Aside from my college diploma, which isn’t probably what the OP was talking about…maybe my computer, or my flute? Both of them cost several hundred dollars when new. My flute’s probably held the value better than the computer, though.
I move a lot and haven’t had a proper job since 2006 (I was in Peace Corps and now I’m a grad student) so I don’t have the money or opportunity to acquire many expensive objects. I don’t have a car or a TV, for instance. I have a beautiful sapphire (? it’s blue, anyway) ring from my aunt that I never wear, but I have no idea how much it’s worth.
The riding mower if it doesn’t get restricted under the “motor vehicle” clause. If it does, then the couch was $1500, but kitty claws have reduced its value greatly. My kayak, at $800, probably still retains its value.
We have a whalebone, ivory and baleen sculpture of an Eskimo ready to harpoon a seal. We paid $4,000 for it back when we had that sort of money to fritter away. We also have a handmade cabinet that we bought for about $2500 that I believe is probably worth closer to $10K at this point. It’s functional furniture that is also a work of art.
Top of the list is a Breitling Superocean watch that I believe lists for around USD $2000. It was given to me by my employer for 20 years of service. I’ve never paid more than $125 for a watch I purchased myself, and most were much less than that.
I’ve got the brass number plate from a steam locomotive that belonged to a short line in eastern Pennsylvania. I haven’t had it appraised, but similar artifacts seem to be valued in the $1500-$2000 range.
Next in value would be the computer I’m typing this on. About $1200 when purchased in 2002.
Everything else, including furniture and appliances, was purchased for, or is worth, less than a grand (usually considerably less) for any individual item.
In that same vein, my left knee. I don’t really know how to depreciate it, but it’s ten years old (I’m 34), so it’s probably worth a good bit less than the insurance company and I paid for it by now.
My most expensive possessions would probably be a couple of guitars.
I am not big on throwing out references to stuff I own and their values, but I am fortunate to have some cool, collectible/valuable stuff like first edition books (e.g., Dune, To Kill a Mockingbird, Catch-22, others) and some guitars (a vintage Gibson Les Paul Special and an old, 1940’s Gibson acoustic guitar). Growing up with antique dealers, my house was loaded with collectible silver, glass, paintings, dolls, etc. - not over-the-top museum stuff, but stuff you’d find in a decent antique store. You get a feel for what has value and keep an eye out for it. I also got grounded in haggling and bartering by my parents, so most of the books and guitars I have acquired I got by “flipping” stuff I find and use as trade-bait…I got that Gibson acoustic by selling a first-edition book I had bought a few years ago at a great price - I flipped it for, like, 8x what I paid for it - total yay.
Hmm, excluding the house and cars… probably my wife’s engagement ring. It was a few thousand dollars when I bought it (wholesale) almost ten years ago, and I can’t think of anything else we’ve spend that kind of money on. Well, unless you count our bedroom furniture set: that’s a bed, two end tables, a dresser and a bureau. I don’t know if that counts as one item or five but I was more than the ring.
WordMan, a landscape watercolor. I acquired it probably 20 years ago from a contemporary of Jerry Bywaters that was retiring to Hawaii and selling off his assets. He’d bought it decades before from an old London bookstore where it has been on a wall for over 100 years. It’s much like The Hay Wain and the brush strokes are exquisite so, yeah, you’d probably get a little drooly, much like I would over some of your first eds.
It’s not as much as a lot of is listed in this thread so far, and it’s library binding so it can’t be worth too much I wouldn’t think, but it’s pretty important to me. Also, I learned about the guy the book is about from a Straight Dope article, so it’s doubly related to this board.
I paid $500 for it 9 years ago when he was completely unknown. With all of the success he’s enjoyed since then it’s surely worth quite a bit more now, especially considering that he hasn’t sold more than a handful of pieces since.
I have no idea of its value, but I have a copy of First on the Moon, autographed by the three authors: Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin, and Michael Collins. I got their sigs on the 20th anniversary of the moon landing, while I was working at the National Air and Space Museum.
The only glitch is that when I bought the book in a used book store in 1989, I wasn’t as knowledgeable about these things, and it happens to be a book club edition, which lowers its value somewhat. But I imagine that the presence of all three signatures is something of a rarity. Especially since Armstrong no longer gives autographs, and his signature alone can go for thousands.
Not to be too morbid, I’ll probably have it appraised after all three have died.
