There’s a growing consortium of folks out there, dealers and promoters included, who say that antiques can be sold purely for their looks without reference to the intrinsic value. Buyers today, they say, don’t care what a thing is, only what it looks like.

In that case, I ask, what’s so great about antiques?

Take this Oxford Tub Chair offered by Restoration Hardware as an example. Sure, this retailer isn’t known for its discount merchandise, but chairs with a similar look that sold at a major auction house sold for considerably more. Why? There’s something intrinsic about them that differentiates them. It’s not simply the look, it may be the label, but it’s most certainly the age.

Yes, the age. That’s what antiques have, age. Throw that out and there is no difference. If you throw that out, it really doesn’t matter if something is old or new. I could pull out similar examples for sideboards, tables, clocks, cabinets, and more.

If we don’t care much about what a thing is, about its inherent attributes and actualities, it really doesn’t matter. If we only care about the look, the major retailers win every time.