Well, Gregory, unless my freebe Bank of America Calendar is wrong,
Feb 8, 2003 is a Saturday, and yes, that is the evening of my auction - The
birthday boys' party (With the fabulous Harvey Awards) is Fri Feb 7 and
last I spoke to Darryl he was still planning his auction on Sun, Feb 9. So, yes, indeed, that is THE weekend of the show not to miss.
Whilst I'm at it, let me add the following: There is a bit of a shift in my auction. Starting this year:
-I am getting numerous "high end" specimens for my Tucson Auction.
(What constitutes a high end specimen is a good question: I have
had numerous items sell for from $3K to $7,600 in my auctions.
However, I suppose anything over $750 to $1K I would consider to
be of particular consideration. I am looking for items that will fit
AT LEAST ONE of the following criteria: It would be a very fine addition
to any of the best collections in the world OR would be a central piece
in many a collection OR would be of interest to dealers to cut and resale.
My goal for this year is to have AT LEAST two to three dozen items in
this catagory with at least 10 of them in the $3K to $10K range)
- There will be internet photos of featured specimens posted well in advance
- There will be an Auction Catalog given out describing each of the
featured items
- My location comfortably holds several hundred bidders and I am
planning on hiring several staff for clerking and more efficient
"cash out" accommodation than in the past.
- I will have a locked display case in a room at InnSuites in Tucson
for ongoing display of these special items so people can view them
throughout the week prior to the auction. Sellers submitting pieces
via photo must have the item in Tucson no later than Tuesday, Feb.
4th or ship it to me in January so I can take it with me.
- I will be accepting Visa and Mastercard. I charge NO BUYERS' PREMIUM
(except when using Visa/Mastercard, to cove costs). This should act
as a STRONG incentive to both the buyer and the seller, as the "hammer
price" is the total price.
- As for commissions, I charge 10% commission on sales and 1%
per item for minimums not met. However, I will wave this
latter fee altogether for items you submit to me, either
physically or simply by high quality photo, prior to November 25.
(However, the photo MUST be of truly excellent quality, or the
specimen must be sent to me for said photography). So, on those
items, no bids = no cost to the seller.
- I encourage LOW minimums, as an item which starts low generates
bidding that usually goes far higher than an item with a high minimum
that may never even get an opening bid (this is just one of those strange,
but true phenomena).
- For all special items, I will be accepting absentee bids in advance of the
auction. (an absentee bid will only increase to the next highest increment
relative to "live" bidding at the auction, itself)
- A keg (or two) of beer will be provided for all bidders at the auction. (I
am looking for a Tucson "local" who would act as Beermeister [I buy,
of course] so, please contact me if interested)
It is my intention to retain the open atmosphere which has characterized
my auctions since the beginning, being "the people's auction" where collectors can offer lower end material to upgrade their collections, drop it off an hour or two before the auction and have a fun social atmosphere which, I feel, provides
a real service to the meteorite community. However, I want to also provide
serious quality specimens for sale to the more discriminating collector
and opportunities for dealers to make major purchases and sales, as well.
It is my belief both of these goals can be met in a single auction and I
know it attracts the buyers.
I do retain the right to limit number of submissions to what I believe
will be of most interest to the gathering and to keep the number of items
manageable. (In the past, auctions have run longer than optimal & I will
be adjusting that through number of items accepted).
I hope you all do let me know of any ideas or insights you might have
on all these matters as well as any of you who would like to apply to clerk the auction (paid, of course). Please do inform me of any special specimens
you would be interested in submitting for sale this year.
I look foreword to seeing you all.
Thanks, Michael
PS: For a BRIEF preview, go to:
http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/Tucson%20Auction.html
on 11/12/02 11:13 AM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote:
Darryl Pitt's auction is going
to be Sun Feb 10th, and I believe a certain double-barreled birthday
celebration is scheduled for Fri night Feb 8th, if I'm not mistaken. Michael
Blood, something tells me you posted the date of your auction, but it has
left my consciousness if you have (too many drugs in the 60's?) ;-) That
Feb 8-9-10 weekend might be a good one to pick if you have limited time,
attending the above events would be a good way to meet a lot of the members
of this list....if that's something you REALLY want to do. ;-)
As February draws nearer, this list begins to talk more and more specifically
about the Tucson show, so stay tuned.
Gregory
Whenever I feel blue, I start breathing again.
--
Worth Seeing:
- Earth at night from satelite:
http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/image/0011/earthlights_dmsp_big.jpg
- Earth - variety of choices:
http://www.fourmilab.ch/earthview/vplanet.html
--
Michael Blood Meteorites & Didgeridoos for sale at:
http://www.michaelbloodmeteorites.com/
