One day in the early 1990’s Diana Duyser of Hollywood, Fla. made herself a grilled- cheese sandwich. Then she gazed down at the brown skillet marks on the bread: “I saw a face looking up at me; it was the Virgin Mary staring back. I was in total shock,” she later told reporters. Diana held on to the sandwich for 10 years — then sold it on eBay for $28,000.

Golden Palace purchased the notorious Virgin Mary cheese sandwich, a haunted walking stick ($65, 000,) and the “mystery envelope?” ($7,600.) More recently the company bought a Britney Spears half-eaten egg salad sandwich and a William Shatner kidney stone.

At first glance it might seem that the folks at Golden Palace have more money than sense — a lot more money. But do they really? The publicity garnered from purchasing these ridiculous items is much better than simply spending money on traditional advertising.

EBay’s home for the absurd is the “Weird Stuff” category that breaks down into three sub-categories: “Slightly Unusual,” “Really Weird,” “Totally Bizarre.” A recent check showed about 12,000 auctions in the three sub-categories.

eCommerce-Guide