Welcome back to Hammer Drops! Every Wednesday, Back to the Past shares some of the accumulated knowledge of its staff with you. We illustrate it with examples from recent auctions, but the lessons have broader applications for the do-it-yourself collectibles seller. Today, we’re looking at adult comics, pin-up pictures, and other racy items from recent auctions to ponder the relative value in smut.
Cherry Poptart #1/1st Printing!
Truly Private Collections
A couple of years back, Scott and Pete hit the road to evaluate a collection that took up pretty much an entire house. A collector had passed away and his family was now trying to figure out what to do with his stuff. Its the kind of work we live for, helping families get the best value for a loved one’s collection while making sure it goes to people who will appreciate it as much as the collector did. The difference in this case was that the family was a bit embarrassed to show us this collection. It was wall to wall, floor to ceiling smut.
They needn’t be embarrassed: many of the collections we handle include some spiciness. From x-rated comic books to statues & figurines to pin-up trading cards to nudie viewmasters, we have seen it all. We are professionals and we handle such items without judgement. People collect everything, some of it to share publicly and some to enjoy privately, and we handle everything collectible. Besides which, there is a definite audience for such material.
Vintage Nude/Pin-Up Girl Picture Viewer
The Lesson: People Will Pay A Premium for “Adult” Items
Take for example the vintage viewer keychains sold in our November 20th estate finds auction. There were nine lots: five clean souvenirs and four adults-only groups. The vintage nudes realized prices more than double that of the vintage souvenirs. In our January 12th comic auction, a first printing copy of early 90s comic Cherry Poptart #1 sold for $140. That puts it ten dollars behind the 1st appearance of Spider-Girl in What If? #105 and ten dollars ahead of the infamous libel variant Universe X Spidey Special in terms of realized price. Likewise, just the other day we had groups of 50s-70s era pinup prints realizing $75-90 per group at auction.
We admit, none these items are buying you a trip to Florida or paying off your car on their own. But it is in the aggregate that they start to add up. In fact, that’s exactly what happened to the family we talked about earlier. Our handling of their loved one’s collection helped significantly ease the financial strain of a really tough time. People like what they like!
Vintage 40’s and 50’s Pin Up Lot
So the message here is that if you or someone you know has a collection of high quality vintage erotica that they’re ready to sell but are maybe embarrassed to bring to market themself, we are here to help. We don’t judge, we don’t share our consignors’ names without permission, and we get you the best value for your collection. Do not let your embarrassment force you to leave money on the table! And if you are up to the task of selling yourself, Hammer Drops will be here every Wednesday to help you get the best value on your own.
