Plain sailing for collectors

I’M currently trying to read the collecting, ‘what next?’ tea leaves and coming up with cups of coffee. Investment common sense would sort of suggest that, with the possibility of a spreading war in Europe interrupting normal business, hikes in the costs of food and energy already with us and further huge hikes haring around the corner – not forgetting the not insubstantial matter of rising interest rates – the sensible way forward might be holding back on aggressively expanding your treasured collection of whatevers; be that Beanie Babies, old tractors, flintlock pistols or, in my case, ancient armour and (my sort of still guilty, undetected secret) ancient gold Byzantine coins. But no. The current indications seem to be that the art market is still going gangbusters.

One explanation I read is: why leave your money in a bank where it is only going to be trashed by inflation? Another might be: do not underestimate the warped and utterly