15 Random Yet Impressive Collections People Have Accumulated Over the Years

Did you ever collect something when you were younger? Kids love to collect rocks, marbles, or trading cards. However, just because you grow up doesn’t mean you need to give up your collecting hobby! It may remain the same collection throughout your life, or you may mature into a different, more adult collection of items. People have all sorts of interests, which can be reflected by what they choose to collect. As they say, “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” We’re here today to take a look at some of the most unique and impressive collections people have.

#1: Items That Have Been Swallowed

Kids are curious by nature. They need to explore the world around them; that’s how they learn. Telling them about something isn’t usually going to teach them, either. They need to experience something for themselves to understand it. So, when you tell them not to put something in their mouths, can you guess what they will do next?

This person took it upon themselves to collect dozens of examples of things children have swallowed. Some of these items are rather mundane and expected, such as coins, but some are more outrageous, such as straight pins or a compass! Perhaps most shocking is that these were all extracted from the children, meaning they survived the ordeal. Also, we can’t help but wonder: Is this person a pediatrician?

It isn’t uncommon for people to collect stickers. They are wildly popular and fun to sort through. Not all stickers are worthy of displaying in an album, though. Many come from labels; most people wouldn’t consider collecting that sticker. However, this collector clearly isn’t like most people. This sticker collection is actually one giant sticker ball.

This sticker ball took almost six years to build up to this size, using all sorts of sticker labels and tags. That’s an awful lot of stickers to slap on there! But, since it isn’t hard to find product labels, it was probably relatively easy for this person to build up their collection. And we’re guessing he had some help.

Some collectors begin their hobby out of pure adoration or fascination with something. However, some collections get started of sheer boredom. It’s not hard to imagine: you are bored out of your mind at work, so you need to create some entertainment for yourself. It can almost become a game.

That’s precisely what happened with these co-workers, who turned collecting staples into an office game. Collecting used staples may not seem like an enthralling pastime to you, but to these collectors… who are we kidding? Of course, it’s not that exciting for them, either. But that’s a heck of a massive pile of used staples! That’s almost something to be proud of and not at all a waste of time.

We suppose some collections get started without the real intention of becoming a collection. For many years, this man was a traveling salesman, and he racked up quite an assortment of keys from the different hotels he stayed in during his travels. Once you realize you have several souvenirs from your travels, it takes on a life of its own.

Often, it isn’t what you collect but how you display it that most counts. Because this man traveled all over the country for his career, he decided to exhibit his key collection in the shape of the United States. It’s good he’s retired, so he doesn’t need to worry about where to put the rest of his keys!

It isn’t unusual to have a rock collection. Even adults can’t help themselves around these unique relics from nature. Even if you don’t officially collect rocks, you know you aren’t overpocketing an especially appealing stone occasionally. That’s what Clotilde Olyff did, and she had an entire alphabet.

This typeset designer from Belgium combed a nearby beach and found rocks resembling every alphabet letter. She was very dedicated to this project because she found all upper- and lower-case letters. We would love to know how long this search took her. It must have been a long time to achieve such beautiful results.

When your job involves helping people, and you are good at it, you will usually be rewarded differently. The people you help often wish to find a way to show their appreciation for what you did for them. Sometimes, these folks can only offer their gratitude with a small gesture.

That is the case for this doctor and his patients. He’s treated countless children in his practice, and their common expression of gratitude is to draw a picture of him. By looking at this collection, one can see that he’s an excellent doctor who gives his patients outstanding care. And by the looks of his smile, he’s proud of his collection of drawings.

How often have you gone into the grocery store to get some apples, only to stare blankly at several varieties you’ve never heard of before? That wide selection is only the top of the apple iceberg! There are many more rare types of apples out there that most of us have never even heard of.

This man has made a hobby out of apples, finding examples of each apple variety. Since there are over 7,000 types of apples worldwide, we imagine that his collection is only a tiny sampling of apple options. We would love to ask him how many he’s tried and which he thinks tastes the best.

When a person is passionate about something, they may often take that enthusiasm to extreme levels. That seems to be the case with this particular collector. Obviously, he’s very dedicated to science. So, he decided to create a living representation of the periodic table of elements using jars.

Each small jar contains a tiny specimen of an element; it’s labeled and color-coded, then placed in the case in the proper location, according to the periodic table. It’s quite a fascinating collection and must have taken much work to put together. But can you locate the sodium? Nah.

Monopoly is one of the world’s most popular board games and possibly one of the oldest. It has been around since 1935! Updated versions come out every few years, and in the past few decades, the company that makes the game has been releasing special editions. In addition, they have versions based on popular books, television shows, and movies.

This woman has taken her love for this game to the next level. She has over 600(!) editions of the game, with some dating back to the 1940s. When her boyfriend shared this picture of her impressive collection on social media, kind supporters began offering her their editions. We wonder how many new sets she received!

The superhero genre has always had a core group of diehard fans. Before the Marvel movies made superheroes fashionably cool, fans followed their favorite heroes through comic books. Dedicated fans would trek to their local comic book store to purchase the latest edition and search the stacks for old and valuable editions.

To prove your bona fides as a superhero fan, you would also have to have a few action figures. Today, though, you’re considered a superhero superfan only if you have an enormous collection of just about every hero that’s ever been in print. However, this man’s collection is fascinating because if you look closely, it isn’t limited to superheroes; other toys are mixed in. Talk about an avid collector!

Some people are attracted to collecting macabre items (we’re not here to judge!). While we wouldn’t necessarily consider shark teeth creepy, we can’t help but feel a slight chill when looking at such an extensive collection in one place. Is anyone else also imagining all of them in one giant mouth?

Thankfully, this collector found these shark teeth on the beach and didn’t have to earn them the hard way. Building up such a giant collection of teeth must have taken a long time. Considering that a shark has approximately 300 teeth in his mouth, it looks like this man has a few sharks’ worth of teeth here!

Sports fanatics collect various items associated with their favorite sport or team. For example, some fans collect baseball hats from all the teams, some collect signed jerseys, and others collect signed balls from their favorite sport. However, this 90-year-old man took his sports collection in a slightly different direction.

He must be a golf lover since he opted to collect and display golf balls. What makes his collection so unique is that all the balls have been damaged; most people like to display golf balls that are new and shiny. This collection is more exciting because you can’t help but imagine the fierce game that probably destroyed these balls. It looks like these balls all have a story behind them.

When you travel to a new and exciting place, leaving is always bittersweet. You may wish you could stay, but that’s not always possible. What would be the next best thing? Taking that land with you! While you may not be able to bring another country home with you, you can bring some of their land.

This traveler did precisely that—what a lovely way always to keep a place you love close at hand. Bringing a small sample of soil home with you is a lovely way to feel close to a place you’ve once visited. It keeps the memory alive, but it also makes a beautiful display.

Humanity took a giant leap forward with the ability to use tools and an even more significant stride once we could fashion those tools from metal. Metal is brutal to shape; it takes tremendous strength and knowledge to forge a shape from a hunk of metal. It’s incredible to think that anybody ever perfected this art.

Metal tools are also excellent because they are immensely durable. They are next to impossible to break, and they don’t deteriorate. They last for ages. That’s what’s so interesting about this collection; you can see ancient metal objects. We wonder how far back some of these tools go.

Photographs are a treasure. Pictures of loved ones from years ago can fill us with sweet memories. Even photos of strangers from centuries past can evoke a strong sense of nostalgia in us. Indeed, the invention of the camera has been a gift to humanity. However, the way we photograph has drastically changed over the past century.

Cameras from the first half of the twentieth century were practically works of art themselves. They were tools used for creating art and had an elegance of their own. Today, most of us don’t even own cameras but use the ones on our phones. So, it’s easy to understand why a person may want to collect these relics of an age gone by