What gives antiques value?

For most antiques, sentiment is what gives them value. I’m not really sure why, but perhaps it has something to do with wanting to own something so old, giving us a sense of immortality.

Rarity.
Many of these items can not be replaced. They may be imitated, but authentic duplication will never happen. Most antiques are hand crafted – or created using methods that we may not utilize anymore today.

I’m not saying I would spend my life savings on an antique platter, though, just for the record.

All of the above plus that old retailing saw, supply & demand.

Supply and demand.

Antiques were made in limited quantities and when the originals are destroyed or worn out, they are gone forever, thus limiting the supply. Demand for many types of antiques usually remains constant or increases over time while supply can only decrease, thus value increases.

Simple economics…

Nothing – people thinking they have value gives them value.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir, you’re partly right, but there are universally agreed upon objective qualities that do, in part, give antiques their worth.

@Austinlad Universally agreed upon is ‘people thinking they have value’...same thing…I do buy that some finds give us insight into other eras but they’re not worth millions of dollars.

Have it your way, @Simone_De_Beauvoir. Not worth debating.

@Austinlad Ok. I wasn’t debating.

Old things especially those that are in good shape are just cool. Most mass produced in China junk of today will have even less value in 20 years than it does now. The stuff has no character just like most automobiles built now. Things that represent a certain era of Americana are much sought after. If you have yer head trapped in an I-pod and are enthralled with electronics, putting a value on antiques will probably seem silly.

@woodcutter One can both reject the obsession with technology and the extremes people go to with valuing antiques, don’t you think? I recommend Pirsig’s Zen and The Art of Motorcycle Maintenance as a good read.

I agree with The Bastard and Austinlad.

@Simone_De_Beauvoir – If you follow my comments here on Fluther you will see words like “Often”, “Many”, “most” “probably”,” perhaps” etc. It is a way not to get nailed down by the specifics of hair splitting as really it is to be taken as a generalizations and nobody can know everything about everything.

@woodcutter Ok. Again, I was asking you a question so as to continue this discussion which is interesting to me. I am sorry you’re taking my comment as being argumentative. a side effect of fluther I really hate sometimes.

There are several factors: actual worth, rarity, quality, reputation of the maker, history, and as several have mentioned, sentimental value. There are probably others that I’ve left out.

Antiques are only going to go up up up in value. There are many years left to go antiquing until all the antiques of worth are in private collections to remain there until an estate sale. The same antiques will keep circulating in estate sales as there is a finite amount to be had. Like I said above, there really isn’t much that is being made anymore that will retain its value since the advent of synthetic materials and injection molding. it’s all crap. or crap like.

Quality and craftsmanship. Very difficult to find in modern goods. For me it’s a protest against mass produced throw-away goods. For me it doesn’t have to be antique; high quality, usually handmade is what I seek.

One word uniqueness. Any truly valuable antiquity worth it’s salt has to be one of a kind.

Age, rarity, condition, and popularity

@stranger_in_a_strange_land mentions something that the rest of us neglected to mention (including myself, shamefully).

A great deal of older stuff is simply very tough and functional. There are tons of people who still seek out antique tools and cookware because of how damn resilient and quality-made it all is, myself included.

Very interesting comments / viewpoints my friends! In some cases, I suppose the fact that the antique is still around, proves its quality and resilience. It’s true that we seem to live in somewhat of a disposable culture today. However, I believe this may be caused by birthing pangs during a dramatic shift in the value of material. Or perceived material in digital light sound and ethereal substance. For instance, my friend just bought a beautiful 100 year old leather wallet that is in amazing condition. I personally don’t believe that there will be any use for such a device in 50 years, as I speculate we will no longer carry cash on our person. Though I do believe that it will retain perceived value in the context of history.

People and desire give anything its value… Otherwise it’s just another thing on a shelf.