A while back we had a string about relations between collectors and archaologists. I
visited an insulator and bottle collectors' show in Albuquerque, NM, and asked
vendors if they would fill out a survey. The results below may paint a little better
picture of who collectors are. Admittedly, the sample is very small, but it provides
some data.
Bill
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{ SEQ CHAPTER \h \r 1}Collector Survey - EIC/NMHBC Show
September 27, 2003
Total of 11 collectors – not all filled out all questions – two ignored the back
(questions 7-11)
1. What do you collect?
4 Bottles
6 Bottles+
1 Other
2. Specialty Area
6 NM
5 Other
3. Years Collecting
8 - 45 Range
27.7 Average
4. Number of Items in Collection
100 - 100,000 Range 100-8,000 excluding the gigantic 100,000-item
collection)
10,580 Average (1,638 excluding the gigantic 100,000-item collection)
116,383 Total number of items collected by all 11 people
5. How do you collect?
One person only bought items
Two more bought or traded
The other eight included digging for items as part of their collecting
5a. Where do you buy?
One only bought from other collectors
One only bought from collectors and bottle shows
The other eight bought from just about anywhere including auctions
and antique stores
6. Where do you dig?
Three did not dig at all
Most dug at trash dumps, around old buildings, or at places specific to
their collecting interests
Only three dug in privies
7. Do you deal on eBay?
7 yes
2 no
7a. How?
Three only bought items
Four bought and sold
7b. Total sales
1-300 Range
105 Average
7c. Total purchases
20+ - 300 Range
150 Average
8. Highest price paid for an item
$160 - $10,000 Range
$2,384.44 Average
9. Interested in historical background of collected items
All nine who answered were interested in the historical background.
10. Research?
All nine conducted research.
11. Publications
Only two had never published anything.
One published more than on book.
Four published articles (one in a newletter).
Two had published both books and articles.
Discussion
Note that collections are fairly large, averaging over 1,600 items (not
including the one, giant collection of ca. 100,000.
Most of the collectors (72.7%) also dig for artifacts (mostly bottles
and/or insulators), although more than 1/4 of those surveyed did not. Trash
dumps were the most popular digging sites, followed by around old buildings,
and sites specific to individual collecting interests. Only three (27.3%) dug
privies.
Most buy from a variety of sources. This indicates a major
buy/sell/trade network (with dozens of clubs and several collectors’
magazines). I bring this up because people on the list have suggested that
archaeologists should never buy anything (except books and magazines) so as
to not encourage collectors. Our encouragement (or lack thereof) does not
seem to be an important factor.
Collectors collect! With an average of 1,638 items per collection
(excluding the single gigantic collection with over 100,000 items), these are
large numbers of artifacts. It is clear that collecting creates a pretty large
industry.
Most collectors deal with eBay online auctions. Of those who deal
with eBay, about half only buy; the others buy and sell. The average
collector purchased about 150 items at this point in his collecting (note also
that collecting bottles attracts more men than women – not a single individual
bottler dealer at the show was female, although there was one female
insulator dealer, two husband/wife dealers, and several wives helping out
with cooking, setting up, and other behind-the-scenes duties)
Collectors are serious about their collections. The average highest
price ever paid for an item was $2,384.44, with the top price of $10,000 in
one case. Other bottles have sold at auction for $60,000 and probably more.
Of great interest to me, personally, was that all nine collectors who
filled out the back page of the survey were interested in the historic
backgrounds of the items they collected, and all nine conducted research.
Only two had never published anything, and one had published more than one
book.
Although we may not agree with the quality of some of the
publications, it is notable that each is working up to the level of his expertise.
I am working with one of these (the one who has published two books, so far)
because he is probably the most knowledgeable person about Hutchinson-
finished bottles in New Mexico. These collectors pass information about the
bottles among themselves and actually amass a considerable database of
knowledge. Several whom I interviewed are working on databases of all
known bottles of a specific type (e.g. all known drug store bottles from New
Mexico).
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