February 22nd, 2008
In what is said to be a historic sale, a 101-carat, near-flawless diamond will go under the hammer later this year in Hong Kong, media reported Wednesday.
The squash-ball sized stone, which will be sold at the Hong Kong branch of Christie’s auction house on May 28, is now on exhibition in London and is also the biggest white diamond at auction in nearly two decades, Christie’s said.
The gem that has been cut from a 460-carat South African rough stone is expected to fetch over US $6 million
February 19th, 2008
What’s in the perfect license plate number? Does it hold emotional significance, prestige or just bragging rights? Incredibly, a select few numbers placed on an aluminum license plate may bring all the above.
In Abu Dhabi, monthly auctions of worthy numbers, (typically 1-10 and 11-99 are the most popular), bring high bidders and license plate collectors forward to spend millions on that perfect number.
The most expensive to date was the recent sale of plate No. 1 which sold for a whopping $14.3 million sold to businessman Saeed Abdul Ghafour Khouri.
February 18th, 2008
One man’s collection of rare American cents has turned into a $10.7 million auction windfall. The collection of 301 cents featured some of the rarest and earliest examples of the American penny.
It included a cent that was minted for two weeks in 1793 but was abandoned because Congress thought Lady Liberty looked frightened. That coin and a 1794 cent with tiny stars added to prevent counterfeiting each raised $632,500.
The coins came from the collection of Burbank resident Walter J. Husak, the owner of an aerospace-part manufacturing company. Source : CNN
February 15th, 2008
Pop star Shakira sold one of her bras for $3,000 at a charity auction on Sunday (10Feb08).
The Latin beauty sold more than 40 stage costumes from her 2007 Oral Fixation tour to raise funds for her Bare Feet Foundation, which is leading a project to build a school for impoverished kids in her native Colombia.
Among other items up for sale on the eBay Giving Works website included a low cut red dress with large, wing-like sleeves, a blue tank top baring the slogan ‘For Those Who Love to Rock’, and a lavender skirt with turquoise and coral beading, which went for $1,000.
One eager fan also spent $14,000 on front seat tickets to a future Shakira concert in Toronto, Canada. The auction has so far raised $76,000 , with two more autographed items still to be sold. Auctions for an electric Fender guitar and an acoustic Taylor guitar are due to close on Sunday (17Feb08)
