Is it Old, Vintage, or Antique?
How do you know if an item is old, vintage, or antique and who gets to decide?
There is some controversy about the definitions of these words, but I think the word antique is the simplest to accurately define. For the term antique, there’s a commonly accepted benchmark in the antique trade, and that is 100 years old or more. If an item is 100 years old or more, it can confidently be referred to as antique.
When you consider the term vintage, that’s when things get a little more interesting. People have a lot of different definitions for vintage. A lot of people consider any item that’s 20 or more years old to be vintage. That’s the camp that I fall into. Some people believe that if an item was manufactured in a particular era, that’s what makes it vintage. Some people believe if an item is simply an older item with some age and character, you can call it vintage.
There’s a lot to consider when deciding your own definition of the term vintage. Even dictionary definitions don't completely settle the issue. Depending on the context, vintage can refer to an item's era, something representative of an earlier time, or something considered especially good from a particular period. In other words, there's still plenty of room for interpretation.
If you think about it, in 2026 something that was made in 2005 is more than 20 years old. Would you consider something made in 2005 to be vintage? Something can technically qualify as vintage based on its age without having any of the characteristics we typically associate with vintage pieces, and being vintage doesn’t make something valuable or collectible or rare or desirable. Even if an item is considered to be antique - over 100 years old - that doesn’t always mean it has any substantial value.
In recent years, people have been fond of styles like retro and farmhouse. That has led to a lot of new products being produced with a distressed, vintage-like look. These products can sometimes be very convincing as vintage pieces with what appears to be chippy paint and faux rust. If you have an item that displays all the characteristics of a vintage piece, but isn’t 20 years old, can you call it vintage? You may see these pieces described as vintage-inspired, vintage-style, reproduction, retro, or simply made to look old. Those descriptions aren't necessarily interchangeable, but they help distinguish a newer item from something that actually has some age.
The big problem is that people have different ideas about what all of these terms mean. The interpretation gets muddy and some people, particularly collectors, appraisers, and resellers can get very passionate about the debate. I don’t get upset about the vintage debate. There are so many different opinions, I expect to debate the meaning of that term on occasion. However, I don’t feel the same way about the term antique. When someone advertises a piece from the 1950s as antique, I say “Uh, no. It’s not.” For me that’s not a debate about the meaning of the word antique. It’s simply an inaccurate description of the item.
The frequently heated debate about these terms really comes down to the perspective of the person who’s collecting, appraising, or selling an item. My take on it is that 20 years old or older is vintage, 100 years old or older is antique.
Let’s think about some examples:
What would you call it?
Vintage – Antique - Neither
· 1998 Longaberger basket
· Christmas ornament from 2004
· 1980s brass candlestick
· 1970s Pyrex bowl
· new reproduction dough bowl made to look 100 years old
· 1920s flow blue platter
My first question was – Is it old, vintage, or antique? Well, I think it depends on who you’re asking, and you might find yourself in a lengthy conversation once you bring up the topic.
Where do you draw those lines? Is 20 years enough for you to call something vintage, or does it need to have the characteristics of an earlier era? And what about antique—are you firmly in the 100-year camp like I am?
We may not agree—and that's exactly why I want to hear what you think.
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