Mint Collectors

Mint Collectors

Anyone looking for a hobby or a way to supplement their income should consider vintage postcards as their product of choice. Why postcards, you ask? There is a huge supply of postcards available in the secondary marketplace and, if you are going to be a collector, they do not take up much room so they are easy to store and, if you are going to be a dealer, they are easy to ship.

The majority of vintage postcards have a low to mid-range value. If you can buy large lots of them at reasonable prices, you should be able to make some decent profit based on the volume. Unless each lot has been gone through by professional postcard dealers, you may come across one or two that are worth some pretty good money - possibly enough to pay for the entire lot.

Postcards are similar to stamps and coins - they are graded as to condition. The various grades are M for mint, NM for near mint, EX for excellent, VG for very good, G for good and FR for fair. The grades of mint and near mint can really be subjective. The definition of each of these two grades can be very hard to live up to in reality. Finding vintage postcards in close to perfect condition is very difficult.

When it comes to determining age, all vintage postcards fall into what are called eras. There are seven of them in all. The very first is referred to as the pioneer era and covers postcards produced between 1870 and 1898. The second only covers a four-year period, 1898 to 1901, and is called the private mailing card era.

The others are the undivided back era (1901-1907), divided back era (1907-1915), the white border era (1915-1930), the linen era (1930-1945) and the photochrome era (1939 - today).

Not technically considered an era, because they were produced almost from the very beginning, are the highly popular and collectible real photo postcards. Today they are referred to as RPPCs and many of them, depending on the scenes depicted, bring hundreds of dollars.

The well-known "golden age" of postcards ended around 1915. Prior to this time, most postcards were produced in Germany. With the start of World War I, production shifted to the United States. Not only was the quality of these new cards not as good as those produced by Germany, many of them were just reprints of previously issued postcards.

The value of postcards is not just determined by condition and age but also by subject matter. Some topics are not very collectible at all but some are so highly desirable that people will pay outrageous sums of money for them. Subject matter and themes can be complicated when determining value so it is recommended that anyone interested in either collecting or selling postcards invest in a good reference book about them, one that includes a price guide.

The list of different subject matters and themes are quite extensive. Holiday themes are hugely popular, especially postcards that depict scenes of Halloween or Santa Claus. Within each theme or subject matter, any card that is artist signed is automatically worth more than those that are unsigned. There were a number of very talented artists that created postcards back then and today their work is in much demand by serious collectors.

In the early days of postcard production, sets of postcards and postcard series were very popular. This was actually a very successful marketing tool that was used by several of the postcard manufacturers. Once someone had a postcard that was actually part of a set or a series, they most naturally wanted the other installments. Today, collectors will pay a substantial premium to secure the one card they might need to complete a set or series.

There are several other unique types of postcards that were quite popular back then that have added value today. The first is called a hold to light postcard. These cards have cutouts in the top layer with colored paper placed below. An example would be bright yellow paper showing through cutouts shaped like candle flames. Upon holding the postcard up to the light, the candles appear to be lit.

The other type is what is called a mechanical postcard. In this case, a card will have at least one moving part such as a wheel that is hidden beneath the top layer of the card. The wheel might contain the 12 months of the year allowing for a particular month to show through a small window. Mechanical postcards like this provided the opportunity for someone to actually personalize a postcard to celebrate a special occasion such as a birthday or an anniversary.

When dealing with vintage postcards, there is one more important thing to remember. Many earlier postcards were filled out and mailed. Used versus never used does have an effect on value but when it comes to a used card, the value may not lie with the actual postcard, but with the postage stamp affixed to it. Many old postage stamps are quite valuable. No one should get rid of what appears to be a worthless postcard without checking the stamp first.

Anne Benedetto is a former auction house owner and former dealer in the antiques and collectibles business. She presently provides people with important details, behind the scenes information, helpful tips and first hand knowledge of the brick and mortar auction business. Visit Anne at http://AuctionHouseTalk.com which is an interactive site where interested people can talk about the ins and outs of auctions, antiques and collectibles.

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