Casting a wide Net for Latin American collectors

The sites: www.MercadoLibre.com

www.DeRemate.com

An impeccably preserved comic book printed in Buenos Aires in the 1950s, featuring endearing adaptations of literary classics. An LP of Mexico’s legendary tropical orchestra La Sonora Santanera, the youthful face of singer Sonia Lopez on its cover. A magazine ad touting “Titanes En El Ring,” a ‘70s Argentine television show featuring wrestlers dressed in gaudy period costumes.

These are some of the rare and exotic collectibles that can be found on two increasingly popular Internet auction sites that operate as the Latin American equivalent of EBay. Created in 1999, MercadoLibre (which is associated with EBay and can be accessed from its home page) and DeRemate offer separate pages for each country in which the products are based. Mexico, Brazil and Argentina are most prominent.

“These sites have allowed many an antique seller to close down their store and work directly from home,” says Daniel Napoli of Buenos Aires.

“These auction sites work as a meeting point for collectors who would otherwise not know of the other’s existence,” adds comic book dealer Francisco “Tito” Legaristi of the Argentine province of Tucuman. “There’s more than just making money to these transactions. There’s also a spiritual aspect to them -- the natural kinship that unites you with another collector, no matter where he is from.”