Auctions:
The Past, Present and Future
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Auctus
“Auction” derives from the Latin word
“Auctus” which means “increasing”.
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Babylon
500 B.C.
The First Auctions
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• Women were auctioned off as
wives
• The descending method of sale
was used
• Returns were allowed
• Dowries and other offers were
added for less attractive women
• It was considered illegal to allow a
daughter to be “sold” outside of
the auction method
Rome
30 A.D.
• Rome was the first nation to
license auctioneers.
• Marcus Aurelius sold family
furniture at auction to satisfy
debts.
• Roman soldiers sold war
plunder at auction.
• The “Magister
Auctionarium” drove a spear
into the ground to start the
auction. Today auctioneers
use a gavel to start auction.
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Marcus Aurelius, Roman Emperor, 161-180
• One of the most significant historical auctions occurred in the year
193 A.D. when the entire Roman Empire was put on the auction
block by the Praetorian Guard.
• On March 23 the Praetorian Guard first killed Emperor Pertinax,
then offered the empire to the highest bidder.
• Didius Julianus outbid everyone for the price of 6,250 drachmas
per guard.
• This initiated a brief civil war and Didius was beheaded two
months later when Septimus Severus conquered Rome.
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Didius Julianus
Stockholm Auction House
• Founded in 1674, Stockholms
Auktionsverk is the oldest auction
auction house still in business.
• Founded by Baron Claes Rålamb
Baron Claes Rålamb
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England
In some parts of England during the seventeenth
and eighteenth centuries auction by candle was
used for the sale of goods and leaseholds.
The auction began by lighting a candle after which
bids were offered in ascending order until the
candle sputtered out.
The high bid at the time candle extinguished itself
won the auction.
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Post French Revolution
At the end of the 18th century, auctions
came to be held in taverns and
coffeehouses to sell art.
Auctions were held daily and catalogs
were printed to announce available
items. Many considered the auction catalogs
art in themselves as they were very elaborate
and detailed.
Sotheby’s Auction House was founded in 1744
Christies Auction House was founded in 1766
A Peep At Christies’ (1796)
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Pilgrims
1600s
Popular Early American
Auction Items
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Crops
Imports
Livestock
Clapboard
Tools
Slaves
Tobacco
Fur
Farms
America’s first president, George Washington, was an avid auction buyer.
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Civil War Era
• Colonels auctioned off the spoils of the war
• Only officers of the Colonel rank could conduct
auctions of war plunder
• Today, Auctioneers are commonly referred to as
“Colonel”
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1900s
• Auctions schools start to open in America
• The Jones’ National School of Auctioneering and Oratory is believed to
be the first American auction school
Class of 1906, Jones’ National School of Auctioneering and Oratory
Davenport, Iowa
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Great Depression
During the Great Depression
auctioneers traveled the
country to liquidate the estates
of farmers whose farms had
failed because of drought and
bank foreclosures.
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1950s
• The sale of goods and real estate by the auction method of
marketing was booming
• The need for real estate and personal property to be sold
faster than the private market moved auctions to the
forefront and the modern auction business was born
• Auctioneers began to be linked to banks, attorneys,
accountants, the court system, and government agencies to
liquidate property, seized assets and surplus property
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Auctions Today
• The live auction industry continues to grow in the
United States and if it can be sold, its been sold at
auction.
• In 2002, the auction industry sold $195.3 billion in
goods and services. In 2008, $268.5 billion was sold at
auction!
• The fastest growing sector of the live auction industry
is real estate. Residential real estate is the fastest with
total gross sales increasing 47.7% between 2003-2008.
• The largest sector is automobile auctions with $83.1
billion sold in 2008.
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2008 Gross Sales Revenue
(in billions)
• Art, Antiques &
Collectibles ($12.4)
• Automobiles ($83.1)
• Agricultural machinery &
equipment ($18.5)
• Commercial & industrial
machinery & equipment
($12.7)
• Livestock ($17.2)
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• Land & agricultural real
estate ($26)
• Commercial & industrial
real estate ($15.5)
• Residential real estate
($17.1)
• Personal Property ($9.2)
• Intellectual Property
($0.2)
• Charity ($16.3)
Technology
• Today’s auctioneer uses a variety of media (i.e.
print, billboards, Internet) to reach both buyers
and sellers
• With the launch of eBay in 1995, auctions have
flourished both live and online
• Auctioneers today use the Internet to both
market their auctions, as well as host live,
streaming video of auctions where bidders can
bid from their computers
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Entertainment & Auctions
• In addition to advances in technology and
popularity of eBay, auctions are also gaining
popularity in mainstream media
• Popular television programs like PawnStars,
Antique Roadshow, Cash in the Attic, Bargain Hunt,
Houses Under the Hammer and Flip That House
have both entertained and educated consumers
about the many benefits of buying and selling at
auction
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National Auctioneers Association
• Professional association built by Auctioneers,
for Auctioneers over 60 years ago
• Members abide by strict Code of Ethics
• Members come from communities large and
small across the country and world
• The NAA and its members are dedicated to
professionalism in the auction profession and
the promotion of the auction method of
marketing
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Find an NAA Auctioneer or Auction
To find an auctioneer or auction in your area
Visit auctioneers.org
To find upcoming real estate auctions
Visit auctionmls.com
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SOLD!
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