14 Unique Collectibles: Oddities That Fetch High Prices in Auctions

You’d be surprised by the weird things people collect and value, especially regarding antiques or celebrities.

From questionable bodily remains to eerie glass eyes, we’ve compiled a list that will intrigue you. You might even wonder how these things have survived throughout the years.

1. A Violin From the RMS Titanic

Wallace Heartley's Violin
Image Credit: Atlas Obscura.

To be fair, anything related to the Titanic is bound to fetch a high price at auctions. One such item is this violin, which is said to have belonged to the ship’s bandmaster, Wallace Hartley.

Allegedly, this was the violin he played during the final hours as the Titanic sank.

2. A General’s Hair in a Ring

Image Credit: Grand Rapids Museum.

This hair didn’t belong to just any general. It belonged to President George Washington. At the time this ring was produced, placing locks of hair in jewelry was a cultural mourning ritual. The jewelry was often worn in memory of the deceased.

George Washington’s hair was placed in a ring surrounded by pearls and had a special box to go with it.

3. A Fossilized Giant Elephant Bird’s Egg

Image Credit: Denis Bourez – CC BY2.0/Wiki Commons.

This is a piece of our world’s history. This fossilized egg comes from the extinct elephant bird and measures about a foot long and nine inches in diameter. It’s the largest known bird egg and the highest bid placed on it at auction is $100,000.

So far, about 40 of these eggs have been found and placed under protection worldwide.

4. Royal Underwear

Image Credit: Historic Royal Palaces.

Some might find it creepy, but there is a niche group of people who would pay a lot for the underwear and lingerie of famous people.

You might think royal families would be protected from this, but sometimes, items slip through the cracks and make it out. Queen Victoria’s custom-made embroidered underwear is one of them. There are collectors who would love to own a set of her pantalets.

5. A 200-Year Old Ostrich

Image Credit: Christie’s.

If you’re interested in auctions, you’re no stranger to taxidermy. There’s a whole community of collectors who go to auctions for these preserved animals.

A well-preserved 200-year-old ostrich by Joseph Vulpinus is an excellent example of that hobby. The bird is a rare North Italian Ostrich, and the model was finished in 1785.

6. A Famous Writer’s Ashes

Image Credit: Carl Van Vechten – Library of Congress/Wiki Commons.

Truman Capote was a playwright, novelist, and screenwriter. He wrote Breakfast at Tiffany’s and In Cold Blood. According to Esquire Magazine, when Capote died, he was cremated, and half of his ashes were given to his ex-partner, Jack Dunphy. Many believe this portion was scattered with Dunphy’s when the man died in 1992.

Capote’s friend Joanne Carson had the other half of the ashes and interred half of that portion at Westwood Memorial Park in Los Angeles. In 2016, the remaining ashes were sold to an anonymous buyer at auction for $43,750. No one knows what happened to them.

7. An Antique Doorstop

Image Credit: Clubhouse Interiors Ltd

Nobody pays attention to doorstops, but there’s a market for them, especially if they’re antiques. Back then, doorstops were ornate and detailed, like this one, with the legendary Lincoln Imp.

It features a carving of the imp with cathedral windows on each side and an inscription on the back. The doorstop is made entirely out of cast iron.

8. A 65-Year-Old Royal Wedding Cake

Image Credit: Christie’s.

They say fruitcake lasts a lifetime, which may be true for this 65-year-old royal wedding cake (now 77 years old). This slice of cake was served at the wedding of Princess Elizabeth and Philip Mountbatten-Windsor (later Queen Elizabeth II and the Duke of Edinburgh) in 1947.

It was one of 2,000 slices given out during the wedding and came in a small box. However, it is no longer edible.

9. A Piece of Tape

Image Credit: The Peabody Award – CC BY 2.0/Wiki Commons.

Some may think this is trash, but some regard it as a revolutionary piece of art. Performance artist Marina Abramovic allegedly used this tape during her 2010 Museum of Modern Art performance.

It’s also an art piece by Man Bartlett, who was present at the show and sold for $200 on eBay. Art is truly fascinating.

10. A Vampire Hunting Kit

Vampire Hunting Kit
Image Credit: Hansons Auctioneers.

For those who prefer truly odd items, a 19th-century European vampire hunting kit is quite remarkable. The kit sold for $20,000 at auction and was said to have belonged to an administrator of British India, Lord Hailey.

The kit comes with wooden stakes, holy water, garlic, a dagger, a rifle, a pistol, a club, religious materials, and crosses.

11. A Remarkable Toilet

Image Credit: The Beatles Bible.

Would you pay $14,000 for a toilet? No? You might if it once belonged to John Lennon.

Aside from the obvious fact that it was owned by one of the most famous people to have ever lived, the porcelain toilet is quite ornately detailed, almost like fine china. Plus, you never know who else has used it if it belonged to such a famous musician.

12. A Box of Glass Eyes

Image Credit: Saint Louis Science Center.

Back on the weirder side of things, we have an early 20th-century velvet-lined case with 14 hand-blown glass eyes and 10 glass corneas. It comes in a set with a 19th-century occultist chest that stores multiple taxidermy eyes.

Rago Auctions sold this interesting set in their Curiouser and Curiouser auction in October 2017.

13. A Killer’s Wedding Ring

Image Credit: RR Auction.

Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated President John F. Kennedy in 1962. According to CBS News, his wedding ring was sold for $118,000 to an anonymous buyer at auction in 2013.

This is not the only item of his to be sold for a high price. In 2010, his original coffin was auctioned off for over $87,0000.

14. A Skeletal Walking Cane

Early 19Th Century Whale Bone Walking Stick
Image Credit: Blighty Antiques.

Gothic, eerie, eccentric — call it what you want, but this walking cane made out of a primate skull and reptile vertebrae is a rarity sought by collectors everywhere.

It’s a late 19th-century piece and is said to have some magical powers that transfer animal hunting skills to its owner. It’s also said to protect its owner from sickness and danger.

 

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