An artifact is an object that holds or signifies an idea.
A book on paper is an artifact: it’s the object plus the words. Now that you can get the words in many other ways, the value of the book is changed.
A wedding ring is an artifact. If lost, it has sentimental value far greater than what you could buy a similar replacement for.
Sometimes, the value of an idea fades away, which is why many old books are worthless. Garage sales are filled with previously valuable items that hold ideas that people aren’t attracted to.
And sometimes, the value of the object fades away, but the idea remains important. That’s what happens when you upgrade your laptop.
When the world shifts, the artifacts around us change in value.
