Sotheby’s – Modern & Contemporary Art Evening Sale
A great deal has changed over the past 16 months. In the old days, an evening sale took place in the evening – usually starting between 6 and 7 pm. Today, an ‘evening sale’ happens whenever they want – this … More…
Churchill’s Cigar Butt Smokes Estimate
Sometimes when I look through the auction reports, I come across some extraordinary things that make their way to the auction block. I was surprised to see that a two and three quarter inch cigar butt, a remnant of just … More…
Many More Recoveries
In 2017, an investigation was launched when a state archaeology lab in Apulia, Italy made a discovery in a European arts catalogue… they noticed ‘decorative elements’ from a Daunian funerary stele that was in the hands of a “wealthy Belgian … More…
Hekking’s Mona Lisa Sells – Stupidity At Its Finest
I think many will agree that this week’s result from Christie’s sale of a 17th-century copy of the Mona Lisa, called the Hekking Mona Lisa, illustrates how crazy the art world has become — not to mention that some people … More…
Huge Art Theft Uncovered
When Architettura, a work by Italian artist Ottone Rosai, fell from the wall of Italian broadcasting company Rai, an art heist hidden in the shadows for decades was brought to light. According to reports, upon inspection, it was determined that … More…
Tom Brady Scores In The Off Season
Well, it was less than two months ago that I wrote about the record-breaking Tom Brady rookie card, and it did not take long for that record of $2.25M to be sacked. A similar card as the one that sold … More…
A Long Overdue App For The Artworld
In May, Interpol launched a free app called ID-Art to help law enforcement and the general public identify stolen art. The database has over 52,000 items listed, and you can search with an image or specific criteria (artist’s name, etc.). … More…
The Big Gamble
While the general NFT market has been heading south, the upper end still seems to be heading north. On Thursday, Sotheby’s London auctioned off “Covid Alien,” CryptoPunk 7523 for an astounding $11.8M. The buyer definitely knows something about gambling, it … More…
A Childhood Dream Fulfilled
Stuart Weitzman (the iconic shoe designer) started collecting stamps and coins in his childhood; as a young boy, he had a dream to one day own the rarest of the rare and saved a blank space in his books for … More…