August 3rd, 2009
An expat couple who are leaving Dubai for good are offering their four-bedroom apartmentfor as little as $100 through an online auction site.
The couple, who are planning to return to the UK after some 18 years in Dubai, have set up the auction following their difficulties in finding a buyer.
Steve and Arti Halligan will put their home up for an auction with a difference. They will operate a “lowest unique bid” auction through humraz.com.
July 27th, 2009
A giant gem will hit the auction block in New York this autumn with the sale of the 32-carat emerald-cut Annenberg diamond, which is expected to fetch as much at $5 million.
The flawless ring-mounted diamond, owned by philanthropist Lee Annenberg, widow of publishing magnate Walter Annenberg, leads the auction house’s magnificent jewels sale on October 21.
“Gems of this size are extremely rare, and their presence on the market is always an important event in the world of diamonds,” said Rahul Kadakia, Christie’s head of jewelry.
July 2nd, 2009
Forbes reports that Sotheby’s is offering a 1,500-year-old biblical document that includes layers of text and meaning–in three languages.
Known as the Codex Climaci Rescriptus, the piece was written over the span of three centuries and stowed in a sacred monastery until landing in the hands of a pair of British twins by way of local Egyptian dealers.
Now an English college is cannibalizing its library and cashing out, to pay for some building renovations.
June 30th, 2009
A bidder agreed to pay $1.68 million for a steak lunch with billionaire investor Warren Buffett in a charity auction completed on Friday night on eBay.
The winning bid in the 10th annual fund-raiser fell short of last year’s record $2.11 million, paid by Hong Kong-based investor Zhao Danyang.
As in recent years, the winner and up to seven friends may dine with the world’s second-richest person at the Smith & Wollensky steakhouse in New York.
June 27th, 2009
A late “musketeer” painting by Pablo Picasso sold for 7 million pounds ($11.5 million) at Sotheby’s last night as buyers looked for value in the contracted auction market for Impressionist art.
The 1969 work dates to a period late in Picasso’s life when he was obsessed with floppy-hatted swashbucklers and their Casanova lifestyles.
In this version, Picasso’s doppelganger stands before a velvety red backdrop in a yellow jacket. He holds a sword as if posing for an Old Master portrait.
June 22nd, 2009
One of the Thinker sculptures by French master Auguste Rodin has been sold at auction for more than 3 million euros ($5.2 million) in Paris, Reuters reports.
The bronze, just 72.5 centimetres high, set a record for any of the Thinkers - a series of 21 sculptures made by Rodin in the late 19th century and early 20th century.
One of the most famous sculptures in the world, the Thinker represents a naked man sitting on a rock looking downwards, with his elbow on his knee and his chin resting on his hand.
