Now that is a very good question. Let’s look at your meme here. If we look at it at a glance, it appears to a 2008-vintage Philosophical Velociraptor meme, or image macro as it is called in academia. However, upon further examination, the top and most importantly, Bottom Text, appears to be new. Well then, this obviously poses a conundrum to appraisers such as me. On one hand, Collecters value the authenticity of memes. A tattered first edition Nyan Cat will fetch much more upvotes than a pristine but mass-produced TikTok meme, for example. On the other hand, many meme Collecters value what we in academia call, the “Mutability Index” of memes. I.e., a living meme that is being actively modified is more desirable vs. a staid dead meme. Having said all that, I’m sure you’ll want to know what your meme will fetch. At an auction, it can fetch around…150 upvotes with the right Lemmingtons.

The answer to this question lies in SpongeBob, the everlasting meme source. Are SpongeBob memes antique? They’re old, but they just never went away. A constant force. I’d say it depends on the style. You can make a 2023 SpongeBob meme or you can make a 2008 SpongeBob meme different.

Ahh, the return of Philosoraptor. It warms my heart.

I’m really hoping that people start commenting about these memes like the experts on roadshow talk about the antiques.

It’s a respected classic.

If I use an antique piece of furniture, it’s still an antique.