Poker Chips - Daryle Lambert's Antiques and Collectibles Blog – Be a Good Neighbor

Moon & Owl Poker Chip - Thanks to athlebrites.com

Yesterday was one of the most interesting days that I have spent in a long time. Even though this week seems like it will never end, yesterday was special. I drove south of Chicago to meet a wonderful lady named Pam, and her daughter, and we spent the better part of the day together.

This story started a few months ago when I received a call asking if I bought antiques. I assured the caller that I did. She asked if it would be okay to visit my home and bring a few things for me to see. She wondered if I might be interested in buying the items, which I was more than glad to tell her was a possibility. On the appointed day she arrived, and to my surprise she had a very important Japanese tin toy in mint condition which I was able to purchase. I figured that I probably wouldn't see her again but that toy plus her wonderful personality made the day worthwhile.

Now to fast forward. I received another call and the voice on the phone asked if I would be interested in seeing some items that she would be interested in selling. Using my regular response I assured her that I would and asked where she lived. The appointment was made and yesterday I showed up at her door. Surprise, surprise, it was Pam, the same lady from whom I had purchased the tin toy. I hadn’t connected the dots.

We started walking through the house together and my eyes just jumped from one great item to the next. But today I only have room to write about one item. To complete this story of my visit with Pam will take a few more blogs. But let’s talk about that item that you should be interested in. As we were walking, I noticed a wooden box and upon opening it, found the box to be completely filled with poker chips. At first I thought they may have been Bakelite, but now I think they were clay. There were perhaps two hundred or more chips in the box and I hadn't seen any like them before. Not knowing what their value was and having used Pam's computer to look up something else, I suggested that we research them. I feel confident that if I had offered her $100, they would have been mine.

The daughter quickly entered the information I had given her and our eyes popped out when, there it was, a chip just like the one I had in my hand. We were looking at eBay's completed auctions where I have always suggested you look for information. This particular auction had just finished with a final bid of $11.99. You do the math. Two hundred times $12 equals $2400 I believe, and I had just become a good neighbor. I was more than glad to help this wonderful lady and I hope that she is able to get this for her chips on eBay. I didn't buy the poker chips, but when I left her house, my pickup was full of wonderful collectibles and I had spent a fabulous day with Pam and her daughter.

Watch for poker chips the are etched with a moon and owl. These originals are from the early 1900's. 


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