Judging antiques at the fair

I am always excited to see what entries come into the antiques department each year at the fair. While we were waiting for the judging sheets to get to us, I talked to a nice security guard named Lisa. She said she likes to work the antiques section and watch fairgoers’ reactions to the different cool items and the ribbons awarded. She said they always ask her all kinds of questions about the items and the way things get judged and she has to tell them she has no idea!

There are many divisions and categories and also a category in each division that is kind of a catch all for things that just don’t fit into a category. This is a hard time to judge because there are often many items that are really unrelated but you can only choose a first, second, third and honorable mention or two. Honorable mentions are nice but have no cash award attached.

Sometimes there are only one or two items in the category. This doesn’t always mean a guaranteed first and second. If one is outstanding and the other in bad condition, it may be a first and a third or honorable mention. Just like in selling antiques, condition is everything. Sometimes we find items that are reproductions that the owner didn’t realize was a reproduction. There are some items that are so widely and well faked that even the pros can’t tell the difference. Even the Henry Ford Museum found a fake in their collection that they had paid $10,000 for! If we find something like that we recommend the owner take the item to a licensed appraiser for verification and re-enter the following year with authentication paperwork.

Sometimes we find items that are actually not at least 50 years old which is a condition of eligibility to compete. We try to be liberal with the ribbons so people are encouraged to continue to participate in the competition year after year. It is also a great idea to have your children enter a vintage item to learn about history and perhaps win a little money for Christmas gifts.

Years ago when we had 800+ items, some very large, we had competitors divided into amateur and professional but as entry numbers have fallen over the years, the categories and such have been tweaked and changed. It is always fun to watch people’s reactions when they come in and see that they have won a ribbon or when someone sees an item they remember from growing up or that their grandma had!

Come and check it out! Watch for the vintage car in the middle of the section and you just might catch a glimpse of the King of Rock and Roll somewhere there. Happy Collecting!

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