Originally Posted by Anna.425
I jumped on ebay to look for quilt panels and jumped into the handmade quilts page. There was a "vintage" section that I spent sometime looking at. I came across one quilt that I know was not handmade as my mother purchased one for me when I was 8. As I continued to look through the various quilts I realized that many of them were from my childhood and they are labeled vintage. Now that official definition of an antique is 50 years or older. I am 51 and the realization came to me OMG I'm vintage! LOL I have the soul of a 30 year old.
This definition comes from Wikipedia, still leaves the question open, and probably tells you more than you wanted to know.
froggyintexas
An antique (Latin: antiquus; old) is an old collectible item. It is collected or desirable because of its age (see definition), beauty, rarity, condition, utility, personal emotional connection, and/or other unique features. It is an object that represents a previous era or time period in human society. It is common practice to define "antique", as applying to objects at least 50 years old. Collectibles are, generally speaking, the possible antiques of the future and generally less than 50 years old.
Antiques are usually objects which show some degree of craftsmanship, or a certain attention to design such as a desk or an early automobile. They are most often bought at antique shops, or passed down as an estate. Some valuable antiques can be bought from antique dealers and auction services or purchased online through websites and online auctions. Antique dealers are often members of national trade associations, many of which belong to CINOA, a confederation of art and antique associations across 21 countries, representing 5000 dealers.
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1 Purpose
[edit] Purpose[edit] PejorativelyThe term "antique" is pejorative in some instances to imply that something is out of date.
[edit] Definition
An antique US mailboxThe definition of antique varies from source to source, product to product, and year to year. However, some time-tested definitions of antique deserve consideration, such as the following:
1."An item which is at least 100 years old and is collected or desirable due to rarity, condition, utility, or some other unique feature. Motor vehicles, power tools and other items subject to vigorous use in contrast, may be considered antiques in the US if older than 50 years, and some electronic gadgets of more recent vintage may be considered antiques. Another general rule of thumb is 75 years for most objects to become antiques."[citation needed]
2."Any piece of furniture or decorative object or the like produced in a former period and valuable because of its beauty or rarity."[citation needed]
In the United States, the 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act defined an antique as "works of art (except rugs and carpets made after the year 1700), collections in illustration of the progress of the arts, works in bronze, marble, terra cotta, parian, pottery or porcelain, artistic antiquities and objects of ornamental character or educational value which shall have been produced prior to the year 1830."[citation needed] 1830 was roughly the beginning of mass production in the US and 100 years older than 1930 Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act.
These definitions allow people to make a distinction between genuine antique pieces, vintage items, and collectible objects.
The alternative term antiquities commonly refers to the remains of ancient art and everyday items from antiquity, which themselves are often archaeological artifacts.
The term antiquarian refers to a person interested in antiquities, or things of the past.