Journal

Guides to buying, valuing and selling collectibles in Serbia.

Every article belongs to one section, by type of item. Tags cut across sections: what you want to do, which period and which metal.

Hands going through an old box of photographs
The first week is sorting, not appraising. Hands in the box help only if they wash nothing and glue nothing.
Guide · Oct 16, 2026 · 5 min

You have inherited a collection: what to do in the first seven days

A practical order of operations for an heir who does not know what they hold: what not to touch, how to inventory it, where the value sits, and how not to sell it all at once below value.

#Selling to dealers #Valuation #Selling
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Heap of old silver and gold coins
A heap of mixed silver and gold. The floor price of every piece comes from the same formula; the only question is which of them goes beyond it.
Numismatics · Oct 15, 2026 · 5 min

Where numismatics ends and metal begins

Every silver coin has two prices. How to calculate the lower one in a minute, what lifts a coin above it, and why 1938 silver and the Yugoslav commemoratives rarely go past metal.

#Silver #The Kingdom #Yugoslavia 1945–2003 #Valuation
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Gold coins and bars under warm light
Gold is measured in grams and fineness — but a coin is priced by what sits above the metal value.
Numismatics · Oct 14, 2026 · 5 min

Gold coins of the Kingdom of Serbia: the milandor, the Union standard and real value

Serbian gold from 1879: which pieces exist, why they weigh the same as a napoléon, how the price is calculated, and how to spot a cast copy.

#Gold #The Kingdom #Authenticity #Valuation
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Auction gavel on a wooden block
The hammer only records the price. Two buyers settled it between themselves — which is why it is a fact, not an assumption.
Guide · Oct 10, 2026 · 3 min

Auction vs. Fixed Price: How to Maximize Revenue When Selling Rarities

Why selling collector items via classified ads loses money: the psychology of bidding wars, smart starting reserves, and optimal timing strategies.

#Selling #Valuation
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Antique porcelain cup, cut lead crystal decanter, and brass candlestick
Plate, Sèvres, c. 1757–60: hand-painted decoration, moulded basketweave rim, gilded edge. Cleveland Museum of Art, CC0.
Antiques · Oct 9, 2026 · 2 min

Porcelain, Crystal, and Brass Treasures: How to Identify Genuine Antiques

Distinguish valuable European porcelain, heavy lead crystal, and patinated brass from common vintage kitchenware: hallmarks, resonance, and patina preservation.

#Authenticity #Valuation #Condition & care
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Old toys at a flea market
A flea-market table: tin toys, plastic figures and oddments together. The value sits in a few pieces, not in the heap.
Antiques · Oct 8, 2026 · 3 min

Valuable Vintage Yugoslav Toys: Mehanotehnika, Tinplate Cars, and Retro Dolls

Nostalgia turned into investment: why vintage toys from socialist Yugoslavia (Mehanotehnika, Biserka) are commanding hundreds of euros at auction.

#Yugoslavia 1945–2003 #Valuation #Condition & care
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Vintage turntable with amplifier
A turntable with a sound tonearm and amplifier is worth repairing. So is one whose only fault is the belt.
Vinyl · Oct 7, 2026 · 3 min

Vintage Turntables and Speakers: What Is Worth Restoring and Selling

Guide to vintage analog Hi-Fi: iconic turntables (Thorens, Technics, Dual), classic loudspeakers (Ei Niš, Canton), repairability and market values.

#Valuation #Selling #Condition & care
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Turntable with an LP and record sleeves, top view
An LP on the turntable, sleeves alongside: Goldmine grading starts with what you can see — surface sheen, scratches, sleeve condition.
Vinyl · Oct 6, 2026 · 3 min

Vinyl Record Grading Explained (Mint, VG+, VG): Why Condition Means Everything

Master the Goldmine grading system for vinyl records: breakdown of M, NM, VG+, VG condition grades, visual inspection under light, and avoiding grading disputes.

#Condition & care #Selling #Valuation
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Crate of vinyl records
A crate of records from a home collection. Sorting by artist settles nothing — the value is in the pressing, and that is read off the label and the run-out groove.
Vinyl · Oct 4, 2026 · 2 min

Buying and Selling Vinyl Records: What LP Albums Collectors Look For

Vinyl collector manual: identifying valuable LPs, classic rock, EX-YU New Wave, first pressings from Jugoton & PGP RTB, and condition grading rules.

#Selling to dealers #Valuation #Condition & care
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A 1993 500 billion dinar banknote
The 1993 500,000,000,000-dinar note: the largest denomination the National Bank of Yugoslavia ever printed.

Фото: KKPCW · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Banknotes & medals · Oct 1, 2026 · 2 min

1993 Hyperinflation: Are Yugoslav 500 Billion Dinar Banknotes Valuable?

Myths and facts about FR Yugoslavia’s extreme currency: market value of the 500 billion dinar note, original bank bricks, and true collector rarities.

#Yugoslavia 1945–2003 #Valuation #Rarities
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Bundles of banknotes and loose coins
Banded bundles of notes and loose coins on a counter: this is how paper money usually arrives for valuation — by the kilo rather than by the piece.
Banknotes & medals · Sep 29, 2026 · 3 min

Selling Antique Banknotes: Guide to Paper Currency of Serbia and Yugoslavia

How to identify valuable vintage banknotes, decode international grading standards (UNC, XF, VF), and sell paper money safely to serious collectors.

#Selling to dealers #Valuation #Condition & care
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A metal tray full of small coins
A tray of small change like this sits at every flea market — and rarely, but reliably, something valuable turns up in it.
Numismatics · Sep 28, 2026 · 3 min

Rare Yugoslav SFRJ Coins: Are Old Dinar Coins Worth More Than Face Value?

Collector guide to socialist Yugoslav coins: key dates, trial strikes, condition grading, and why 1950s aluminium dinars in mint state fetch serious money.

#Yugoslavia 1945–2003 #Rarities #Valuation
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Many different coins on a dark background
Until the year, the mint and the condition are established, any coin is just one of many.
Numismatics · Sep 26, 2026 · 4 min

Coins of the Kingdom of Serbia and the SHS: what silver dinars are worth

Royal-period silver from 1875 to 1938: what makes one year worth many times another, how wear is assessed, and which varieties collectors chase.

#The Kingdom #Silver #Valuation #Authenticity
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Quadruple gold ducat of Franz Joseph I
Quadruple ducat of Franz Joseph I: 13.96 g at 986 fineness. The web of fine scratches across the field is wear — exactly what erases the numismatic premium. Metropolitan Museum of Art, CC0.
Numismatics · Sep 25, 2026 · 4 min

Small and large Franz Joseph ducats: fineness, weight and how value is calculated

The Austro-Hungarian ducat standards, the difference between circulation originals and restrikes, and why the price is calculated from gold content upwards.

#Gold #Valuation #Authenticity
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Tray of mixed old coins
A typical find: a tray of mixed coins. Two or three of them usually carry nearly all the value — the task is to find them before selling.
Numismatics · Sep 24, 2026 · 4 min

Coin valuation and buying: where and how to sell old coins safely

How a coin price is formed, why cleaning destroys value, how to spot a copy, and which sales channel suits which kind of money.

#Selling to dealers #Valuation #Authenticity #Condition & care
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Soviet Poljot wristwatch
A Poljot, 23 jewels, automatic, "Made in USSR" on the dial. A typical product of mass production — dependable, and for that reason cheap.
Watches · Sep 23, 2026 · 3 min

Soviet mechanical watches in Serbia: Poljot, Raketa, Vostok — what has value?

Why ninety per cent of Soviet watches are cheap, which models break away from the pack, and how to spot a watch assembled from parts — this market’s commonest problem.

#Authenticity #Valuation #Rarities
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Two vintage wristwatches in a display case
Two vintage watches in a case. The class is not visible from outside — the calibre under the back decides it.
Watches · Sep 22, 2026 · 4 min

Vintage Swiss watches: verifying an original and checking the movement

Serial numbers, calibres and fineness hallmarks: the practical checks before buying or selling, and why an "assembled" watch is a commoner problem than a fake.

#Authenticity #Gold #Valuation
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Vintage mechanical wristwatch with a cream dial
A modest mid-century mechanical watch — an entire generation wore them, which is why so many survive.
Watches · Sep 20, 2026 · 3 min

Darwil watches: history, models and what they really fetch

The most widespread watch of the Yugoslav era: which versions collectors actually want, why most are worth little, and how not to sell a gold case at plated prices.

#Yugoslavia 1945–2003 #Valuation #Condition & care
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Watchmaker bench with loupe and movement
A watchmaker's bench: loupe, tweezers, a movement out of its case. This is where a watch's class is decided — not by the dial.
Watches · Sep 19, 2026 · 4 min

Selling old watches: a guide for owners of mechanical and pocket watches

How to assess an inherited watch before selling: what a buyer actually examines, why servicing beforehand often lowers the price, and when auction beats a direct sale.

#Selling to dealers #Valuation #Condition & care
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Boxes and shelves of comics in a shop
Uniform format and huge print runs — which is why comics like these live in boxes, not one by one on a shelf.
Comics · Sep 18, 2026 · 3 min

Zagor and Dylan Dog: why Bonelli comics are still the most in demand

Broad demand, enormous print runs and therefore modest prices — how the Bonelli titles still make money, and which copies break away from the average.

#Selling #Valuation
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Old comics displayed on a wall and table
The same issue in different condition — the price gap can be tenfold.
Comics · Sep 17, 2026 · 4 min

Comic condition (glanc, 5-, 4): how preservation sets the price

The Balkan grading scale explained plainly: what each grade means, which defects cost the most, and how to describe condition so no buyer asks for a refund.

#Condition & care #Valuation #Selling
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A person leafing through an old comic by a window
An old comic in hand: the paper, format and layout give away the decade before you reach the colophon.
Comics · Sep 15, 2026 · 4 min

Which Alan Ford issues are actually worth money: a guide to the Vjesnik editions

Why Alan Ford is worth more here than in Italy, which issues carry the value, how to tell an original from a reprint, and what is worth selling individually.

#Yugoslavia 1945–2003 #Rarities #Valuation #Authenticity
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Stack of old issues on a table
A pile of well-read issues. In a typical box of two hundred, five to ten carry nearly all the value.
Comics · Sep 14, 2026 · 5 min

Selling old comics in Serbia: how to value a collection and where to sell it

Which inherited comics actually carry value, how condition moves the price, and which sales channel returns the most — without the attic-treasure myths.

#Selling to dealers #Valuation #Condition & care
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