What is Ephemera?
We all seem to amass bits of ephemera. You may already have what can be called “a collection” and not even be aware of it. The shoebox filled with rock concert ticket stubs at the back of the closet, an entire shelf of books on World War II airplanes, or the kitchen cupboard filled with cookbooks that belonged to your grandmother -- are these not collections? What about that stack of comic books or your brother’s boxes of baseball cards? What’s in your closet?
Ephemera means fleeting, transient objects -- items that don’t last. Like postage stamps, books or photos. Old receipts, deeds, warrants, postcards and newspapers are ephemera. Paper collectibles are often displayed in shadow boxes, framed carefully utilizing archival materials. Old diaries and journals are popular items for collectors. They can be bought at auctions as well as in antique stores. Private individuals, libraries and many museums seek out historical papers. Original source materials provide a unique glimpse into the past.
The list of types of collections seems endless. Postcards. Stamps. Vintage books. Magazines. Photographs. Autographs. Sporting event memorabilia. Theater programs. Railroad items are highly favored by many ephemera collectors. Some people collect railroad ephemera from a particular railroad, others collect a wide range of companies. Organizations often encourage members to gather any information about their society to display within the meeting. Often clubs are formed by collectors with similar interests in either types of ephemera such as postcards or around the same topics such as StarWars posters.
Resources abound for the new or learned collector of ephemera. Amazon (online) lists over 42,000 books about “ephemera”. How to preserve vintage documents? How to create collages, 3D or multi-media art, or photo montages? How to display these artifacts of human existence? The topics are varied and interesting.
The paper fragments of yesterday’s cultural events are often utilized by artists in collages and other type of art. Some collectors buy personal letters. Writers often use original source materials to create plots or characters.