[meteorite-list] Auction Kings meteorite - $2000 Sikhote Alin

[Thunder Stone]

Michael: I watch this show as I'm fascinated will all kinds of collectables, and this is an old episode which first aired about a year ago. The auction house is based in Atlanta GA. I agree that it was very high, but the is the nature of autions. Perhaps try one near and see what happens.
Greg S

-----Original Message-----

From: Michael Gilmer
Sent: 23 Mar 2012 14:38:21 GMT
To: meteorite-list at meteoritecentral.com
Subject: [meteorite-list] Auction Kings meteorite - $2000 Sikhote Alin

Hi Folks,

So last night I was going through the channel guide on cable TV and I
saw that a show called "Auction Kings" was going to have a segment
featuring a meteorite.  I had never watched this show before, but I
was very curious to see what type of meteorite would be shown.

Apparently, the show is about a local auction house somewhere (not
sure where).  People bring in unusual items and the auction house
sells them at open auction while the cameras follow the action.

The meteorite segment came and here is where the fun begins....

This guy walks in carrying a Pelican-style case about the size of a
camera case.  He opens it and brings out a Sikhote Alin shrapnel about
the size of a grapefruit.  The meteorite had a nice patina, but the
shape was not very interesting or sculpted.  In other words, it was
what most of us would call a "lump", but it was obvious from the
appearance that it was a genuine Sikhote.

First, the auction house guy was impressed because the meteorite had a
certificate of authenticity.  I thought this was laughable for obvious
reasons and a man who runs an auction house should know that 99% of
COA's are not worth the paper they are printed on.  I can go outside,
grab a rock from my driveway, and print up an official-looking COA for
it.

Next, the owner proceeds to demonstrate that the meteorite is
"magnetic" because a magnet will stick to it and that is one of the
key tests to determine if a meteorite is genuine.  I'll skip comment
on this misconception and use of improper terminology because the real
kicker was still to come.

So the owner tells the auction house that he is hoping to sell the
meteorite to help pay for a vacation to Paris and he wants $1000 for
it.

Ok, at no point in the show was the weight of the specimen ever
mentioned.  So without knowing the weight, it is difficult to assign
to solid value to the piece.  But judging by what I saw (apparent size
and shape), I'd guess the piece would sell on the meteorite market or
eBay for about $250-$300.  The owner's desired price of $1000 seemed
unrealistic to me, but this is television and a bunch of people who
don't know jack about meteorites, so anything is possible.

The auction part comes, and they have a nice turn out with maybe two
or three dozen potential bidders in attendance.  The meteorite ignites
a bidding war and the final price for the piece was.....(*drumroll
please*)...... $2000!  And the buyer was thrilled because he thought
he got a good deal.  Of course, once he gets home and does some
Googling to learn more about his new meteorite, he might change his
mind about the deal he got.  He could have went on eBay and bought a
half-dozen Sikhote shrapnels of that size for $2000.

So the moral of this story is - if you have a local auction house near
you, go down there with a meteorite and you might be pleasantly
surprised how much money it will fetch.  I'm opening up the yellow
pages today and/or getting on the internet and see what kind of
auction houses we have here in the Tampa area.  I'll be more than
happy to offer them all the $200 stones and irons they want, as long
as they fetch $2000 each.  Heck, even after the auction house takes
it's percentage, that is still a great deal for the seller.

And the best part is, once the buyer gets home and finds out he/she
got burned on the price, they cannot get mad at the seller, because
they are the ones who bid the item up.

Dealers - check your local auction houses.

Best regards,

MikeG

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