Collecting Porcelain
If you are thinking about collecting porcelain, or have just started, there are a couple of things you might want to think about.
Do you want to collect antique porcelain, vintage porcelain or porcelain that is produced currently?
Antique porcelain is usually going to be offered only by dealers, and there is much to be learned before you get very far into collecting it. Chinese and Japanese antique porcelain will also require that you make friends with several other collectors or dealers in order to, possibly, get to handle their precious objects. Antique European porcelain collecting will require book learning as well, but you may be able to find some items at estate sales or at auctions, as well as through antique dealers. Collecting vintage porcelain created in the 20th century will generally have very little written about them, and you will have to make purchase decisions pretty much on your own. Current porcelain, however, is readily available and, by comparison, cheap. Be prepared to counter the hype about a piece’s “collectibility” and “guaranteed value” as both are usually inflated. But collecting porcelain made today is about choosing what you like best and letting the future show how good your decisions were.
Collecting anything is a like a tripod. Your collection will depend on the money, space and time you are willing to put into this hobby. Money is usually a trade-off with time. The more time you can spend educating yourself and keeping up on the market, the more wisely you will probably spend your money. If you are willing to take the word of one or more reputable dealers, you can build a good collection relatively quickly, given there is no money constraint. Make sure you are using reputable dealers, because you are at their mercy if you have not done your research.
Space is about displaying, storing and conservation of your collection. Can you dedicate enough space to display all of your collection, or will you ahve to rotate the items on display? If so, you will be handling your collection more, and need to take that into consideration. Do you want all of your collection always on display? If so, how much space will that take and where do you find it? The safety of your collection is most important, since a single baseball or clumsy visitor can kabong your collection pretty badly if it is not securely stored and displayed. And nothing drops the value of a piece like damage, any kind of damage: breaks, chips and even rubbing. You must maintain the condition of the piece if you are going to maintain its value.
If you are still interested in collecting porcelain, I have a guide about the porcelain collectibles being made today. Please take a look at the
Porcelain Collectibles Guide.
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