New Vs Vintage

[marblerob]

There was an earlier post that asserted a drop off in interest in collecting "old" marbles. I still see a lot on ebay, some of which sell at very high prices ($100+)

There also is high interest in hand made by current artists. They, too sell at high prices. Is that because they are works of art and are wanted just to display, or are they investment plays, guessing that as time goes on their value will increase? Are some of the current artists more preferred than others?

Just asking. Still learning.

Bob

[marboman]

I think the difference between new and vintage is simply the difference between a marble made for a collector or a marble made for a child to play with.I have both and enjoy them just the same.My preference is early machine made.I also like to collect vintage japanese pinch pontils.Contemps are not made to be played with,they are art pieces in my opinion.

[Alan]

You can find vintage and contemporary marbles ranging from $5 - to a few thousand dollars. I recommend that as you begin - you disregard the expensive marbles and focus on reasonably priced, affordable pieces. Collect what you like - and try to look for "sleepers".... marbles that haven't yet risen to the level of "the cool thing".

You can buy pretty nice vintage and contemporary marbles at the $5 level. You just have to look around. The good deals are at shows - not on Ebay.

[richsantaclaus]

My contemporary marbles range around 12 to 15 dollars each but they usually are around 1" and a bit larger. Each one is a one-of-a-kind marble since they are created one at a time. I see many vintage marbles that look alike each other (like MK's) and were made by the thousands.

My suggestion is buy what you like and buy what looks pretty in your own eyes. I don't see anyone playing with the vintage marbles either as well as the contemporary ones.

I see a lot of marble fondling though...lol

Rich

[sissydear]

The hand made contemporaries are works of art. Buy what you like. Thinking of them as an investment is a "crap shoot". I buy marbles I think are pretty and that's different for everybody. Example: There is an artist who does a lot of skulls in marbles. I don't have any of those. I don't like them. Friends of mine love and appreciate them and have many of them. I like color. I like design. I like a variety of artists marbles.

[MisterMarbles]

I think there is an increased interest of marbles of all types, the internet is bringing new collectors everyday. As far as new artist made marbles, they are only worth what someone will pay for them, probably not a good investment to buy and hold. Certain artist's marbles are in more demand than others, most likely because of the high degree of artistry. Like James Alloway, Mark Mathews and Rolf Wald, well known and respected artists. There are many more like Hot House Glass and Mike Gong who also make stunning pieces of work.