The general definition of the word “antique” is an old, collectible item. An antique is collected because of its age, beauty, rarity, condition, or usefulness. The labeling of an item as an antique presumes it has value because of its workmanship and rarity.  Items identified as antiques are purchased and acquired for personal use, gifts, and in the case of dealers and brokers, for profit. Just because an item is old does not make it an antique. It is characteristic to define an antique as being at least 100 years old. However, in reality, an object does not need to reach an age of 100 years to be labeled as an antique. One example is an automobile. Many antique autos are far less than 100 years of age. Cars that are 50 years of age or less are typically identified as antique automobiles. Collectors perform antiquing at garage sales, estate sales, resort towns, antiques districts, dealer shops, collective cooperatives, and auction houses. Antiquing has grown in popularity. Many people participate in the activity on some level. Other unique features may make an antique both desirable and collectible. For many collectors, there is frequently a personal or emotional connection to an antique item.

An antique is an object that represents a previous era or time in human society. In contrast, today’s collectibles are the possible antiques of the future. While antiques are often more than 100 years of age, collectibles are usually less than 100 years old. Of course, most antiques are collectibles. The terms are sometimes used interchangeably.