“Four Dollar Flea Market Discovery

 Brings 8.14 Million Dollars”

  Incredible Discoveries at Flea Markets,
    Garage Sales, and Thrift Shops

Ever wonder why so many folks enjoy pawing through piles of “junk” at
flea markets, garage sales, and thrift shops?  Well, they aren’t all
looking for household items to use at home.  More than a few of these
folks are prospectors. 

Sure, some folks blunder on to a great discovery in such places,
but other folks are modern day miners looking for that piece of
“costume jewelry” in hopes of finding a genuine three caret diamond,
or an old dusty painting that turns out to be a Winslow Homer.

       Knowledge Needed or Dumb Luck

A sharp eye and a little knowledge can result in some amazing
discoveries.  Unfortunately for myself, I will need to blunder
on any great discovery.   I will need dumb luck, just like that
guy who pictured in the Sun America investment commercials
a few years back.

You know the guy.  He’s the guy who bought an old picture frame
and print for $4.00 at a Philadelphia flea market.  Then, as luck
or fate would have it, out pops a 1776 copy of the Declaration of
Independence.  This is the stuff of urban legend, but in this case,
it was the real deal.  The discovery was made by a man living in
Philadelphia which make the find especially fitting.

In 1991 Sotheby’s auctioned this treasure off for 2.42 million
dollars which wasn’t bad for a $4.00 investment!  The lucky bidder
did alright too with his investment of 2.42 million dollars.  He
put it up for auction again and it fetched a tidy 8.14 million! 
The buyer was tv producer Norman Lear.

  Sun America…Don’t Hold Your Breath and Wait for Similar Luck!

The Sun America commercial showed several people shredding old
paintings looking for their own copy of the Declaration of
Independence.  No, it wasn’t there!  The message, “You better
have better plans for your financial future than prospecting
for hidden treasure.”

                  
             Lightning Strikes Twice

Believe it or not, Sun America wasn’t totally right, because in
2006, another person blundered on another copy of the Declaration
of Independence at a Thrift shop in  Nashville, Tennessee.  
For $2.48, a guy named Michael Sparks, bought an 1820 copy of
of The Declaration of Independence with an estimated
aucion value of between $250,000 and $350.000!
 

              Any Copies Left For Me?

At the time of the first Declaration of Independence discovery
there were about 24 recovered copies out of a printing of 500.
In the second finding, there were 200 copies printed under
the direction of John Quincy Adams and who knows how many have
been discovered.  It’s a safe bet that most of them are
unaccounted for.

Now, let’s do the math.  We still have garage sales, flea markets,
thrift shops, house auctions, and estate sales.  There are more
Declaration of Independence copies out there waiting to be
discovered.   I could be the next one to prove that Sun America
is wrong.  Then, on the other hand, I may just go and buy a
lottery ticket!

If you wish to joing the hunt, get a copy of my free garage sale
course!
 

John lundgren is a garage sale prospector looking to make one
of those discoveries that you see on The Antique Road Show.