Top 10 Unusual Collectibles

From the earliest days when humans were hunters and gatherers, we've been drawn to assembling groups of similar items. While many of these items are ordinary – like cards, stamps, and coins – others can be peculiar or even downright strange. Here’s a list of the top 10 most unusual collectibles.

10. Hubcaps / License Plates

These two often go together, and collecting these rusty, seemingly useless car parts can become an obsession. Picture towering piles of carefully arranged hubcaps and garage walls covered with license plates from around the globe, creating the ultimate dream space for car enthusiasts. Whether driven by nostalgia or an unusual obsession, some people are captivated by the idea of owning more hubcaps than they could ever need. License plates might make sense, but hubcaps? What’s the appeal?

Often referred to as hoarding or 'newspaper squalor,' many individuals feel an overwhelming need to keep unread newspapers or magazines, hoping to read them someday. While some might collect MAD magazines or comic books, typically stored neatly in protective sleeves and boxes, others might stash a few issues of MAXIM or PLAYBOY for casual browsing. However, some take this to the extreme, with towering stacks of papers filling every corner of their homes. Such massive collections can be dangerous, posing fire hazards and even causing fatal accidents when piles collapse. Always handle your paper collections with care!

While still unusual, collecting duct tape has gained popularity recently, especially after its versatility in crafting was discovered. With a bit of folding and effort, you can create wallets, purses, small bags, belts, hats, and even entire outfits using rolls of this colorful adhesive. Now, everyone’s favorite tape (often mispronounced as 'duck tape') can be both worn and collected.

Daisy Randone (played by Brittany Murphy in *Girl, Interrupted*) consumed only rotisserie chicken from her father’s restaurant. While in a mental institution, she accumulated a pile of partially eaten chicken bones under her bed, which went unnoticed until the smell gave her away. Surprisingly, this isn’t just a fictional scenario. Some individuals develop an obsession with the taste or smell of a particular food, going to extreme lengths to preserve it, even when it’s partially consumed and likely to decay. This behavior is classified as hoarding, a neurological condition characterized by the compulsion to collect seemingly useless items.

Here’s a snippet from the *San Francisco Chronicle* about a woman whose profession revolves around collecting animals:

“Growing up in Oakland, Nancy Valente’s initial reaction to dead animals was, ‘Eeeuuuw!’ Now, her friends call her saying, ‘I saw something dead on the road and thought of you.’ Valente’s immediate response is, ‘Did you pick it up?’ It’s become a running joke among her circle. Known as ‘Roadkill Nancy’ by local park rangers, the Mill Valley zooarchaeologist has unconventional methods for expanding her extensive collection of animal bones. ‘I’m the bone lady,’ says Valente, 67. ‘I don’t know why I’m so fascinated by them. My house is filled with them, like an elk skull with a full set of antlers. I’d love to show it off, but it’s too big to even fit in my car.’

For years, Valente’s unique blend of nature and the macabre captivated children and shocked parents at the Marin Headlands Visitors Center with her monthly presentation, ‘Bones, Bones, Bones,’ showcasing bones and skins of local wildlife. She has since relocated her program to Muir Woods National Monument and is expanding her reach into the East Bay.

WARNING: This video is disgusting.

Believe it or not, there’s an entire community of individuals who collect spit and take pleasure in it. There’s little more to add here – the faster we move on to the next item, the better.

In Mexico, numerous religious ceremonies honoring the deceased prominently feature skulls. These are typically ancient skulls, often stored in crypts filled with old bones. However, skull collecting isn’t limited to religious contexts. As reported by the *Chicago Sun Times* in May 2007:

“The scene was undeniably alarming—a human skull simmering in a pot of water on the stove. This eerie discovery prompted Chicago Police to rush to a Bucktown apartment located in the 2100 block of North Damen on Tuesday night. As reported by the witness, officers indeed uncovered four human skulls. However, by Wednesday, detectives concluded that this was a lawful instance of bone collecting. ‘There’s a legitimate market for bones, and I specialize in importing and selling them for medical research,’ explained 26-year-old Brian Sloan, who operates on the auction platform eBay.”

Surprisingly, there are individuals who collect such things. In 2006, a user named Baron VonKlyf shared this on Dave Berry’s website blog:

“Leetie… I’d gladly contribute a rare and intriguing booger to your collection, but I seem to have lost it under a table at McDonald’s. If anyone happens to find it, kindly send it to Leetie for her collection. Many thanks. Oh, and thank you, nannie, for your random thought—it’s now part of the collection.”

While many find the idea of collecting boogers disgusting, others view it as a quirky pastime. Most individuals, after a successful nasal excavation, tend to casually discard their findings in any inconspicuous spot. However, there are those who take it a step further, dedicating a special place to store their nasal treasures.

To begin, here’s a passage from The Harvard Crimson (archived in the Harvard Library) dated November 13, 2005:

“David Ferris, Langdell’s curator of rare books and manuscripts, remarks on the library’s human-bound collection: ‘We prefer not to draw undue attention to it.’ Yet, the Spanish legal text from 1605 might inevitably spark curiosity. Housed in the Elihu Reading Room, the book, titled ‘Practicarum quaestionum circa leges regias…,’ appears aged but otherwise unremarkable. Its delicate, stiff pages with wrinkled edges exhibit a muted yellow hue, dotted with occasional brown and black spots resembling an overripe banana. The skin lacks hair or tattoos, save for a ‘Harvard Law Library’ stamp on the spine. To the casual observer, nothing about it screams ‘human flesh.’”

While skin collection was once reserved for specialized bookbinders, it has now become a peculiar hobby for some individuals who gather fragments of their own flesh for personal satisfaction. There’s something undeniably unsettling about the practice.

A collection that gazes back at you might seem intriguing to some, enough to inspire the desire to accumulate a large number of eyeballs. Objects resembling eyeballs, slightly rounded and lifelike, are commonly found in gift shops, vending machines, and even on websites dedicated to selling ocular-themed memorabilia. From pillows and serving bowls to Christmas tree lights, gum balls, and pajamas, eyeball imagery is everywhere. For those who venture into the darker and more bizarre, collecting real human eyeballs becomes the next step. To preserve their form and prevent them from drying out, enthusiasts often store them in jars filled with formaldehyde. Now, that’s what you call commitment.

So, why not explore the world and discover something fascinating to collect!