Stages of an auction

Great expression on her face. I love realistic portraits like that.

 

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Leu wrote in an e-mail today, "no less than 1,098 customers took part in our Web Auction 12". That's a lot of people interested in ancient coins!

 

Lol, and I noticed them bragging that the hammer price was over 4 times the "estimate". Given Leu's "estimates", that is kind of a given. I am sure any dealer here would buy an entire Leu auction at "estimate" if given the chance. I know I would clean out a category at "estimate" if they let me.

 

These tactics are annoying and just marketing. There are also some people who regularly comment on how some auction houses "under grade" coins... again, a marketing tactic (and grades don't really matter when coins are photographed as long as any problems are disclosed).

If I started an auction house, I'd estimate every lot at $0.0001 and grade every coin "worse than poor; just melt it" and send marketing blasts when my lots sell for millions of times the estimate and get into XF or better holders!