![]() ![]() These do not give you any indication of the instrument's age they are merely the dates various trade awards were given. ![]() Many brands of harmonica have little medals engraved on the covers with various dates on them. In 2015, Sotheby's sold a rather battered Hohner Vest Pocket Harp, something that would normally struggle to fetch a few dollars on eBay, for a whopping £4,000 - about $5,425! This was because the instrument was said to have been given to Jimi Hendrix by Bob Dylan and there was a signed affidavit to this effect.Ī few words of advice. One thing that can really boost the value of an otherwise ordinary harmonica is if it has been used by someone famous. ![]() If you have a very good condition old Hohner Marine Band, or 64 Chromonica, then there could be a player prepared to pay a reasonable price for it. There is a commonly held belief (not completely without basis in fact) that Hohner harmonicas made before WWII are better than more recent ones. Even some fairly common harmonicas may be considered collectible by some people. The best thing if you wish to get a good price for it, is to list it on somewhere like eBay with some good photographs and a clear description of it, particularly of any writing that may appear on the harmonica or its box - then cross your fingers and wait for the bidding to start. Those that do are mostly in the German language and take some effort to obtain. There are relatively few books written about the history of the harmonica and even fewer of them go into much detail about the various models. How do you tell if your harmonica is especially collectible? That's a tough one. In fact, some harmonica collectors are so eager that I a few years ago watched a couple of them bid more than $40 dollars (plus shipping) for a harp they could have bought brand new from their local music store for a mere $4.95! On very rare occasions, even something which looks to most people like any other old harmonica may be a highly sought after model and a harmonica collector might be eager to take if off your hands. ![]() If it is in impeccable condition and has its original box, then it is probably worth even more. However, if your old harmonica is shaped like a zeppelin, an automobile, a fish, a boomerang or a rooster, or if it features art deco style paintwork, or has bells, pipes or horns attached to it, then you might possibly be holding something of value. The chances are, if your harmonica just looks like a harmonica, then it probably isn't worth much at all. Even though many of them were quickly consigned to the garbage by parents with headaches, there are still a lot of them out there in boxes of unwanted toys, belongings of deceased relatives, junk stores and so on. Harmonicas were made literally by the thousand and even sometimes by the million (Hohner, just one of the many companies to have manufactured them, produced their one billionth harmonica more than a quarter century ago). Whilst old guitars are often considered to be "vintage", old harmonicas are generally considered to be merely something that has been in someone else's mouth. If you think you've found a valuable old treasure in the attic, it's likely that you are going to be disappointed. I know that probably doesn't help very much, but unlike used cars and collectible pottery, there is no "blue book" of used harmonica prices. This is probably the question I get asked the most by email and the best answer I can give is that like anything else, an old harmonica is worth whatever someone is willing to pay you for it. ![]()
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