Gallery: Star Wars Coins Will Be Legal Tender in Niue

(Lewis Wallace)- Soon-to-be-minted Star War coins will be legal tender on the tiny South Pacific island nation of Niue, but you probably wouldn’t want to use them to buy a drink in the Mos Eisley Cantina.

The collectible coins — some made of pure silver and packaged in special cases that hold four coins, others made of silver-plated base metal and sold in blister packs — will retail for considerably more than their $2 face value.

Each of the two cases will house a set of four 1-ounce silver coins and sell for $393. The Darth Vader case will emit the sound of the Sith Lord’s instantly recognizable breathing upon opening. It will hold coins with the images of Emperor Palpatine, the Death Star, a stormtrooper and Vader himself. Read more here…

Cashing in on gold, antiques on rise

(Crystal Brown)- The Treasure Hunters Roadshow is scheduled to stop in town from Aug. 30 through Sept. 3 at the Sleep Inn and Suites, 1911 Wall St. The event is free and runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. each day except Saturday, when they end the show at 4 p.m.

Locals are encouraged to bring their rare and unusual items for a chance to talk with antique and collectible experts.

Items they hope to see during their stay include coins and paper currency prior to 1965, toys, dolls, trains, vintage jewelry, old and modern musical instruments, war memorabilia, gold and silver jewelry, costume jewelry, advertising memorabilia, swords, knives, daggers, and the unusual.

“Collectors are very serious about their hobby; so serious that they will pay a lot of money for the items they are looking for,” states a release from the roadshow. “...Our treasure hunters make offers based on what our collectors are willing to pay.  Then when someone decides to sell, they get paid on the spot, and our treasure hunters send the item to the collector at their expense.” Read more here…

COCA-COLA 125TH ANNIVERSARY COLLECTIBLE CANS

(Piers Fawkes)- Peter Gregson has designed a series of Coca-Cola cans for the celebration of Coca Cola’s 125th anniversary. The Serbian designer borrowed from vintage Coca-Cola ads and posters from the 1930s and 40s and created a style that he hopes will remind the world of the Coca Cola’s longevity and, at the same, be something completely new. Read more here…

Mike Tyson Autographs Hotter Than Ever

(CNBC.com)- Mike Tyson has certainly had his ups and downs, but the 45-year-old who fought his last fight six years ago is more coveted in the collectible world now than he was during his career.

Fans lined up to get autographs from the former world heavyweight boxing champion at the National Sports Collectors Convention in Chicago on Sunday and they paid top dollar. Fans paid $150 apiece for autographs on their flat items, $200 on gloves and $250 for Tyson's signature on a robe. And if you wanted a picture with Tyson, it cost $150. More than 100 people took him up on it. Read more here…

Roadshow rolls in

(Julia Le)- The Great Canadian Roadshow rolled into Mississauga yesterday to buy antiques, collectibles, jewellery, war memorabilia and other unique items from those in attendance. The roadshow, which made stops in Stony Plain, Alberta and Oshawa in the last two weeks, set up shop at the Four Points by Sheraton hotel on Argentia Rd. The show continues until Friday. Admission is free. Read more here…

A World of Collectibles

(Patch.com)- When Bill Mahler’s career as a bank auditor (hence, the nickname “Banker Bill”) ended, he spent time as a “Mr. Mom” before taking ownership of a collectible shop at 435 Amwell Road, center next to the post office, and renaming it Banker Bill’s Sports Cards & Collectibles.

“I’m a collector of everything,” the Branchburg resident proudly declares.

He laughs as he points to a sign on the wall that he says explains what happened to his childhood collections: “I used to be a millionaire but my Mom threw out my baseball cards.”

Now, four years after taking over the store, he is surrounded by baseball cards and much more. While most of the collectibles are sports-related—specifically baseball, football, basketball and hockey—he also features toys such as Pokemon, Webkinz and die-cast trucks and cars. Read more here…

Treasure Hunters Roadshow returns

(Laurinburg Exchange)- The Treasure Hunters Roadshow will be visiting Scotland County to find out. During this free event, the Treasure Hunters are expecting to see more than 1,200 residents bringing in rare and unusual collectibles. Visitors will have a chance to talk to world-renowned antique and collectible experts. Read more here...

Top 10: Best Selling eBay Collectible Auctions l 1st Half of 2011

(Auctionbytes)- WhatSellsBest.com has published a list of the Top 10 Rare Collectibles sold on eBay (based on highest prices paid) during the first half of 2011.

A few runner-ups on the list; a first edition vintage magazine featuring an iconic Cover Girl fetched $39,900; an antique Pamphlet containing an early poem about 'Golf' received $50,400; and a rare Collectible Beer Can collected $17,000. The top collectible so far, has brought its owner $105,655.

According to James Massey, the sites publisher; "The first-half of 2011 has seen a wide variety of items fetching high prices in multiple categories. But, some the strongest bidding has been in rare coins, asian antiques, and entertainment memorabilia marking defining moments in pop culture history." Read more here… 

15 Hot Comic-Con 2011 Collectibles We Want

(Rotten Tomatoes)- If you're enough of a comic, movie or TV fan to go to San Diego Comic-Con, you might also be the type of person that buys collectible items to show off your fandom. It's not just toys, but books, posters, DVDs and statuettes are all for sale at the con (aside from plenty of comics). We've made a list of the coolest movie-related items that you'll only be able to get in San Diego, at least until they show up on eBay. Read more here...

Interest in space memorabilia soars as shuttle era ends

(USA Today)- The day after the space shuttle Atlantis launched on its final journey, space memorabilia collectors flooded the website of Goldberg's Auctions in Los Angeles for a shot at nabbing a piece of NASA history.

"It's the end of an era," CEO Ira Goldberg says. "These items will become historical treasure pieces."

Since the dawn of the space program in the 1950s, collectors have longed for a physical connection to the cosmos, from astronaut autographs to moon rocks. Now space shuttle relics are surging in price and popularity as NASA's 30-year-old space shuttle program ends with the landing of Atlantis, scheduled for Thursday at Kennedy Space Center. Read more here…

The Rising Trend for ‘Ultra Modern Collectibles’

(News-antique.com)- Following international interest in William and Kate’s Order of Service coming to auction, Fraser’s Autographs expert Dr Best comments on the increasing popularity of ‘ultra-modern collectibles’. It used to be the case that items had to be old or ‘vintage’ to make money on the collectors market but according to Fraser’s Autographs expert, Dr Philip Best, a new collecting phenomenon has emerged: the ‘ultra modern’ collectible. Read more here…

2011-12 Upper Deck Series 1 Hockey

(The Cardboard Connection)- For more than two decades, Upper Deck Hockey has been one of the cornerstone sets for hockey card collectors. Mixing sharp photography with a deep checklist of short-printed Young Guns rookie cards, Upper Deck Hockey is to ice what Topps Baseball is to the diamond. Besides one of the most collectible base sets in the entire sports card hobby, 2011-12 Upper Deck Series 1 Hockey has several different levels of inserts including two game-used jersey cards per box. Don't expect a lot of autographs, though, as they fall only one per case. Read more here...

Jones' green jacket still raising doubts

(The Augusta Chronicle)- The mystery of how a green jacket that might have belonged to Masters Tournament co-founder Bobby Jones and wound up for sale in the sports memorabilia market remains to be solved.

The garment, a symbol of Augusta National Golf Club, is scheduled to go up for auction Aug. 4 in conjunction with the Chicago National Sports Show in Rosemont, Ill. Heritage Auctions, which bills itself as the world's largest collectibles auctioneer, has commissioned the sale and expects the green jacket to fetch more than $100,000. Read more here…