About Us

The Rational Past
    As antique and collectible dealers we are constantly intrigued and delighted by the various items that comprise this area of collecting. We do not specialize in a particular segment within the field but have a huge range of items carefully inventoried. The pieces for sale or rent have been selected because they are well-made, inventive, historic, aesthetic or just plain interesting. We pride ourselves in offering fair value and try to clearly identify and describe each piece.

Who we are
    Al holds a degree in Electronic Engineering. Bobbie's professional background is in graphic design and illustration. They started the business back in 1994. In 2010 their daughter Jo, who holds a degree in history and has a love of pop culture, hit on the idea of bringing these unique pieces to a wider audience. See the schedule for our next show.

Who are our customers and what is our relationship
     We are delighted when customers tell us it is the first time they have purchased a scientific or technical item. If you are looking for a gift or a prop for a movie or a photo session, an useable tool or a decorative piece for the library shelf, we applaud your interest. We hope that more and more people will come to appreciate the unique satisfaction of owning these beautiful and utilitarian objects. We are always happy to chat with novices, dedicated collectors and other dealers. We all learn something new every day.

Where did you find that?
     It isn't easy. We wish we had a secret source, but it is just a lot of hard work and fun constantly searching for items. We like finding out what it is, what it does, who made it, when, where, and offer it for sale. After it's gone we live in fear it will be the last one we ever see.

info@therationalpast.com Los Angeles, California (310) 903-3663