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Antiques! => Antique Questions Forum => Topic started by: kidden6968 on August 22, 2011, 06:41:14 PM

Title: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: kidden6968 on August 22, 2011, 06:41:14 PM
I am trying to make sure that I post appropriately here as I am going through all this stuff in storage.  I just googled to see how old something has to be to be considered "antique" and came up with everything from 20 years to 100 years  LOL.  That leaves a huge span.   ???
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: ironlord1963 on August 22, 2011, 06:53:24 PM
     Here in the US 100 years is considered as antique.
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: kidden6968 on August 22, 2011, 07:01:13 PM
That's very helpful thank you Ironlord.  Then some of the items I have posted have definitely not been antiques but just collectibles or vintage?  Is there a particular time frame for something to be considered vintage?
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: ironlord1963 on August 22, 2011, 07:22:35 PM
25 years would be Vintage.   But many items here get posted are not Antique but are welcomed anyway.  We see a lot of mid century items that are just as informative as antiques.  The 100 year rule is a import / export law, in some contries 50 years is Antiques, I think I heard this is the case in Canada, but better let some of our canadian folks answer that, and according to my Chinese friend, he really doesn't think of it being a antique unless it is 300 years.  Personnally I think anything older then me is antique  :D
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: kidden6968 on August 22, 2011, 07:37:51 PM
Know the feeling - thanks again - didn't want to be posting items that I shouldn't. 
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: cogar on August 23, 2011, 02:27:54 AM
HA, if only "minimum" 100 year old items were permitted to be posted ...... this would be a very dull Forum.  ;D ;D ;D ;D 
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: kidden6968 on August 23, 2011, 03:21:42 AM
Thanks Cogar  ;D I do find this forum fun and informative and active.  It has certainly peeked my curiosity and interest in so many different things.  Definitely fascinating and I just wanted to again say thank you to everyone who lends their opinions and expertise to those of us who might start out clueless but end up gaining a lot of knowledge.   ::)
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: mart on August 23, 2011, 08:11:32 AM
Do  what I do,, just say collectable and that covers it all !!  Old and new !!
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: CuriousCollector on August 23, 2011, 03:55:41 PM
Okay, slightly off topic, but along the lines of what people think is "really old" -- my college freshmen students had their first essays today, where they had to write about an ancestor they never knew personally.  You won't BELIEVE how many wrote about a great-grandparent, who was born into slavery in Georgia around 1903, or 1920.  The lesson for antiquing? -- if you're dealing with someone who thinks something from the 70s in an antique, you should probably not trust their knowledge of history.
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: mart on August 23, 2011, 04:01:10 PM
And these are college freshman ???  Where were they during junior high ??
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: Oceans64 on August 23, 2011, 04:15:16 PM
Oh my CC -

Interesting to know when they think the Civil War was fought (and why??).  Of course you may get essays on their grandparents then...
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: CuriousCollector on August 23, 2011, 04:59:05 PM
Oh, I forgot my favorite! -- the student whose great-grantparent, having to work the farm during the Great Depression and not believing in slavery, put the kids to work on the farm.
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: Oceans64 on August 23, 2011, 05:29:48 PM
Oh, I forgot my favorite! -- the student whose great-grantparent, having to work the farm during the Great Depression and not believing in slavery, put the kids to work on the farm.


Bumping my head on the desk now. 
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: galaxywomun on August 23, 2011, 07:00:44 PM
gah--
just reading this and realized i am posting MAINLY vintage items.  is this ok??  there doesn't seem to be a vintage forum like this.
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: ironlord1963 on August 23, 2011, 07:24:41 PM
Vintage will one day be Antique too  ;)   It would seem that most of the items I have is also Vintage and or Collectibles, but the knowledge of this will also lead to knowledge of antiques.  Actually go to any Antique mall or shop and you will see mostly Vintage for the most part.  These are loose Legal rules that wie are dealing with for sure.  I just make sure I never use the word Antique on items that I sell unless I'm sure.  Plus another funny thing about the work Antique is Cars are like 25 years I believe, and Many of us still use Antique Computers, Who still has a pentium 4   :D,
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: galaxywomun on August 23, 2011, 08:25:07 PM
cool!  i kinda like it here  :)
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: fancypants on August 24, 2011, 12:35:05 PM
My 2 cents is from a perspective that's decades old ....

used to be a 'rule of thumb' for reputable dealers :

'true' antiques are 100 years old , or more , and hand-made (some exceptions were made for metal/porcelain/ivory/mineral & glass hardware on antiques , though) .
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: Mindings on August 25, 2011, 08:12:56 AM
The definitions of antique and vintage do seem to vary a great deal from country to country, but sometimes even within a country. I was always bought up as a Brit., to rate antique as 100 years or more and vintage 60 years or more. Collectables however can be newer than this is there is demand and scarcity. BTW I am Vintage!
Phil
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: talesofthesevenseas on August 25, 2011, 04:36:52 PM
Thanks for sharing those essays CC!  ;D
Title: Re: An antique has to be how old?
Post by: hosman321 on August 25, 2011, 04:43:35 PM
Everyone is right, 100 or more years is considered an antique. But I think there is a little big of wiggle room here. I think it should be about 90 years. I have items from the 20s and I consider them antique. Once you get into the 30s and 40s though, I just look at them as "old." Not really antique or vintage. Most people consider vintage to be 25 years old. Frankly, something made in 1986 is not vintage to me. Most of it is just junk. I would say 50+ years is vintage to me. It's all sort of a matter of opinion.