   Can family heirlooms be replaced?
  How much do you value family heirlooms? What is more important, the actual object, or the memory of a loved one who may not still be here that is captured by that object?Suppose I was to take a heirloom away from you, and in return, I''d give you back an object that looked the same. Would you still view that object in the same way that you viewed the original? 
  My husband once asked me if I wanted a bigger diamond on my wedding band.  I said heck no.  The memory that this was the diamond that I got engaged with and married with is much more important than how much of my finger is sparkling.Now if, heaven forbid, I somehow lost my wedding ring, I would let him get me another because the remembrance of our engagement and marriage would be symbolized by the new ring also, but it wouldn''t quite be the same because it wouldn''t be the actual ring.I feel pretty much the same about heirlooms.  They''re special because of the connection to your past, not because they''re, I don''t know, pretty I guess.  You can replace them if you lose them, but the actuality that this was the pitcher your grandmother used is more special than just "this looks just like the pitcher my grandmother used".-fel ;  I agree with fel, family heirlooms cannot be replaced. They hold significance because we use them to remember a time or a person in our lives, to be an heirloom it would have to be physically present at the time of the event or special moment or held by the person.If you replace the object, even though it may look the same, it wasn''t there at the time, it wasn''t held by that special person, passed down from generation to generation, or physically present at that special event, which makes it no longer an heirloom but rather, an object. ;  What are the price of these heirlooms.  If they cannot be replaced, what lengths will you go to to see them protected? ;  I don''t think you can put a price on them, at least not monetarily. As for the lengths I would go to see them protected? Given the million and one different scenarios in which I might have to protect them, I''m not sure. But I would pay good money for protection, how much would depend on how much I had, If my family heirloom were in a burning building, I wouldn''t risk my life to save it, but I would be very sad to loose it. 