PETER Robinson is a history buff of sorts. He can tell you all about Sydney's past, but his tales don't come from any historical books or paper records.
Instead, Mr Robinson gathers his information from bricks. He has 500 that he has collected over the years sandstock bricks, imported bricks, bricks with unusual markings and even bricks from some of Sydney's oldest houses.
A retired cement renderer, some of Mr Robinson's greatest finds were made on the job.
"I worked on a lot of old houses around Sydney. If I saw a brick I liked I cut it out, replaced it with another and rendered over it," he said.
Their low price (some sell for as little as $1) makes brick collecting an affordable hobby but they also hold little monetary value.
"A friend of mine had the same collection which he sold for $3000. There's not a lot of money in it I just like the object," he said.
Mr Robinson, of Narellan, describes himself as a "nut collector". His hobby started as a six-year-old when his Irish born parents migrated to Australia.
"In the early days when you came by boat, people would get off at different places to go shopping or change money and when they came back on board they had a pocketful of change. I ended up with a coin collection and that started things off."
Mr Robinson's brick collection has been sourced locally, from remote mining towns across the state and three overseas bricks from England and New Zealand and one from the US that has the words `Don't spit on the sidewalk' engraved in it.
Some of his favourites include those marked by a possum's feet and one with a belt buckle imprint. And while he doesn't own one, the most impressive brick he has seen is marked with the letter `I' to note it was made by a convict being supervised by Major Innes.
"All I hear at home is `get that junk out of here'. I'm sure one day my wife will have a garage sale and get rid of the lot," he laughed.
The South West Sydney Collectors Club meets at Harrington Park Community Centre on the first Monday of the month. Details: 46461572.
Do you have an unusual job? If your occupation takes you to weird and wonderful places or you have a particularly quirky business, tell us about it. Email istillitano@fairfaxmedia.com.au or phone 46555151.