In a collecting category as highly specialized as antiquities, the most valuable asset an auction house can possess is not a 2,500-year-old Egyptian statue or a rare Pre-Columbian artifact – its integrity and reputation. And starting February 23, 2012, Antiquities-Saleroom.com, a fully-owned subsidiary of Artemis Gallery Ancient Art, will offer 125+ lots of Classical Antiquities and Pre-Columbian artifacts as part of its March 3 online auction. The fully-illustrated online sale catalogue can be viewed and confidential absentee bids may be placed on any of the lots at Antiquities-Saleroom.com. Absentee bids are executed competitively against the existing highest bid. 

“The way the Antiquies-Saleroom.com bidding platform works, even Bob and I do not know what the high bid is on an item at any given time. We only know the status of the bids after each lot closes and the winning bid is revealed,” said Teresa Dodge, Owner and Managing Director.  The auction lots will close for bidding in a consecutive, staggered fashion every three minutes starting at 11 EST on March 3.  In the period leading up to the sale, bidders will be automatically notified via e-mail if they have been outbid on an item.  Bids may be placed right up until the closing time for each lot. 

“Everything in the auction is an authenticated, quality item – each item legally acquired and legal to sell. We believe an antiquity will find its correct price in the market almost every time if it is offered with the assurance that it is authentic, legal to purchase and meets the timeline qualifications for UNESCO and various national treaties,” said Dodge.

The first half of Antiquities-Saleroom.com’s March 3rd auction is devoted to classical antiquities and includes a nice mix of Egyptian, Greek and Roman objects. Among the highlights are a fine A Greek South Italic Bell Krater with Eros, A Roman Bronze Chariot Fitting with the Bust of a Goddess, A Greek Corinthian Neck Amphora with the Image of a Komast (Ca. 7th-6th century BC), and a nice collection of important Roman Redware Oil lamps. Additionally, there are offerings of Greek Attic pottery from Athens’ Classic Era (525-450 B.C.), as well as a couple of desirable Etruscan Bucchero pottery pieces.

Egyptian bronzes, including a very large Osiris figure featuring a Nubian King, will be auctioned, and excellent examples of Egyptian faience will be available. Four coveted ushabtis will be offered, including a very rare Egyptian Black Shabti.  “Ushabtis are servant figures that were placed in Egyptian tombs to handle daily chores for the deceased in the afterlife. Typically, there would have been approximately 365 of them in a tomb, one for each day of the year,” Dodge explained. 

The second part of the auction will feature Pre-Columbian art.  The selection in this auction includes ceramics from West Mexico, the Mayan territories and most of the major cultures of Peru, Costa Rica and Panama; plus many examples in stone and metalwork, including effigies made of gold. 

The variety continues of art from the ancient Americas continues with A Rare Chavin Lapis Lazuli Stone Idol, A Rare Group of 4 Matched Nayarit Figures, several beautifully carved Mayan pottery cylinders, stonework and ceramic figurines.  There is also A Spectacular Moche I Warrior Stirrup Vessel, ca first - second century AD, depicting a highly important man, with inlaid shell detailing. 

The catalog for Antiquities-Saleroom.com’s auction closing March 3 can be viewed online at the company’s website: www.Antiquities-Saleroom.com. For questions on any item in the sale, call Teresa Dodge at 720-890-7700 or e-mail antiquitiessaleroom@gmail.com.