East German parking disc: is it worth anything?

[bookbinder]

I have a parking disc from the German Democratic Republic, and I should like to know if I could get anything for it from a collector. Can anyone advise me? I don't want to go to an auctioneer, for example, because I don't want to be laughed at. Yes, I suppose there are still thousands of these things still in Germany, but I live in the UK, and there can't be that many in the UK, can there? My wife and I were in the GDR in 1985, with our own car, and we stopped in Cottbus for a bite to eat. The car park signs said disc parking only, but I didn't have a disc (of any description), so I asked a motorist where could I get a disc from? He didn't hesitate, but simply gave me his own disc. Now that the GDR has gone, I wondered if my disc might have some rarity value, in the UK at least. Any advice gratefully received.

[heathfield]

If it's still attached to the Trabant it could be worth something. Seems they're becoming quite collectible

[bookbinder]

The GDR authorities were very selective about what we could bring out of the country, and Trabbies were not on the permitted list. I might look for a Trabant Owners' club, though. Thanks for the hint.

[WilliamJRead]

An interesting point, but I do not think it is worth anything to a collector, as there will be many still in use in the former GDR. I purchased one during one of many visits to the GDR in the 1980s, plus a host of flags, posters etc that I hoped one day to find a market for. I am still waiting for the market to emerge.....

[bookbinder]

Thanks for your comment, William J. Read. You've confirmed what I secretly suspected. I had a similar idea to yours (buying up GDR flags, etc.) with regard to British currency when decimal currency was being introduced. I saved some of every old-style coin and banknote, and hoped that I could make a profit after some years. Surprise, surprise, I had to struggle to get rid of them, and it looks as if I'm not going to get rich on this parking disc, either.