Tips for Buying Antique Books

So you're interested in collecting books and want to buy antique books and become one of the many new book hounds around. But do you know how to properly identify an antique books condition or its value? Or do you know the difference between old books and antique books?


Here are some tips to help you know the answer to these questions and more.
Well one of the first things you need to learn is the difference between old books and antique books. That's because not every old book is worth some money. Now they may be worth something to you because of who they came from or they've been in the family for years, but other people won't pay anything for them.

That's the difference. In fact there are lots of books that were published around 1900 or before that aren't worth anything. At the same time there are books even paperbacks from the 60s or even the 70s that are worth a couple hundred bucks each. So an old book is just that and an antique book is an old book that people want to collect and people are willing to pay money for. Knowing which is which is extremely important.

The price of antique books is often dependant on how rare the book is as well as its condition. But the popularity of the author or of the book play a huge roll in how much a book is worth. As well as how many copies there are left around of a particular book.

Many great vintage collectible books that have value are first edition books by popular or famous authors. For that reason a first edition novel by Charles Dickens is often considered worth more than even a much earlier collected one of his works. But, a collected edition of a book by Charles Dickens would have a higher price than an edition of a much lesser known writer.

Of course the condition of a book also plays an important role in how much the book is worth and whether people want to collect it or not. So you should be looking to see that:

• Both the cover and the dust cover are present and they shouldn't be warped. 
• It should have all its pages are present. 
• Its pages shouldn't be creased or ripped. 
• The binding should be intact. 
• After you know that everything is there that should be there, now look for the presence of things that shouldn't be there. 
• For example handwritten notes in the book perhaps by a previous user. 
• Though in some cases, these notes can actually add to the value rather than detract from it. This will all depend on who wrote the notes. If they were written by the author or someone who is famous they can often add value.

So when you get a book in good condition it is very important to keep it that way. To do that they need to be kept on flat, smooth shelves that will support their weight properly. And the shelves should be made with properly sealed woods and they should be kept out of the sun to prevent fading.

One of the great things about becoming a book collector is you can get started with very little money. You can literally spend as much or little as you can afford. As not all antique books are worth a lot of money, you can buy several for really very little cash. However if you're looking for books that are very collectible and were written by well known authors, then they can be a challenge to find and the prices can be quite high.

Really the fun is in the hunt and the joy is being able to buy a great antique book without having to pay too much for it. So enjoy the adventure you've started and happy hunting.

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