popularity of bottle collecting waning?

[Carmo]

Hi All from Australia- take two
Interesting reading, considering we seem to be behind you in trends etc. Here in oz bottles are reaching unbelievable prices at auction. A recent auction in Sydney seen several items get over $10,000. Hope they were collectors buying and not investors, as they may be disapointed when they come to sell.
carmo

 

[baltbottles]

Auction prices here in the Us are also on a rise. I see things bring 10k or more that 10 years ago you could get for $2000 or less and now your starting to see many bottles and flasks bring 20k 30k 40k i mean who can afford that kind of money for a bottle. And although it hasn't happened yet i expect to see a bottle hit 100k within the next few years. But i think to have any hope of owning a really rare and great bottle most people have to go do lots of digging but its getting very hard to find places to dig now. So many of the collectors out there think there is no chance of haveing that great one of a kind bottle. So the rare stuff is quickly becomeing the domain of the rich and the everyday working man is left with there unwanted crumbs. I think many of us are being priced out of the hobby.

Chris

 

[woody]

Good point, Chris.

 

[deepwoods]

Well,one thing about good digging is that it can be,if not the great equalizer,a great leveler. I havnt dug a GREAT(in the monetary sense)bottle yet,but Ive dug some very good/scarce ones,and 2 wks ago I had a GREAT crier. Some collectors say they never bought a dug bottle(I had a collector who had 3 I dug in his collection tell someone this right in front of me!) but anyone who dosnt mind breaking a sweat and doing some leg/research work,can still make a great contribution to the pool of knowlege and the hobby,and have alot of fun along the way.

 

[BRIAN S.]

I agree with you totally Chris ! The rare stuff in color is getting out of reach for most everybody except a select few with very deep pockets. I have seen a drastic rise in prices in the last year and over the last 5+ years.
What suprises me is that there are a few good buys out there still. As some extremely rare bottles in Amber or Aqua have gone very reasonable at auction. And some fairly common bottles in some color that someone thought up some exotic name for goes for an astronomical price. So , surely people aren't spending 10,000.00 + for window bottles......are they ?????
I know color has a lot to do with rarity ( and color is king )...... But some of these color/ mold combinations that have been going outrageously high.... are quite obtainable in that mold and coloration. So what gives ? Lack of knowlege ????? Having more money than one can spend or what ?????
Brian

 

[baltbottles]

Brian I think its a combination of both. I think its a few people with more money then they know what to do with and the simple fact that there fairly new collectors and don't realize how obtainable some things truly are. But I think you also have to look at the sellers on this end also. Cause once one person gets a certain price for his bottle weather it be at auction or a show all of a sudden every one else says I should be able to get that for mine. And then someone else comes along and says mine is cruder or has better color or is just dead mint I should get more for mine then that last one went for. And as long as there is enough knowledge less buyers with money to burn prices are just going to keep going up. This is great for someone that started collecting 10 or 20 years ago and was buying the good stuff then cause they stand to make a fortune when they sell. But I think many of these knowledge less buyers are thinking if I keep it for 10 years I should be able to double my money too. So bottles are becoming an investment for them rather then pieces of history. But you also must take competition at auction into account. There may be only 3 or 4 people that are major collectors of a particular kind of bottle and when one comes up for auction that most or none of them have there going to fight over it, and its going to bring a stupid price. This tends to bring others out of the woodwork and you can bet whoever paid high on the first one is going to run the next one up to protect his investment. But once all of them have an example the bottle will drop to what the national market is willing to pay. I’ve seen this happen with rare local bottles time and time again.

Chris

 

[Carmo]

Hi All
Here in oz the big prices are coming from the auctions, Chris's point about competetion,
this in my opion is coming at a cost to the shows. With all respect to vendors, collectors are getting good prices at auctions, but the shows are dying. I think the only way out is for the auctions to be run in conjunction with the shows. Unfortunatley when poeple are making a living from the hobby, it is no longer a hobby! With the big money comes a lot of trouble, e.g. 2 digers in one hole and one finds a 10K item, it can only end up one way.
carmo

 

[washingtonstatedigger]

My opinion on the popularity of bottle collecting goes like this:

I do like seeing new people get into the hobby.

BUT I hate the fact that there seemed to be a big boom of digging in the seventies!Because I MISSED IT!!!!!!!! I hate talking to people that tell me oh that was dug out in the seventies,ITS JUST NOT FAIR!Any ways I`ll stop ranting.

But since I personally dont sell bottles I hoard them!I dont mind the popularity waning.It makes the bottles that I do purchase cheeper.

Though I do feel for the guys that are losing money when they sell the bottles for cheaper.

 

[tree planter]

greeting from maine been collecting since 1968 have not had time to dig the last20 years much but still like to dally . picked up a nice union clasped hands callabash .did so by trading bottles that i picked up cheap and have no intrest in .its surprising the money they get for local milk bottles at your local antique stores and they will trade if their bottles set around to long. bottle collecting has not changed that much your more commen bottles still are hard to sell for any money and your more rarer bottles are more money today because $100.00 in 1970 is proberly 500.00 today .for my money today if ihad any i think flasks are proberly your best buy if your looking to buy old bottles their are some beautys on the big E for reasonable money. did not mean to be so long winded steve {that calabash is open pontil}

 

[Roger]

Taken from the Visalia Times-Delta, 330 N. West Street, Visalia, California 93279

Originally published Friday, November 5, 2004

Group bids goodbye to bottles show

By Laura Florez
Staff writer

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How to attend

The 37th annual Show and Sale will take place today from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Tulare Veterans Memorial Building, 1771 E. Tulare Ave. Admission is free.

A group that shares a passion for antique bottles and collectibles will host its final show today and Saturday in Tulare.

The Sequoia Antique Bottle and Collectible Society, which for the past 37 years has hosted the show, is calling it quits.

For years they've proudly displayed antique bottles -- those made before the automatic bottle-making machine hit the scene in 1906 -- and other collectibles.

"It's sad," said Wilma Beutler, 80, of Visalia, a member of the society. "I hate to see it end, but it has to."

The group has failed to attract new members, and existing members -- who are in their 70s and 80s -- say they are too old to go on with the show.

Ron Burris, 71, of Visalia says he isn't sure why younger people aren't interested in joining the group.

Antique bottle collecting, he says, is like a lesson in history.

"You don't know what's out there, but you go out and try to find something of value," he said. "And you do."

The show will go on next year, show chairman Richard Simon said. But there will be another group hosting it.

Still, society members can be proud of their work.

"We can feel proud that we've been able to host it as long as we have," Burris said.

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