It’s a collector’s item because of who owned it prior.
Even in a bad economy rich people are rich. And looking for places to beat inflation. Art and other collectibles fill that need for those who can afford such things, and depending on the item, anyone can invest this way. Some start with old baseball cards.
The fact that some punter bought one of Kurt's trashed stomp boxes from an insignificant show in Providence for nine grand, when 30MM people are unemployed today that had jobs 3 months ago, says (to me) the expectations of the economy are incredibly strong.