tepidarium

While anything is possible, it would be, obviously, very unethical for Rinkya to do anything like this. I think it is much more probable that if it was internal bidding, there simply were Rinkya end-users doing the actual bidding.

Yes! We all love the episode 27 black and white sequence I was watching those dougas and it was quite something to see the prices they realized. I've not seen those prices for dougas. Still, it's Misa, and she's smiling (which is a rarity) so the price goes higher? Vinegar syndrome is scary. It's good of the seller to mention it, and I hope the buyer knows to keep it away from other cels.

The cel was very nice, however I was concerned with the warping and the seller's comment that it had a vinegar (syndrome) odor .

These auctions were crazy. Get out the warm popcorn indeed. But are you really surprised at the prices? It's been trending that way for some time. Not to reopen the whole "scalper" thing but, something is "worth" whatever someone is willing to pay for it. These items are worth their price because they got buyers, and we should expect that this is the current market. All it takes is a few buyers to change the market anyway. FWIW, at these prices, for single pieces, I don't think they were bought to be resold (at least immediately), so I tend to think these are going in private collections. Some of the prices on these may also be a reflection of what happens when the supply is so lean for so long (and of poor quality) that when something half way decent comes up demand increases.

The "boom" in cel collecting during the early internet years was a one and done. Small-time dealers setting up virtual shops online with low overhead and a generation of people demanding production art from the last wave of celluloid animated productions with good supply from the origin country all came together to create the market as it was. Yes, it's been bone dry for some time.

It's true, I didn't mention that my eBay comment related to auctions that are now over 15 years old! I bought quite a number of excellent cels that I treasure on eBay in the late 90s and early 2000s. As for shill bidding on YJ, one can never really know if it is occurring but I believe Rinkya, at one point, only used one user name which allowed for easy identification of the bidding service and could possibly have served to motivate shill bidders.

Which is worse - missing out on a cel when a dealer updates a site or getting shill bid on YJ or sniped on an eBay auction? I'm tired of both. Is there no peaceful way to acquire art? Yeah, I know the answer: demand creates the crazy market.

Back in the day, Animanga had a great community forum for cel collectors. And Cels.org cel dealer tracker, too! Now, the cel tracking merchant websites are gone

On second thought: Misa needs her trademark hair rolls emphasized...

This looks better than the Legend of the Galactic Heroes character redesigns. Those are terrible.

It only takes one person to prove the seller right... Macross was guilty of poor illustration at times. Seeing this image reminds me of that. There are some really great shots of Milia. This isn't one of them. The scene is significant, though. And there's the conundrum, collect well illustrated images or important images. Sometimes the important ones are poor visual examples of the character.

They were on Yahoo Japan at the beginning of the year. The auction contained six cels - these were the two best. The lot went for roughly 1000 USD. The ebay treasure hunter is looking to turn a nice profit...

These are great! Congratulations on adding them to your collection

At this point, we're looking for the Loch Ness Monster unless some silent collectors release their treasures

Finding quality examples is a needle in a haystack operation nowadays. But the promise of finding that one great shot (or forgery!) can still be realized...yes, this is when you know you've gone off the edge with cel collecting. Is the hunt worth it?

This does look to be a fake, but could the missing reflection from Max's glasses be due to an effects layer that was separated from the rest? When I look at these pieces, I often find that the best places to compare are the wispy strands of hair and the creases in the clothing. I check the angles that they form with the negative space created around the lines to see if they match up. Though, I'm not sure if this is wholly reliable, as sometimes a real cel can have a poorly mastered derivative image created for online display. The counterfeiting is disconcerting, but something that is important to recognize. Remember those terrible fakes on YJ over the summer? I believe some are still up for auction on ebay...

I wanted to thank everyone who posted for their advice. Probably, I will keep the cel quarantined from the rest of the collection and will try to expose it to as much air as possible. After a good long while, I will reassess the condition and may choose to remove the douga in due course.

Ha you're probably right about the cel outlasting me. I have so many I'd like to frame. That's a whole other topic entirely. I know you frame yours. The subject has always been somewhat obscure to me. I've heard of people suspending each layer so that it doesn't come in contact with the matte, with the background, or other layers. How are you framing your cels, JV? I'd love to get my "healthier" cels up on the wall, but the perceived expense, confusion, and concerns about conservation have stopped me. So,the cels sit in my Itoyas and I don't look at them as much as I'd like....haven't scanned in my stuff in a long time.

Unfortunately, I don't have a stuck cel that I can sacrifice as an experiment. I can't subject this Misa cel to the freezer - I don't have enough experience to risk it. I think I will have to mist off the douga, which, in the past means destruction of the douga. JV & Fortress, I appreciate your advice.

Here's the aforementioned Misa DYRL cel.

Hi, I've not yet tried microchamber paper. I've been using polypropylene bags, not mylar. I am contemplating removing the douga by way of a mist machine. This has worked for other cels, but, unfortunately, has destroyed the douga in cases where the majority of the celluloid surface is covered by ink and thus stuck the drawing. If the douga was the main problem, it's destruction would be an acceptable trade-off, I think. To my mind, the misting method is preferable to the freezer method, as I've read that the freezer method can crack the paint (that is my recollection). In any case, have you heard of vinegar syndrome being confined to the douga? That would appear counter intuitive to me given the description of the causes of vinegar syndrome. The smell is really faint (to my nose!) and I really think it is more pronounced or even wholly confined to the douga.

Thank you for this. These are great strategies. Unfortunately, the douga is stuck to the cel. From my recollection, the paper had more of an odor than the cel itself if that makes sense. I may be in for too much with this particular Misa cel. But, then again, as you say, we are merely "temporary curators" for these ephemeral works.

Yeah. The thing is that I wouldn't have even noticed it if not told to look out for it. It is fairly faint. I've come to terms that all cels, by their nature, are volatile and degrading slowly (I guess you can say that about all matter - including the person typing this message :)) What is there to do but enjoy the artwork we have and take care of them the best care of it that we can?

No. I have yet to do anything with it. I hope to do so when things calm down.

A little while back, I bought a Misa Hayase DYRL cel on YJ. I didn't read the translation which said it had a vinegar smell It's a nice cel, but it's in quarantine from the rest of the collection. Actually, I barely notice any smell at all, so I'm not sure how much to be concerned by this.