15 Unbelievable Thrift Store Finds That Turned Out to Be Worth a Fortune

11. Zachary Bodish: $7000

Zachary Bodish, an Ohio man scored a surreal return on his investment. While browsing through the aisles of the Volunteers of America thrift store in Columbus, Ohio, one specific item caught his attention. Zachary found a poster that was labelled as a 1958 exhibition of ceramic works by Picasso for $14.14. He initially thought that it was a good quality reproduction by someone. After returning home, Zachary started to look into the exhibition’s history and discovered a few red marks on top of the poster’s corner. The marks were in fact the original signature by Picasso himself. He decided to sell his lucky discovery privately and earned $7000.

12. A Painting Found Inside a Pull-Out Couch: $27,630

A student in Berlin decided to buy a pullout couch for $215 at a flea market. After taking the couch back to her apartment and unfolding it, she discovered a tiny 10 by 15 inch oil painting inside. It was revealed to be Preparation to Escape to Egypt and was believed to be painted sometime between 1605 and 1620. She held an auction at a Hamburg art auction, where the painting sold for $27,630.

13. Yosemite Plates: $200 million

Rick Norsigian purchased two boxes from a garage sale and kept it under his table. He never thought of looking inside to check the contents for about four years. The boxes were purchased for a total of $45 and turned out to be containing the original works by famed photographer Ansel Adams. The pictures were sold for a total of $200 million.

14.  Movie Poster: $18,000

Laura Stouffer was browsing through a thrift shop when she came across a small print of “Shepherd’s Call”. The painting was estimated to be made sometime between the 1850’s and 1870’s. Laura liked it enough that she purchased the painting. She was unaware that beneath the print was a lithograph of an original movie poster for the film All Quiet On The Western Front. The original poster is valued today at an estimated $18,000.

15. Rudy Vallee Sketch: $2 million

Andy Fields, a Devon-based businessmanan and art collector, purchased a few items from a Las Vegas garage sale. While searching for valuable materials, he came across five paintings that he thought would be of some use. Andy purchased them for $5 and later came to find out that one of those paintings was a sketch of the 1930’s singer Rudy Vallee; originally signed by Andy Warhol. Today, the sketch is estimated to be over $2 million.

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