All About Manuscripts and Autograph Collecting

Old manuscripts are sometimes found in abandon old houses that have not been occupied in years.  Antique collectors discover these treasures in their search for a variety of other items.  Some of these manuscripts are not so valuable.  The valuable ones make all kinds of media coverage because they are usually worth thousands of dollars.
If your autograph collecting is done as an investment you need to go to yard sales, and house auctions.  Many times parents die and leave the home place to children.  They some times have no idea what is stored in the safes, draws, and closets of some of these homes.  Quite some time ago a person who was autograph collecting came across a handwritten church deed and added it to their autograph collection.  Every name on the deed was deceased.  The church was at that time a major part of the community’s history.  In the early days, manuscripts were handwritten.  Very few people had a manual typewriter and very few people knew how to type.  These handwritten manuscripts are considered a part of autograph collecting.  These handwritten documents are valuable even more so with a signature.
A faction of those who do autograph collecting, collect only manuscripts.  Some even specialize within the subject of manuscripts and collect only governmental, historical or political manuscripts.  In most cases, historical documents are treated as appreciating assets and cannot be depreciated.  Signatures on the Charter of the United Nations and signers of the U.S. Constitution make these documents valuable investments if you are autograph collecting.  If you find one of these documents or some other manuscript of this kind, it will pay to take it through the authentication process so you will know what you have.  It could be the real thing and got lost in the process of being buried down somewhere by someone of another generation.  This may be the super find for which you have been looking.  Autograph collecting can be one of the most rewarding forms of collecting you can do.  Other kinds of manuscripts that may prove to be very valuable are music scores or sheets of music.
Many of our great classical musicians signed their music after they were written and some times dated them.  In fact there was a time when you claimed ownership of everything in your possession by signing it with your name and contact information.  Music sheets that are signed by Brahms, Schumann, Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Stravinsky, Bach, Mozart and other great masters of classical music are investments for those who are autograph collecting.  Some of these manuscripts have been out of circulation for generations.  Sometimes, when old buildings are torn down old manuscripts of years past are found.  If they are signed by the author, the value increases. If you go to a college library or the Library of Congress you can get a good look at some of these manuscripts so you can get an idea of what you are looking to find.  Autograph collecting with manuscripts provides you with an opportunity to preserve our rich history and traditions of the past.