Rare Finds is a bidorbuy blog about antiques and collectibles, including coins, stamps, gems and militaria

How much is that in notgeld?

by Lana on May 16, 2018

What, have you never traded in notgeld currency? No? Well, I hope that you never have to. Notgeld is a German term for emergency currency, and it does not take an economics brainiac to figure out that emergency currency is not a good thing: it means …

Antique teaware: Japan

Antiques & Collectables

by Alex on November 17, 2016

The Japanese inherited tea from the empire of China: A country where the art of tea was already ages old - a gentle pleasure that ran back to antiquity. It is perhaps fitting that tea arrived in Japan in 805, the same century that saw the writing of the …

Antique teaware: China

Antiques & Collectables

by Alex on October 13, 2016

"A cup of tea is a cup of peace." Soshitsu Sen XV Tea is for some a repast and for others a religion. It entered history as a medicinal brew during the Han dynasty of China (206 BC–220 AD), although folk tales mention tea being drunk during the …

Definitive and commemorative stamps

Stamps

by Lana on September 26, 2016

Stamps used to come to us stuck on letters and that is how many of us started collecting them. Now that the snail mail is becoming extinct, stamp collecting is waning too, a victim of the rise of digital technology. Although …

Picture postcards

Antiques & Collectables

by Lana on July 27, 2016

Deltiology, the study and collecting of picture postcards, is thought to be third largest collecting hobby in the world. Once upon a time, weary travellers knew that their first duty upon arriving at a destination was to buy a bunch of picture …

The R5 Griqua Town coin

Coins

by Lana on April 21, 2016

If you are a regular visitor to the bidorbuy Coins and Notes category, you may have noticed there is a relative new-comer: the R5 Griqua Town coin. This commemorative coin was issued in 2015 by the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) to mark the …

Grading notes in South Africa

Coins

by Mandisa on April 11, 2016

It's finally here! We are all aware of the note grading companies overseas. The problem with overseas grading is the cost due to the rand/dollar rate, the time it takes to send out and receive and of course, the shipping costs. All in all it …

Jellyfish on South African stamps

Stamps

by Lana on March 4, 2016

Jellyfish are not everyone’s cup of tea. Some find these creatures vaguely repulsive, probably due their mushy and squashy physique. Some find them positively terrifying, a state of mind that seems to be in close correlation to having been stung by a …

Royal Albert porcelain

Antiques & Collectables

by Lana on February 9, 2016

The name Royal Albert brings to mind delicate tea cups that Victorians might have used. For a good reason: Victorians did use them. If Thomas Wild and Co. wanted to win the favour of the upper British classes by naming their table and tea …

Rare and expensive

Top Rare Finds

by Lana on January 8, 2016

A Rolex watch can be much, much more always expensive, but this 9 Carat Gold Rolex Half Hunter pocket watch, to give it its full name, is what the seller justifiably calls “a rare find”. It dates from around 1920s or 1930s and, old as it is, still works …

Spade, lion, turtle

Coins

by Lana on November 3, 2015

And the first coin ever minted was… read on to find out! Today, you can’t trade if you don’t have money. Long ago, it was the other way around: you didn’t need money if there was no trade. That is why the first “true” coins …

RAREFINDS

How much is that in notgeld?

Antique teaware: Japan

Antique teaware: China

Definitive and commemorative stamps

Picture postcards

The R5 Griqua Town coin

Grading notes in South Africa

Jellyfish on South African stamps

Royal Albert porcelain

Rare and expensive

Spade, lion, turtle

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