I'm an auctioneer, AMA!

[Gavelicious]

I'm an auctioneer, is there anything anyone would like to know about the auctioneering world?

I work for several general auctions in a rural area (not the Sotheby's of this world!!)

Whats the most memorable item you've seen up for auction?

Have you ever thought ‘damn that’s a bargain, wish I could snap it up myself!’?

Do you do online only auctions now, or accept a mixture of bids online and in the room?

What's the weirdest thing you've sold?

Do you work for general auctions in the sense of nice antiques and things of some value, or do you mean house-clearance, we-sell-anything-type auctions?

Have you ever had anyone bring something in of great value - the sort of thing that would be more usually sold by Sotheby's? What did you do - sell it at one of the rural auctions, or did you advise the seller to take it elsewhere?

Have you ever had an item pulled at the last minute for interesting reasons?

Ive been recently reading a book where an item is pulled mid-auction for not being the legal property of the purported owner, I’d love to know if that ever happens!

I've thought of another question. I'm interested in good quality vintage costume jewellery, such as Crown Trifari and Miriam Haskell. I've spent quite a lot of time looking at upcoming auctions all over the country, and all I've seen so far is either expensive real gold or silver items sold as single lots, or job lots of very cheap stuff. Where on earth is the decent costume jewellery?

Do you know of instances where items have been accidentally undervalued and a real gem has been sold for much less than it's worth?

Oooog that's a tough one. I think maybe a vase that came in from a lovely chap who was clearing out his mum's home. He had just chucked it in a box with some other bits and bobs (he said it was behind a curtain on the window sill in a spare room). We identified it as a piece by a particular studio potter and it sold for £950. He was gobsmacked! Those are the ones I love the most, when we find something valuable which the vendor's weren't expecting!

Oh, all the time!! There are SO many bargains to be had!

The auctions I work for (three different ones) are all online and have buyers in the room. It's such a shame that many auction houses (who all had to go online only during Covid) are now online timed auctions only.

Sooooo many things, but probably a jar of pickled walnuts that had been sealed for at least 70 years!

What's considered bad auction etiquette?

Can you do the fast talking "humana humana humana one humana two bobbidybobby three"

Is it stressful? I always feel quite stressed with all the bids coming in and I'm watching it on the TV!

The auctions I work for (three different ones) are all general auctions that do house clearances but also sell antiques. As auctions are online, they are accessible to people around the world and dealers / collectors search and set up alerts for specialist items so we can pretty much sell anything and get a good fair price for it. We have referred customers to specialist auctions for some items but they can often have considerably higher fees, so vendors are often happy for us to sell their items as they will probably reach the same audience and we can protect items with an appropriate reserve.

Are you well paid?

Yes! An auction I work for once had an item withdrawn because someone contacted the auction house to say it had been stolen from them (it was withdrawn and referred to the police but I don't know what the outcome was!). There was also an incident where a couple had split up and there was a dispute eternally them over ownership of items so they were withdrawn and returned to the vendor for them to sort it out between them!

People can sometimes have a change of heart with personal family items and we always respect this. If someone is unsure whether to sell a family item or not I always advise them that if they're unsure they shouldn't sell it. They can always sell it in the future, but once it's sold it's gone so they need to be 100% sure they are happy to let it go.

Can you have someone bid for you personally in the room if you really wanted one of the lots?

What is popular at the moment?

As a youngster I was dragged to every auction house in the county with my mum! She LOVED pottering around them.

The style that was popular then (Georgian etc) seems out of favour now. Seems to be Mid century modern everywhere.

It's probably mixed in with the cheap stuff. Quality costume jewellery is often missed, especially in general / house clearance auctions. If a huge jewellery lot comes in, the gold and silver (which is mostly easy to identify) will be pulled out and the rest will go in as a job lot. If you see mixed costume / cheap jewellery lots, do t be afraid to send the auction house a message asking for more photos, but it's always worth going to a viewing day for local auctions as if you know what you're looking for, you'll probably find some gems.

We do miss things but buyers (and especially dealers) are a canny bunch and so we often get surprised by items! They're known as 'sleepers'.

Having said that, there are definitely bargains to be had, particularly in mixed house clearance lots. We're all only human and we work to very tight timescales so things do get missed. I work with two auctioneers who have been selling for 50 and 60 years and they still get surprised by things. It's also an ever changing market, so what was valuable just a few years ago may not be now and what is valuable is often surprising. Fashions change very quickly!

So interesting! No question, just thanks for doing an interesting topic!

Could I ask, how did you get into it? And do you do any antiques dealing as well?

Have Bargain Hunt ever been in?!

Do you ever do property auctions? I feel quite sure we were ripped off on a property years back but I've never known who to ask about it.