Scripophilia

Scripophilia is the study and collection of stocks and bonds. A specialized field of numismatics, scripophilia is an interesting area of collecting, both for the inherent beauty of some of these documents and their interesting historical context. Some stock certificates are excellent examples of the art of engraving.

History

Scripophilia, or collecting old canceled stocks and bonds, gained recognition as a hobby around 1970, especially in the United States. The term “scripophilia” was coined by combining the English term scrip which represents a property right and the Greek word philos which means love.

Today there are thousands of collectors around the world in search of scarce, rare and popular stocks and bonds. Many are attracted to the historical significance of the certificate. Others prefer the beauty of the older ones, printed in various inks and with florid ornamentation.

Scripophilia as a hobby

There are many reasons for the success of this hobby. First of all, bonds and stocks are collectible worldwide, since each country has had them, issued by the government and by private companies. The color, paper, signatures, dates, stamps, cancellations, borders, photographs, vignettes, type of industry, printer, name of the holder, etc., all add to the specialness of the hobby.

A large part of scripophilia is the area of financial history. Over the years there have been millions of companies that needed capital and resorted to issuing securities. Generally speaking, they issued a share of the company in the form of a share, or a certificate of debt in the form of a bond.

Each certificate is a piece of history regarding a company and its businesses. Some companies were resounding successes, while others were acquired and merged. Some were successful until they were replaced by new technologies. Many companies were never successful or went bankrupt, so their certificates became worthless papers until the emergence of scripophilia.

The rise of mining, the construction of railways, the rise of oil, the telegraph, the automobile industry, aviation, electric power companies, banks, all resulted in the issuance of certificates historically significant.

Guide to scripophilia

There are many factors that determine the value of a certificate. These include its state of preservation, age, historical significance, signatures, rarity, demand for the item, aesthetics, type of company, original face value, whether or not it was issued, printers and type of engraving. In general, certificates in good condition, scarce, that were issued, very attractive and popular are the ones that command the highest prices.