Staff at stores across town say they have seen all manner of unique items come through the stores, from historical trinkets and rare collectibles to expensive dresses and mysterious paintings.

James Cunningham has been the operator of Griffith Secondhand Treasures since it opened in 2018.

He said dozens of rare and interesting pieces go through the store each year, the most memorable of which was a kerosene-powered navigation lantern off of a World War 2 ship.

"A local gentlemen brought it in ... it was definitely not the sort of thing you'd think of seeing here in Griffith," he laughed.

Among the other unique items Mr Cunningham has bought and sold is a vintage Japanese talking robot, a set of Victorian Era carpet bowls, and a still-boxed 'Pokemon Edition' Nintendo 46 console.

As a collector himself, Mr Cunningham said it could be a mixed feeling selling these rare pieces, some of which he suspects he will never see anything similar to ever again.

"It can be a little upsetting to sell them," he said. "But it is quite nice to know these pieces of history are going somewhere they will be cherished, rather than ending up in landfill somewhere."

He said working in his role has given him a knack for telling trash from treasure.

"People bring in a lot of stuff and there is a process for going through it all and working out what is valuable ... you can get a lot of surpises."

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At the Salvation Army, volunteers sift through hundreds of donated items each day, sorting and pricing dozens of eccentric pieces.

The charity asks people to contribute clothes, homewares, furniture, and electrical goods, but sorters at the Griffith branch say this hasn't stopped people from donating rare and expensive items.

"We've unpacked beautiful dresses with the price tag still on them which say they were $800," said one volunteer.

"We've also had some very expensive-looking paintings which had serial numbers on the back, but we couldn't figure out where they were from."

Perhaps the most unique items donated however were those which could not be sold.

A gun and a bayonet have been given in as donations, both of which had to be handed in to police.

Volunteers also said there had been some "distasteful" items donated.