A corollary question you've asked in your posts is, was the chip a good "investment" at $15,100? That too, depends on many things, including the question how long the buyer is willing to hold the chip if he bought it as an investment.

Would the chip have been a good investment at $5000? Apparently so - there were several people willing to pay more than that to get the chip. Would it have been a good investment at $8000? Maybe, but it's unclear how many people (other than the successful bidder) might have paid more than $8000 for the chip. Was it a good investment at $15,100? Not for a quick turnaround, I don't think so.

Now that the collector willing to pay over $15,000 for the chip, owns it, how many other collectors are willing to pay more than that to get it? Not many - if any - I suggest.

And of course all of that assumes (and there's no evidence to the contrary) that the chip is indeed a one-of-a-kind, and that no more are found tomorrow. That's part of the problem with our hobby, isn't it? The $5 Bird Cage chip was a heckuva buy at $500 for many years......until several hundred more surfaced. Now the chip is worth less than 10% of that figure. Personally, it's my belief that there is no such thing as "one of a kind." No one made one of anything. The only question is whether others are found and how long it takes.

Michael