I've seen the same sort of thing. I once went to a quilt turning where one of the quilts was badly damaged with a large tear because the owner's husband had used it to drag a heavy piece of furniture across the room. The quilt was an antique, and the appraiser said the tear had destroyed the considerable value of the quilt.. It's just ignorance but it is maddening. When I label quilts, I include instructions on laundering and care that I hope will convey some sense of the value but I don't have much hope. I've pretty much quit giving quilts as gifts after seeing so many of them abused and misused. I donate them as fundraisers sometimes, on the theory that if someone shells out some money they will take some care of the item. Most people simply don't value what they don't pay for.