The Auction Insider
A Third Thursday Discovery Feature: Arts and Crafts Pottery and the Question of Taste
A thrift store, a flea market, an estate sale or even an unfamiliar driveway where someone is selling things out of their garage – this is the setting, now picture the scene: there are people milling about, maybe alone or maybe with a friend, but nevertheless with...
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A Third Thursday Discovery Feature: Colorful Fruit Labels from The Golden State
The first time I ever lived, worked, and bought groceries on my own I was living Louisiana. At least once a week I would walk just over a mile and a half to a small, local grocery store in New Orleans called Langenstein’s to buy food and whatever else I might need for...
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A Third Thursday Discovery Feature: The Great Comic Comeback! (or were they ever truly gone?)
Although this is only our second Third Thursday Discovery Feature, maybe some of you are sensing a theme. Like baseball cards, comic books are a fairly distinct part of 20th century America’s ephemeral culture with a unique and dynamic history. While initially popular...
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A Third Thursday Discovery Feature: Glory Days of the Baseball Card
In January of 1960, the Long Beach Independent newspaper asked a number of music publishers to give their prognosis on the future of rock ‘n’ roll. One unnamed source boldly predicted: “It’s going out very fast. I think it’s pretty well done.” From our perch in 2019,...
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Considering the Collection I: The Philatelist
The philatelist is in many ways the quintessential collector. My mind paints a clear picture of him – a unique individual who shrewdly acquires, carefully catalogs, and meticulously arranges his stamps; who vies with colleagues for the greatest and most comprehensive...
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Diamonds Are More Than a Girl’s Best Friend
As the date draws nearer for Witherell’s Premier Holiday Auction event – Jewelry, Watches and Luxury Goods – I began thinking about how to discuss jewelry without focusing too much on the cliché phrases that define contemporary luxury brands marketing. Jewelry is an...
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I wanted to be a Cowboy
I wanted to be a cowboy. In fact, I could claim to already being a part time cowboy. I had the outfit: chaps, boots, rawhide vest, gun belt and six-shooter, hat- I was ready to go. I think I even called my Mom “school marm.” The fact that I was five years old did not...
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About the Buyer’s Premium: The Definition, History and Reality of an Auction House Phenomenon
Sometimes it can seem like the inner workings and behind closed doors, brass-tacks business of certain industries are closed off to average, everyday clients and customers by design. Often this sense of confusion and exclusion is a result of impenetrable language or...
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