Nostalgia for childhood pastimes—hoarding precious baseball cards of favorite comic books—inspires man (and a few curious women, too) to seek out the rarest examples of these novelties. Other curiosities— such as Enlightenment-era globes, nautical art and ancient Roman coins—point the way to a gentleman's library. Our annual guide to collectibles covers guy-friendly material—what we have affectionately dubbed "mantiques." They're the preferred and increasingly high-priced toys of today's grown-up boys.

"Passions and Pursuits" originally appeared in the November 2008 issue of Art+Auction. For a complete list of articles from this issue available on ARTINFO, see Art+Auction's November 2008 Table of Contents.