Antique Magnifying Glass – A Rare Find

I have been an antique collector for many years but one item that has eluded me has been an antique magnifying glass. I know it sounds kind of silly, but I have always wanted to add one to my collection of rare and unusual antiques. For a long time I sought an original civil war pocket watch that worked, and eventually I did find one but I did not have such luck in finding an antique magnifying glass. Well, I am here to tell you that my search is over and I have finally got the object of my affections.

Finding My Antique Magnifying Glass

I spent days and weeks searching the internet and antique shops for my antique magnifying glass but never found exactly what I wanted. I grew frustrated as I thought that all my efforts were in vain, but while away on vacation I stumbled into an odd antique shop not looking for anything in particular. This shop had all manner of odds and ends, old engagement rings, Tiffany lamps, dressers and drawers and even the odd firearm or two but nothing that really caught my eye.

I spent some time talking to the owner and went over everything that I have in my current collection. He was interested in a few of my items but I told him that none of it was for sale. He asked if there was anything I was looking for in particular and I said no not really, that I was just browsing and was away on vacation. Almost as an afterthought I mentioned that I was looking for an antique magnifying glass, and to my astonishment he said that he might have something of interest for me.

Away we went into the back, popping out several minutes later with an old shoebox in his hand. He placed in on the counter and gently brushed away the dust telling me that he had displayed this years ago but never found a buyer a simply put it away and forgot almost completely about it for the last twenty years. Slowly he opened the box and there sitting neatly on a bed of fine red velvet was the most magnificent antique magnifying glass I have ever seen.

Instantly my eyes lit up, perhaps a bit too much, as he noticed and neatly pulled the price tag off. Looking me square in the eye asked whether I was interested. At this point we both knew I wanted it, the question was how much I was willing to pony up. We bantered back and forth for a couple minutes and finally settled on a price that I was comfortable with. What’s the moral of this story? That no matter how bad you want something, whether it is an antique magnifying glass or a brand new car, the second you stop looking there it will be!