General rule in antiques: if it makes a sound, it’s worth something

Antiques & Collecting
  • Tin lithograph music boxes like this one turned a luxury item into a simple toy. Their graphics usually featured instruments or musicians. Photo Credit: Copake Auction Inc.(c) 2026 by Cowles Syndicate Inc.
    Tin lithograph music boxes like this one turned a luxury item into a simple toy. Their graphics usually featured instruments or musicians. Photo Credit: Copake Auction Inc.(c) 2026 by Cowles Syndicate Inc.

    There is a general rule in antiques: If it makes a sound (and is supposed to), it’s worth something. The rule usually refers to chiming clocks, music boxes, instruments, and noisemaking toys. If you look into the history of these items, you can start to see some similarities. While mechanical musical devices have existed for hundreds of years and appeared in stories even older than that, the music…