership is FREE.

Visit our Website at www.31corp.com