High profile sales of Andy Warhol artworks and Ferraris dominate the world's newspaper headlines. But sometimes 'smaller' collecting niches can also prove lucrative.

Like tobacciana, for instance: the hobby centres on collecting smoking-related memorabilia, from cigarettes and packets to cigar humidors, pipes and tins.

High-profile sales in the past include the auctioning of a cigar belonging to Britain's wartime Prime Minister Winston Churchill. It sold for £4,500 at Key's auctioneers in 2010.

That may sound like a lot of money for a cigar. But the sale is even more bizarre considering that the cigar had been half smoked by Churchill.

We've also come across Churchill cigars here at Paul Fraser Collectibles, including selling the former PM's historic unsmoked Don Joaquin cigar to a lucky buyer last year.

These are unusual examples. Yet tobacciana items can sell for even more.

Like this rare antique Tobacco Tin featuring an image of baseball legend Ty Cobb.

eBay bids on this $40,000+ tobacco tin will close on Sunday (October 9)

The tin appeared for sale on eBay last week. Within just a few hours, bids on the rare and historic piece had soared past $40,000.

According to the seller's listing, the Tobacco Tin dates to circa 1910 and was discovered during a remodel of a home they purchased in 2006.

It was found behind a small hidden access located in the back of their closet.

According to an eBay analyst firm, a "bidding war erupted on September 29 from the moment the tin was listed."

50 devoted bids pushed the tin's price from $1,000 to over $40,000 in just two hours.

What's more, the sale hasn't ended yet. Bids on the tin will close on Sunday, October 9.

We'll bring you more news on the sale when it happens.