If you’re new to the antique business, you might wonder why the world anyone would be interested in these old antique books. If you glance through them, you’ll see that they’re totally inaccurate. Science and medical books are almost comical. Mere speculation on how the body works, or where the earth fit in the solar system and universe. The workings of the illness, and disease were totally misunderstood. The importance of hygiene was totally missing. Old history books sound more like fairy tales. In fact, sometimes it’s hard to tell the difference between real history and true fairy tales. But for true collectors, ancient books are truly valuable treasures. Things like old family Bibles, the writings of famous people, or if it’s old enough the writings of anyone at all can fetch huge sums of auction.
Antique books are coveted by book collectors for many reasons. They give us a view into human learning and reasoning in the past. They make it easier for us to see how things that seem silly today gained their roots in the past. I remembered the report that I did in college that really blew me away. The report was about how early Americans justified slavery. It was astonishing to see how these writers justified slavery based on assumptions that slaves were not really human. In fact, they were considered animals, just like farm animals. There was a lot of detail, I don’t remember now 40 years later, but to this day the report makes an impression on me because of the antique text I read for my research. The slave owners thought the bodies and brains of their slaves were so different from their own that it’s pretty obvious they didn’t have a clue about either. This really helps us to see how much we progressed in a hundred years. Today we have an African-American, a descendant from those very slaves, as the Democratic candidate for president of the United States. This is huge progress and I’m happy to be around to see it. Without the antique books I read in college, I would not understand the amount of progress we’ve all made.
For others, antique books appeal because of the timelessness of their text. Human beings have not changed very much since they first began writing. We still have all the same emotions and feelings our ancestors had. About the only thing that has changed is that our body of knowledge is much wider today than in the past. Our feelings and emotions are still about the same.
Turning to history, most of it comes from antique books, of course. Most civilizations left us their history in the form of stories and tales that made their way into books over the years. Without them, we wouldn’t have any idea what our history was. Look at the pirate treasure, and the lost scrolls and the mummies and everything else about history that is being found today. It all comes from antique books. Just think of the laws that govern people and how they have evolved. The only reason we know any of this, is because of antique books.
Having a book that some philosopher actually wrote is the best connection you’ll ever have with that person. We can still get close to Plato and Socrates, just by reading their books and writings. Of course, we can only read reproductions of their works today. We won’t be able to get anywhere near their actual writings. They are so viable today that they’re only in museums and perhaps wealthy collectors libraries. How about Martin Luther King and George Washington. Their speeches and books are now priceless collectors items. Thank goodness we have antique books.
So who might be interested in antique books? It takes someone who enjoys history and connecting with the past. People who like to transport themselves back in time, so that they feel that they are in the shoes of the writer. These people can be fanatical about books. Many auctions have separate showings for books. Antique books and antique toys and antique furniture, probably don’t all appeal to the same buyers. So there is a separate crowd of buyers looking for antique books. Many libraries specialize in historical books, and they’re always buyers. University libraries and large legal libraries are always looking for antique books. Religious organizations are always looking for old Bibles and religious texts. There are also many private collectors looking for something unique that no one else has. While there are some in the antique business, who shy away from books because they feel it’s not as exciting as a piece of 18th century Victorian furniture or a 200 year old piece of jewelry, there is still a huge market for antique books that are prized by collectors.
Antiques can make an wonderful hobby and a great business. Hordes of excited people are finding the joys of the antique business ever year. Get started with Rob Gormly’s exciting report How to Buy and Sell Antiques … Just Like They Do On TV!”
