Authored by Althea Tan in Recreation and Sports
Published on 01-29-2009

Collecting signatures from famous or would-be famous personalities is not easy. It pays to know an authentic autograph from the counterfeit. You can never tell it is genuine until you see the person himself do the signing.

Autographs may be a valuable investment if you plan to sell your collection in the future. Although remember that for every kind of collection, there are what you call authenticators who are experts in their chosen field and who are dedicated in detecting bogus merchandise. So to avoid legal issues, you have to make sure you contact a specialist who will validate your collection. It would surely help if it is accompanied by a certificate of authentication. It may cost you money now but it will save you from the humiliation of being charged of possible fraud in the future. On the other hand, it would also not hurt to have a second opinion by another expert other than the seller’s authenticator when buying your own from a third party. Besides, it pays to be extra careful when dealing with something pricey and as precious as your collection. Without doubt, you know very well how greed can easily change people from an angel to a villain.

Aside from having your autographs authenticated, you may also want to make sure that the goods you are selling are of good quality. Signatures must never be made by anything but ink. Unlike ink, handwriting by pencils easily fades when stored for a long period of time because of heat, humidity, light, or by other conditions that may cause it to become paler.

Obviously, if you spent an immeasurable time in collecting these valuable signatures, you don’t want to commit the mistake of letting them damaged by fire, flood, tornado, hurricane, and the like. Because of its potential worth, some collectors even consider keeping them in a safe or a deposit box by their local bank.

Having this type of collection could be very complicated as a person’s signature can possibly have a slightly different appearance depending on the current technique, ink used, or even the person’s mood and disposition at the time it was written. This is especially true with capital letters. For instance, sickness may interfere how the strokes are made when signing or writing. Famous people often give scribbles or as some say “chicken scratch” for a signature. At one point in time, a person may unconsciously not remember how his or her signature was originally written. The strokes and style may vary. If you are trying to collect several signatures from just a specific person, you may notice that it may change over time. It’s apparently impossible to keep a constant style for signatures.

Last but not least, there is always a big difference between having something already written on paper and having the actual person signing it with or for you. Certainly, this may require perseverance and a great deal of your time. In the long run, the investment could be worth it.