Antiquities International

Very neat place to go to see autographed memorabilia. The most expensive item I saw was the Declaration of Independence with original autographed by all the signers. For both frames, it was $ 180,000. One of the sales person explained to me the detailed process of how it was all put together… getting the signatures, etc. It was neat to know how it was done. It was really interesting to go inside and see all the autographed memorabilia and see how much they were selling it for. It was like a museum. Worth it coming to this place and checking it out.

On or around December 6^th 2014 I visited Antiquities International. It was approximately my third or fourth visit to their store because I was overwhelmed by the amount and variety of memorabilia on display. At the time of those visits I enjoyed the experience of simply viewing their wares. I’m a die-​hard Rolling Stones fan and they had quite a few autographed articles that they claimed were authentic and offered certificates of authenticity to remove any doubts that one may have regarding that issue. At the time I wasn’t concerned or even considered the possibility that the autographs could be forgeries. The salespeople were helpful and, to a certain point, knowledgeable about most of the items I had questions about, the articles themselves were for the most part artfully displayed and the fact that the store was among countless other very high end and recognizable brand name stores it worked to present a high level of legitimacy.
After going back and forth among several of the Rolling Stones autographed memorabilia I finally made the decision to make an offer on a guitar that had what appeared to be the autographs of all the Rolling Stones including Bill Wyman. If I remember correctly they had it priced somewhere in the mid $ 3000 range. I offered the salesperson $ 2000 and with that he said he’d have to call his boss to see if they’d be willing to sell it at less than their asking price. After about five minutes he came back with a counter offer and to make a long story short we settled very close to $ 2500 plus tax and including shipping. I happily paid for it and left the store. The following day I flew back to Chicago where I reside.
Once I got back home and because I was now an owner of what I thought was something extremely special I started to do some reading about other guitars that had supposedly been signed by the Stones and that is when I started reading about the business of autographs and memorabilia. Now a bug was planted in my mind but, again, the fact that I bought it from a store that seemed every bit a legitimate operation I had little doubt that mine guitar was anything but the real deal. None the less, I called Antiquities International and asked about the certificate of authenticity and if I might get a copy emailed to me which they did by the next day. I read it over and it was worded in such a way that further reassured me.
When the guitar arrived at my home I was ecstatic. I mounted it in my den. I lit up every time I entered the room from that point forward. Sometimes just standing in front of it and admiring it. Knowing that at, if only for a moment, each of the Rolling Stones had come in contact with it and signed it. I continued reading and comparing my guitar to the others out there and in doing so I learned that by having a recognized third party authentication performed on it along with the documentation increased its value substantially and so I began my search for just that. I discovered a company named PSA/​DNA and that it is a well respected and very well known authentication. What made it even better is that they regularly dispatch their authenticators to major cities on a fairly regular basis. I called them and learned that they’d be in Chicago on May 22^nd of this year and so I planned to bring the guitar to a place they designated and have it, once and for all, authenticated. The day arrived, I made the drive, wrote a check for $ 200 for their services and handed over the guitar. Thirty tense minutes passed before a gentleman approached me with my guitar and told me that the autographs weren’t authentic. «Not even close» we’re his words. He asked me how I came into possession of it, I answered and he knowingly shook his head. He informed me that if I had really done my homework before buying it I would’ve seen that Antiquities International has a bad reputation in the business. I was crushed and the minute I got in my car I called Antiquities and told the gentleman who answered what had just happened. In response he did his best to discredit PSA/​DNA and said that they did not recognize that company as having an enforceable opinion and my only recourse would be to have a forensic handwriting analyst that they would have to first approve of before they’d even consider honoring their certificate of authenticity. I’ve since sought out and gotten a second opinion from a court approved analyst who also deemed the autographs to be forgeries and poor ones at that. If Unilocal or anyone is interested in seeing the guitar and or documentation I will be happy to post it. I am far from finished with this issue win or lose. My advice to you is to research this company well before buying anything and you’ll see for yourself and take notice that the positive reports on Unilocal are from the people who looked but didn’t buy.

I have never been this disgusted coming down to the strip. This establishment is selling signed photos of Hitler and Rommel and God only knows what other Nazi pigs here. These things should be illegal to sell and they are selling them for thousands of dollars. I will never ever visit this place again. It is so unethical and immoral to even attempt to profit from this sick Nazi shit.

it dosen’t even come close to the realm of what things should be priced at. Cool shop but unrealistic

While the store is nice and the selection vast, the cost of doing business with this company isn’t worth whatever you’re buying. They will email you repeatedly after being asked to be removed from their lists, and apparently have no idea how their advertising/​marketing systems work. Being brushed off for being contacted against my wishes isn’t my idea of how a business should be run, especially if they want repeat customers.
Basically, you may get the product you want but they’re going to spam you and not respect your privacy. Save your money and your inbox– use Ebay.

In Vegas I stayed at Caesar’s so I had to walk around the Forum Shops a little bit. It was there that I saw and was immediately drawn to this place. They have so much history in there. They have all kinds of autographed movie and music memorabilia. They have pieces of history that are priceless. I really enjoyed this shop and everything it had to offer. I bought a couple of cool souvenirs from this place. The sales people were not at all pushy and really just let you look around and take everything in. Most of the items here cost thousands of dollars so it could be an opportunity to try and push a sale on you but they seemed to understand the fact that most people are probably just looking. I saw some big ticket items that caught my eye and I will more likely than not order one I just cannot decide which one. An investment that size I want to make the most profitable choice. I still had a great time shopping there and looking around though. When I was ready to leave the cashier was nice and polite and got me on my way. It was a pretty normal experience though, nothing remarkable. I will be back for sure.

My boyfriend bought me a signed guitar here 2 years ago. I got it authenticated. Came back as a fake. The authenticator used is reputable and is accepted in major auction houses. Beware.
I’ve been in the store numerous times and questioned the «signed Dylan» harmonica considering the sig looked absolutely NOTHING like the authentic one from Dylan/​Hohner that I own.
Figured it was time to get the guitar authenticated since that sig looked nothing like my harp either.
I posted pictures of the guitar’s fake sig and my real harp from Hohner so everyone can see the major difference.

Fun to look around! They have tons of cool «stuff.»

Pete Rose was signing here this day.
Pete Rose was signing here the day before.
Pete Rose was signing here probably every day.
i didn’t get anything signed by Pete Rose.

I love walking through this place and looking at all of the amazing pieces of memorabilia and rare autographs that are all for sale. You will find anything from a framed Pulp Fiction movie poster signed by the entire cast to a guitar used by Jimi Hendrix in concert. There’s even stuff from historical figures like Presidents and other famous people.
The staff is always very friendly, answers questions, and lets people just wander through all the awesomeness that is on display.
If anyone ever wants to buy something for me from this place, I just saw a baseball signed by Lou Gehrig that would look very nice in my living room.

I am looking at a letter signed by THE John Hancock ensconced in a beautiful frame. I look above and see the pricetag: $ 89,000. Of course, they were having a sale when I was visiting, so the price may actually have been slightly lower. What was so remarkable was that an $ 89,000 autograph did not really stand out from the amazing collection of autographs up for sell in this store.
I think they had everything you could possibly want. An Abbey Road album signed by all four Beatles — of course. A guitar signed by Eric Clapton — child’s play. They had literally hundreds of items like this each of them interesting in their own right. And the prices have a considerable range. I think the cheapest autograph went for about $ 895 and went upwards of 6 figures with the average item costing about $ 2000. I was so overwhelmed, I really did not want to leave this store.
So, what is on my wish list?
— Hand written lyrics by Kurt Cobain for the song Mr. Moustache for $ 6995:
— Sheet music for Moon River signed by Audrey Hepburn for $ 1895:
These make excellent stocking stuffers if you want to reward your favorite Unilocaler…:-)

I’ve never been much of an autograph hound. The only one I remember actively chasing was Chuck Yeager’s who is a personal hero of mine. It happened 20 years ago on a flight from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to Anchorage. I was up there to do some engineering work and was wearing some dirty coveralls and several days of stubble on my cheeks. I recognized Yeager in the airport. He was with a bunch of other guys that I assumed were in a party that had just finished hunting in the Brooks Range. Even from a distance, his short stocky stature, wizened features and piercing blue eyes were unmistakable. When the plane was in the air, I looked for a piece of paper and found a copy of my draft project prognosis I’d been working on and thought, «What the hell, I’ll ask Chuck to sign it.» I walked down the aisle to his row and asked. He just stared at me. I stared back. I must have won the stare-​down because he finally took the paper and pen and in the most deliberate and slow fashion possible, scrawled his signature on the approval page. I have no idea where it is today. I’ll bet it’s worth something.
I got a sense of what some signatures are worth at Antiquities. It is found somewhere in the massive mall known as the Forum Shops at Caesar’s Palace. They specialize in collectibles (usually autographed). Most of them are associated with musicians and actors, but they also have historical and sports memorabilia. There are dozens and dozens of signed guitars and drum heads by rock musicians starting around $ 3000. There are also tons of albums and posters that are adorned with celebrity signatures. Amongst them are some «bargains» for under $ 1000. All these nostalgic items are beautifully framed.
My favorites in the whole place were:
(1) A small piece of paper signed by the Fab Four ($ 7995).
(2) The Rolling Stone’s Sticky Fingers Album with the zipper on it (designed by Andy Warhol) signed by all five of the band. There was a separate Andy Warhol signature framed with it too (for about $ 1000 less than the Beatles signatures).
(3) An Abraham Lincoln signature ($ 14,995).
I spent some time talking to the assistant manager, Howard. He told me that he’s always getting calls from lawyers who want a JFK signature on their wall (they had one at the store too for several thousand dollars). I expressed interest in their old fashioned neon oil company signs. I could have shipped the Shell Oil one home for just under $ 1000. That was a bit steep, but I kept their business card just in case.
The forum shops at Caesar’s Palace go on forever. As you wander around they curve about and soon you can become absolutely lost. I had to ask an information desk how to get out of the place after I visited Antiquities.