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So, what should you do? First and foremost… plan ahead. Assume the worst case scenario and do your homework because I guarantee you, no one else will do it for you:
So, what should you do? First and foremost… plan ahead. Assume the worst case scenario and do your homework because I guarantee you, no one else will do it for you:
- Know your topic inside and out. Read, talk, and know everything there is to know about the topic you collect. Have a friend, dealer, or paid advisor who will serve as your brains. (If you have not done this all along, you are a prime candidate for this article and advice.)
- Keep meticulous records of everything you buy. If you have not done this, get busy and reconstruct the facts.
- Research the provenance or history of each and every piece. (You are in luck, Google and Google Books makes this much easier to accomplish today.)
- Track the prices, dates, and from whom you purchased each piece on a spread sheet or ledger book (If you have a large valuable collection, do it on an Excel or similar spread sheet and do it right! Keep multiple backups too. Watch eBay sales and track the numbers.)
- Tag each item with a number or full name to relate it to your spreadsheet entries. Use removable stickers or string tags on the item.
- Keep up with sales of similar items at auctions or on-line and note those sales with dates on your spreadsheet or ledger. Watch eBay and auction houses that specialize in scientific and medical antiques. (Or, you can buy auction prices-realized research on-line.)
- Above all, it is your responsibility to weed out the junk in your collection (sell it on eBay) before you try to sell it to another collector or dealer. You cannot expect to come to the table with a lot of odds and ends material and a 'take-it-all-or-leave-it' attitude. This is not a flea-market game. If you want to deal with flea-market buyers, you are in the wrong place. It’s just good business manners and you have to do it before you make connections with major collectors.
High dollar buyers expect to be treated as professionals and not flea-market dealers. If you miss or avoid this point, you are going to severely lose your shorts in any auction. Clean out the closet, get rid of the obvious junk and prepare your collection for 'curb appeal' just like you would to sell a home.
- If your collection contains rare medical books, papers, or art, you will need specialized advice on listing and valuation. Do not expect anyone other than a medical dealer or knowledgeable collector to understand this arcane area of medical collecting. No dealer or auction house is going to be or have a specialist for every medical item. Even the largest auction houses are woefully poor at evaluating medical antiques, and especially at placing accurate values.
- As more information becomes available, update your spreadsheet descriptions and the reasons a given item is unique or has unusual value. File and preserve documentation with links and instructions about the item or items you are documenting. This takes serious time and effort. Again, no one but you can or will do it for your collection. Yes, I could help, but this is the hard part and not something anyone with a day job is going stop and do for you for free. Yes, you can pay a knowledgeable dealer to do this part, but do you really want to write-off that much of the profit in your collection?
- Photograph (digitals only!) every single thing in your collection using a planned and consistent technique. Do not just take random photos, pretend you are going to publish a book and do a professional job or hire someone to take your photos accordingly. Photos will be invaluable for a sale or evaluation in the future, especially if you are in a burial urn. This is one of the most essential items on this list. It must be done digitally, not with film prints!