Introduction to Antiques and BreakablesThis page is an introduction to antiques and breakables for the new collector, or simply those curious about this area. Antiques and fragile items as a hobby, or even as a business, are very popular around the world. Every major city has antique stores, antique shows, and flea markets where antiques are actively bought and sold. Many antiques also change hands through the mail. Buyers and sellers connect through advertising and announcements online and in print antiques publications. It's a lot of fun, and many who work in the antiques business started out as collectors. They liked it so much that they decided to make it a full-time or part-time business. However, those just starting out may have some basic questions. What are antiques? The term antique was originally defined by U.S. Customs as anything made before 1830. This term was later changed to anything more than 100 years old. This 100-year-old criterion has become a common standard for defining something as an antique. Yet most antique stores and antique shows today typically have a large percentage of inventory made in the 20th century. Today, even high-end antique dealers offer these items. They use design, craftsmanship and rarity to define what is considered appropriate for an antique store. Examples of items in this category are art pottery, art glass, jewelry from the turn of the century through the 1940s, and Tiffany silver produced during this century. What are breakable objects? Breakables is a term sometimes used to distinguish newer items from antiques. The term breakable also has a “popular” culture connotation. Things that were part of daily life in a bygone era are now fondly remembered. There are thousands of categories, but some examples include fountain pens, children's lunch boxes, old movie memorabilia, and comic books. It can also refer to "limited edition" breakable items. These are items made and marketed specifically as breakable items, as in collectible plates and Franklin Mint items. In reality, breakable items are all people collect. These could be coins, antiques, rocks, Star Wars memorabilia made in the 70s or today's POGs that young children (and who knows, probably adults too!) collect. Who are the collectors? Today, around the world, there are millions of collectors who have collections in thousands of categories. There are collectors in all walks of life, from multi-millionaires who collect impressionist paintings to the average person, who can collect anything you can imagine..