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The "Death-Effect" on Collectible Prices

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It has been widely observed that the price of celebrity memorabilia rises around the time of that person's death. Previous authors attribute this "death-effect" primarily to expectations on the part of collectors concerning the future supply of collectibles about the public figure as in the case of a durable goods monopolist. Our observations of the sports memorabilia market suggest that the increase in prices is instead due to a "nostalgia effect" as a result of the media attention that surrounds the death of a prominent public figure.

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  • Victor A. Matheson & Robert A. Baade, 2003. "The "Death-Effect" on Collectible Prices," Department of Economics Working Papers 2003-12, Department of Economics, Williams College.
    • Handle: RePEc:wil:wileco:2003-12
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    File URL: https://web.williams.edu/Economics/wp/mathesonmemorabilia.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Benjamin J. Burton & Joyce P. Jacobsen, 1999. "Measuring Returns on Investments in Collectibles," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 13(4), pages 193-212, Fall.
    2. Gabriel, Paul E & Johnson, Curtis & Stanton, Timothy J, 1995. "An Examination of Customer Racial Discrimination in the Market for Baseball Memorabilia," The Journal of Business, University of Chicago Press, vol. 68(2), pages 215-230, April.
    3. Paul Gabriel & Curtis Johnson & Timothy Stanton, 1999. "Customer racial discrimination for baseball memorabilia," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 31(11), pages 1331-1335.
    4. R. Ekelund & Rand Ressler & John Watson, 2000. "The ``Death-Effect'' in Art Prices: A Demand-Side Exploration," Journal of Cultural Economics, Springer;The Association for Cultural Economics International, vol. 24(4), pages 283-300, November.
    5. Coase, Ronald H, 1972. "Durability and Monopoly," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 15(1), pages 143-149, April.
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    1. Gabriele M. Lepori, 2021. "A nonrandom walk down Hollywood boulevard: Celebrity deaths and investor sentiment," The Financial Review, Eastern Finance Association, vol. 56(3), pages 591-613, August.
    2. Eric Le Fur, 2021. "Collectors’ motives in the context of wealth management," Journal of Asset Management, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 22(5), pages 326-337, September.
    3. Bruno S. Frey & Anthony Gullo, 2020. "Sic transit gloria mundi: What remains of famous economists after their deaths?," Scientometrics, Springer;Akadémiai Kiadó, vol. 123(1), pages 283-298, April.
    4. Ponzo, Michela & Scoppa, Vincenzo, 2023. "Famous after death: The effect of a writer's death on book sales," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 210(C), pages 210-225.
    5. Bronwyn Coate & Tim R.L. Fry, 2012. "Better off Dead? Prices Realised for Australian Paintings Sold at Auction," ACEI Working Paper Series AWP-02-2012, Association for Cultural Economics International, revised Feb 2012.
    6. Erdal Atukeren & Aylin Seckin, 2009. "An analysis of the price dynamics between the Turkish and the international paintings markets," Applied Financial Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 19(21), pages 1705-1714.
    7. Szyszka Adrianna & Białowąs Sylwester, 2019. "Prices of works of art by living and deceased artists auctioned in Poland from 1989 to 2012," Economics and Business Review, Sciendo, vol. 5(4), pages 112-127, December.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D12 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Consumer Economics: Empirical Analysis
    • L83 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Services - - - Sports; Gambling; Restaurants; Recreation; Tourism

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