I think what Mr. P is trying to say is that one auction of an item on eBay does not establish its value over time. When I buy stock I am always convinced that the stuff I am buying is worth more than I'm paying. Of course, given my track record over the past couple of years I clearly know nothing. I think for chips that sell frequently on eBay it provides a pretty good measure of value over time but for those truly rare items it exposes them to limited audience for a limited time and doesn't give a true measure of value. Just as the 1804 silver dollar that just sold for $1.2M was bought two years earlier for $875,000 - the earlier auction did not reflect the true value. Things can go wrong the other way as well - look at the beanie babies. I guess that you are right in the sense that something is only worth what someone will pay at a point in time but one thing you can count on is that the value will probably change over time. I think Mr. P and Gene are giving us their opinion of how these chips will change in value - Steve shared a different opinion - I guess that's what makes a market....

Chas