Auctioneers

The auction process is a key part of the secondary art and antiques market.

Firms of auctioneers usually specialise in a number of fields such as jewellery, ceramics, paintings, Asian art or coins but many also hold general sales where the goods available are not defined by a particular genre and are usually lower in value.

Auctioneers often provide other services such as probate and insurance valuations.

RM Sotheby's Austin Princess

Drive my car: John Lennon's Austin Princess comes to RM Sotheby's

25 July 2016

John Lennon's 1956 Austin Princess is one of the featured lots at RM Sotheby’s London auction in September.

Ghostbusters Marshmallow Man toy

Original Ghostbusters merchandise at specialist toy auction in Bristol

25 July 2016

Who you gonna call? If you have ectoplasm seeping through the floorboards then ‘Ghostbusters’ is the obvious answer, shouted loudly.

Boba Fett Star Wars figure auction record

‘Le Boba’ sets auction record for Star Wars figure, selling for £21,000 at Vectis

25 July 2016

A new record for a Star Wars production figure was established at Vectis' latest sale when a French issue of Boba Fett, the memorable bit-part character in ‘The Empire Strikes Back’, sold for £21,000.

Barbara Hepworth at Phillips’ exhibition

Phillips host loan show of Barbara Hepworth’s late works

22 July 2016

Phillips are hosting an exhibition of late works by Barbara Hepworth (1903-1975) in collaboration with the Hepworth Wakefield.

David Gainsborough Roberts

Jersey boy: a curious collection of 20th century treasures comes to auction

22 July 2016

The collection of Jersey-based David Gainsborough Roberts leads Christie’s 250th anniversary Out of the Ordinary sale in September.

Meiji period netsuke of a rat

The rat awakens – Netsuke estimated at £200-300 sparks bidding war and sells at £28,500

22 July 2016

This tiny ivory netsuke of a rat was the major suprise of a recent auction in the Cotswolds.

Celtic medal at Mctears auction

Medal from Celtic’s first-ever cup victory to be offered at Glasgow auction

21 July 2016

Fighting valiantly through the Champions League qualifying rounds after overcoming the mighty Lincoln Red Imps last night, Celtic are well on the way to emulating their 1967 Lisbon Lions European Cup glory.

Specialists leave Christie’s as regular poster auctions end at South Kensington saleroom

21 July 2016

Christie’s South Kensington have ceased regular sales of vintage posters. The leading player in the popular collecting field say that they will now offer posters for sale in online auctions when the opportunity to sell an exceptional collection arises.

Sputnik-1 model at Bonhams

Sputnik-1 model goes into orbit at New York auction selling at 15 times estimate

21 July 2016

A full-scale test model of the satellite Sputnik-1 sold at Bonhams New York yesterday for $220,000 (£167,012), outstripping a $10,000-15,000 estimate.

John Arnold watch at Sotheby’s

Perfect timing – John Arnold pocket watch fetches £460,000 record

21 July 2016

Sotheby’s established an auction record for a watch by John Arnold (1736-99) when a large silver pocket chronometer of 1781 sold at £460,000.

Claudia Dwek of Sotheby's

Sotheby's promote Claudia Dwek to European chairman of contemporary art

20 July 2016

Sotheby’s have appointed Claudia Dwek as chairman of contemporary art, Europe. She will remain as co-chairman of Sotheby’s Italy.

Henry Moore’s Reclining Figure Festival

Christie’s sales down 27% – is this an art market slump?

20 July 2016

Christie’s has experienced a sharp fall in overall sales. In figures released earlier today the company reported sales of £2.1bn for the first half of 2016, which compared to £2.9bn for the same period in 2015.

Chinese Kangxi porcelain famille noir brushwater

Rare Kangxi brushwater takes top spot at Roseberys' auction

20 July 2016

Roseberys' latest fine art auction produced particularly sound results from the Asian art collection of Sir Anthony Hastings George, proving that a good provenance is still key.

Francis Picabia Waddington Christie's

Leslie Waddington collection comes to Christie's for Frieze week sale

19 July 2016

Christie’s London has announced the sale of the late dealer Leslie Waddington’s collection in a single-owner auction during Frieze week in October this year.

Regime change at Stanley Gibbons as top bosses made redundant

18 July 2016

Major changes have been announced to the management and board of Stanley Gibbons after the chief executive and chief financial officer were made redundant.

 La Revue Blanche by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec

Toulouse-Lautrec posters sweep into Swann’s auction

15 July 2016

A series of posters by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec headlines the upcoming Vintage Posters sale at Swann Auction Galleries in New York.

Epistolae familiares by Cicero on vellum

Forum Auctions first sale tops £1m and is led by rare Cicero on vellum

15 July 2016

The inaugural sale held by new London saleroom Forum Auctions concluded yesterday with £1.1m raised (including premium) from 364 lots.

Baile en Tehuantepec by Diego Rivera

Record for Latin American art as Phillips negotiate private deal for Rivera painting

15 July 2016

Phillips have negotiated the private sale of ‘Baile en Tehuantepec’ by Diego Rivera (1886-1957) for $15.75m (£12m), a price which they claim is a record for any piece of Latin American art.

Chicago auctioneers extend their reach to Arizona

14 July 2016

Leslie Hindman Auctioneers are expanding their operations to Scottsdale, Arizona. This will be the firm’s sixth location outside their headquarters in Chicago.

Rocket Firing Boba Fett

Star Wars rarity – Boba Fett with firing rocket offered at Vectis’ auction

14 July 2016

The Rocket Firing Boba Fett has assumed legendary status among Star Wars collectors. Modelled in grey-blue plastic in advance of mass production by the Kenner factory in Ohio, it would forever remain a prototype figure.

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