A family curiosity hanging in a Newtown kitchen for decades brought $41,400 at Fairfield Auction  September 9th. The 29" hewn maple club with a ball shaped end, decorated with brass tacks and fitted with an iron spike was a gift from an eccentric aunt more than 30 years ago and hung just across from the seller’s refrigerator until brought to local auctioneers Jack and Rosie DeStories for evaluation. The DeStories determined the club to be a rare and early Native American ball club.

"We recognized this was an important Native American artifact in remarkable condition. Once the full scope of our marketing was unleashed collectors, dealers and institutions from a dozen states were calling with interest," said Jack DeStories of Fairfield Auction.

After a flurry of bids between the phones and the floor the club was pronounced sold at $41,400 by auctioneer Rosie DeStories, bringing a thunderous applause from all in attendance. 

According to Fairfield Auction’s Jack DeStories, "We are very pleased with the results. It is probably the greatest satisfaction in this business... finding a great object that could have just as easily been sold at a tag sale and getting a tremendous result. The consignors were simply thrilled."

It was a very fortunate day when a local woman brought a carved spruce helmet into an appraisal clinic and it was immediately identified as a rare and early Northwest Coast artifact by Jack DeStories, owner of Fairfield Auction. It had sat on a shelf for some twenty-five years and may have remained an undiscovered national treasure had the happy meeting never taken place. On May 18th it sold at Fairflield Auction in Newtown, Connecticut for $2,185,000 establishing a new world record for a Native American object, surpassing a Northwest Coast mask sold at Sotheby's in 2006 for $1.8 million. The impressive figure is the most expensive antique ever sold at auction in New England and places Fairfield Auction in the company of Sotheby's, Christies, Skinner and Bonhams as the only houses to reach $2 million on a single lot in The United States. The event was chronicled in over forty newspapers including The USA Today and on several television and radio broadcasts in the weeks following.

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1)  Understand the rules.  Be clear ahead of time on buyer's premium,  preview times,  payment terms,   pick-up/delivery options and any other terms.

2) Don't go hungry.  Many auctions serve food, but often not much.  It's better to take the time for a good meal ahead of time.  A hungry bidder is a distracted bidder.

3)  Allow ample time.  It's always better to have too much than too little, especially when it comes to previewing.

4)  Preview and use the catalog.   A catalog lists all lots in the order being sold.  Nobody can remember every item and it's condition, but a catalog allows you to make notes and follow them as thing are sold. Make notes on as many things as possible.

5) Listen to the auctioneer.  The auctioneer will announce any changes to the catalog such as a revised estimate or quantity. 

6) Don't attend.  If attending auctions isn't enjoyable or you have other things to do leave absentee bids.  It's convenient and often you still buy things well below your maximum bid.

7) Bid your maximum.   Remember your absentee bid is a maximum and the auctioneer can not exceed it, but you may get the item for less.  Always ask yourself, "would I go one more bid?"  Too many bidders come up short and regret not leaving a higher bid.

8) Make a longer list.  Don't focus on too few items.  It's easy to expect to buy everything you like, but if you have price limits (like most of us)  you'll want to have  back-up choices or be prepared to come back next time. 

9)  Buy condition.  It becomes easy to see similar looking objects as similar in value.  But when it comes time to reupholster that sofa or repair that chipped vase you'll pay the difference and more- almost every time. 

10)  Don't buy bargains.  We all want bargains, but buying something based on price without regard to quality, utility, or beauty is a mistake. Every auction has its share of bargains, but the fundamental mistake novice bidders make is to bid because something  "seems cheap."   Buying an object you enjoy everyday is the best investment.