ABOUT US Heritage Coke Lore Coca-Cola Stories Collectors Column The Collecting Boom You Never Know A Word Of Caution

I believe that another word of caution is in order as well. As with any undertaking where large sums of money can be involved, you can expect to find counterfeit items, even in the wholesome world of Coca-Cola collecting.The Coca-Cola Company aggressively seeks to stop counterfeiters, but there are bogus items in the marketplace. Petretti includes a valuable section that points out examples of counterfeit and fantasy items, including a series of bogus belt buckles peddled for years.

It is helpful to any collector to understand the Company's history, particularly in spotting fake material. For instance, if something purports to be an 1890s calendar and has a bottle in it, that's a pretty strong giveaway. We didn't have bottling until the turn of the century. Or if you see something from the early 20th Century with a contour bottle, it's helpful to know that this familiar bottle wasn't introduced until 1915.

It's also important to know that during most of our early history, up until the 1940s, the trademark registration notice was placed in the tail of the C in the word "Coca." That's a clear indication that something predates 1940.

We also caution collectors who have found an item from the 1920s and think they've won the lottery. Many of these pieces were produced in such large quantities that the prices reflect their widespread availability, even 80 years later. People who've found a 1920 bottle are often disappointed to learn that the contour bottles the Company began making in 1915 were produced in such large quantities that the dollar value as a collectible may remain relatively low today.