Finding Treasures at Flea Markets

Finding Treasures at Flea Markets

As an annual custom, I make my way to many flea markets when spring breaks. This past week I stopped at a roadside flea market to purvey the treasures offered by various vendors. The usual flea market merchandise, household goods and new decorative items along with fruits and vegetables can always be found, however I specifically look for old or collectible glassware. This week was not much different, except I happened upon a vendor's table that had a unique piece of colored glassware just waiting for a new home.

This piece was a green transparent salt shaker with quite an intricate design and a metal lid. Overall it was in very good condition. Transparent glass is usually indicative of what is known as depression glass, the glass produced during and after the great depression (1930s and 1940s). I was positive this was a good piece of depression glass, however I did not recognize the pattern. I asked the vendor if she knew what it was and she indicated that it was old but she knew nothing more.

She told me several people had looked at it in the last few weeks, but most people wanted to know if she had a match to it. After all, who wants a single shaker? She explained that she only had the one shaker and was offering it for $5. I took a closer look at the detailed pattern and examined it closely for any damage. Since any piece with chips or cracks usually sell for less, I always take note of damages. There was no infractions and so I handed her the $5 as she wrapped my newly found treasure.

When I arrived home, I took out the salt shaker and decided I would go online to see what I could find out about its value and maker. Usually with depression glass the first place I look is on sites about Hazel Atlas, since they produced the majority of all depression glass in that era. After a fruitless half-hour of searching, I came across a site that specialized in Hazel Atlas Glass. This site was the collectors website for Hazel Atlas, so I was sure I could find info there.

After logging into the site, I discovered the pattern name rather quickly and found the value of this salt shaker was around $65 - $70. This was quite exciting since I stood to make a days wages on one small purchase. My first course of action, since I now knew the pattern name, was to check what others were selling for on popular auction websites and antique shops online. I soon discovered not many of these shakers were available. So, as any good antique dealer would do, I listed it for sale on an auction site and one week later it closed at $97.75! An astounding profit for me from just a small hunch and $5 investment.

This is the reason it is so important to research and learn about depression glass and antique glass. Imagine how many people passed this piece up week after week, until I found it. A small investment and a little risk, resulted in a profit of nearly $90, and I gained a wealth of knowledge from the collectors website for future purchases. Buying and selling as well as collecting depression glass and antique glass is an investment. As such, the investment should be thoroughly researched and knowledge gained to make the maximum profit from your flea market finds.