Late to the thread here. I agree with those that hold the early Ithaca engraving in esteem, and I consider the NID an excellent design.
Step back and look at that picture. Art doesn't make the gun. All the while that wonderful engraving (and checkering!) was being applied, Ithaca was unrepresented among the professionals. Too, while you have to admire their fearlessness of starting with a clean sheet of paper and a new design every so many years, none of that speaks highly of their early guns. So when they arrive on the scene in the twenties with the excellent NID, it's like they are starting all over again without the benefit of the kind of reputation worn by the likes of Parker and Smith.
So, to answer the orignial question, yeah, they are a kind of last, heretofore underappreciated collecting niche that offers elements of design and art.
