Did you know that an old grandmother’s fan can be worth up to 5,000 euros? Here’s why.
If you think of dated objects with a considerable economic value, the first thought undoubtedly goes to coins or stamps. There are actually many objects that, once the years have matured, acquire a considerable economic value. Proof of this is an old fan, whose economic value can reach 5,000 euros. Let’s see why.
The value of time on old objects
Many of us have small treasures at home and in most cases we are completely unaware of them. Starting with the coins, some of which have a much higher value than indicated, both for rarity and for minting error. Any of us could have handled at least once in our life a 1 Euro coin that could be worth a hundred.
If we then take into account the amount of memories and old objects crammed into cellars, attics and garages, the chances of having a treasure without knowing it increase.
In fact, there are many objects that, with the passage of time, acquire value rather than lose it. So we talk about board games, comics and even grandma’s old fan. An object with so many years of experience that one would never think could have a value outside of the emotional one. The very object that for many years gave relief to our grandmothers could now be a small fortune. So before cleaning up the cellars and attics, it would be good to check if grandma’s old fan may be worth more than you think.
Fans have been used since ancient times to cool off during hot and muggy days. It is thought that the first fans were made of leaves or bird feathers, but there is no precise dating regarding their invention.
However, there is ample evidence that fans have been used since ancient Egypt, where they were made from woven palm leaves or feathers. In China, on the other hand, fans were made of silk and jade and were used both for cooling and as a symbol of social status.
Grandma’s old fan worth 5,000 euros
In Europe, fans became popular from the fifteenth century onwards and were used both as a cooling tool and, above all, as a fashion accessory. Over the following centuries, fans were made from a wide variety of materials, including ivory, mother-of-pearl, wood, and paper.
European fans of the fifteenth century often consisted of a carved wooden or bone structure, and with paper or silk leaves glued to the structure. These were usually decorated with paintings or inlays, and often had handles in the form of animals or human figures.
Quite large because they were often used by several people at the same time to cool off during hot days, some fans could be large enough to cover the entire face of the person using them. In addition, the fans widespread in Europe in the fifteenth century were often considered objects of luxury and prestige and were used as signs of social status. They were often given as precious gifts and were decorated with motifs of great artistic value.
An interesting peculiarity is that, as was usual for common objects, the same fans were often handed down from generation to generation.
Precisely for this reason it is necessary to understand, if you have a fan, what year it dates back to. On eBay, in fact, you can find sales of eighteenth-century fans even for 500 euros. For those of the Victorian era in mother-of-pearl, the cost can easily reach 5,000 Euros.
Obviously there are many characteristics to take into consideration, starting from the state of wear to the material used, but you may have inherited a truly unique piece without knowing it.
