Editorial: Of worth, value and the nature of things

OPINION: We all do it – fantasise about finding hidden treasure.

Winning big with Lotto is one form of striking it lucky that is on many people's lists, but by no means the only one.

Whether hunting through the classifieds or TradeMe, sifting through the recyclables at the Nelson transfer station or garage sale cast-offs, panning for gold or treasure-hunting at the Founders Book Fair, the lure of stumbling upon something of value is compelling.

It cannot happen often, of course, or it wouldn't be so special, and most of us go through life hoping for rather than achieving instant fortune.

The story of the small – and dare we suggest, incredibly garish – pottery pig that briefly graced the Nelson Recycling Centre is a reminder that we can never predict when something special will enter our lives, or necessarily recognise it when it does.

As the operations manager Murray Simms put it, he would have been happy to sell the ornament for 50 cents, but someone at the centre sensed it might be something special, so out it went for tender. With one offer of $1000 before tenders closed, it became obvious that the centre's sorter-outer was right on the money, and the ugly duckling, of a porcelain porcine variety, was established as the work of 19th century painter Louis Wain and worth some $4000.

However, before bidding for the swine reached fever-point, the beast went missing – along with the safe in which it had been housed. Ironically, it might well have been safer lurking on a shelf in the centre, for the sort of people who would break into the place to steal a safe would hardly be attracted by such an ugly oddity, unless to use as a projectile. There is, perhaps, a slim chance that the safe was stolen precisely because the piece of collectible pottery was known to be there, awaiting transfer to a more illustrious setting at Sotheby's. However, it is more likely that it was smashed into worthless pieces on the night of the raid, meaning its true value will never be tested.

On the subject of value – and worth – small news item yesterday featuring the sale of an Andy Warhol painting is also worth a double-take. Bought in 1986 for around half a million dollars New Zealand, 200 One Dollar Bills sold at auction this week for a little small change under $60 million – not a bad return on a 23-year investment. As is so often the case in the art work, it begs the question of how a silk-screen painting can possibly be worth the GDP of a small Pacific nation, and what the artist himself might have thought of someone prepared to pay that much for one of his works.

Back in the real world, there are also smaller, everyday ways of striking it rich that add immensely to the fabric of our lives. How to beat relaxing on a riverbank and hauling in a feast or two of whitebait, for example, or hauling up other succulent treasures from the sea? There is value, too, in simply connecting with people in such a way that acquaintances become friends, or watching our children grow into adults, trying new things and pushing our boundaries, or otherwise creating memories to carry into our dotage. The best things in life really are free – even to those who can splash $60m on a painting.

- © Fairfax NZ News