auction

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'Astonishingly Rare' First Edition of The Hobbit Sells for $58K

Discovered in Bristol, the book lacks its original dust jacket

(Newser) - A first edition of JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit, uncovered during a routine estate clearance in the UK city of Bristol, has fetched nearly $58,000 at auction—more than quadrupling initial estimates, per the Guardian . The volume, one of just 1,500 originals printed in 1937, was discovered...

You Could Own the Hair of the Man Who Stopped Napoleon

Lord Admiral Nelson's purported braid up for auction

(Newser) - A braid of hair taken from the head of a man considered a British hero for preventing Napoleon's planned invasion of the country some 200 years ago is heading to auction. The dark braid belongs to Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson, a naval commander in the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars,...

Buddha Relics Head Home After Auction Outcry

Sotheby's brokers a deal ensuring public access to ancient Piprahwa gems in India

(Newser) - Sotheby's has handed back to India a trove of 2,500-year-old jewels believed to be linked to the Buddha's remains following global outcry and an intense diplomatic campaign. The so-called Piprahwa Gems, unearthed in 1898 from a stupa near the Buddha's birthplace and considered one of...

Caitlin Clark's Rookie Card Breaks a Record

Fetches $660K at auction in a record-breaking sale

(Newser) - Caitlin Clark has set yet another record, this time with her 2024 WNBA rookie card selling for the most money yet for a female athlete at a public auction. Clark's Rookie Royalty WNBA Flawless Logowoman 1/1 card sold Thursday night for $660,000. That sale price tops the previous...

One of the Most Famous Whips in Hollywood Sells for Half a Mil

Prop used in 1989's Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade goes for $525K at auction

(Newser) - A whip wielded by Harrison Ford in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade that once belonged to Princess Diana has sold at auction for $525,000. Thursday's sale was part of the "Summer Entertainment Auction" being held all week by Heritage Auctions, per the AP . Heritage says the...

Young Dino Skeleton Goes for $30.5M at Auction

Rare juvenile Ceratosaurus fossil was sold by Sotheby's during 'Geek Week'

(Newser) - A juvenile Ceratosaurus fossil stunned the auction world this week, fetching $30.5 million at Sotheby's—well beyond its initial $4 million to $6 million estimate. The six-minute bidding war drew six contenders from the floor, online, and via phone lines, with the identity of the winning buyer...

Martian Meteorite Sells for Out-of-This-World Price

Martian rock NWA 16788 had been expected to fetch millions at Sotheby's

(Newser) - An out-of-this-world item sold for an equally out-of-this-world price on Wednesday. The largest Martian meteorite ever found on Earth—a 54-pound hunk known as NWA 16788—sold at a Sotheby's auction for $5,296,000, outpacing the $2 million to $4 million it was projected to go for. CBS...

Darth Vader Is Apparently Hawking His Lightsaber

It's expected to fetch up to $3M at Propstore auction

(Newser) - Cinephiles, get ready to get your geek on because a rare piece of Star Wars history is about to change hands: Darth Vader's main dueling lightsaber, seen in The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, is heading to auction this September. Propstore, the memorabilia dealer hosting...

Buyer Plans to Eat 77-Year-Old Piece of Royal Wedding Cake

Gerry Layton says he'll flambé the 1947 fruit cake from the wedding of Queen Elizabeth II

(Newser) - A 77-year-old slice of Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip's wedding cake has fetched nearly $3,700 at auction—soon to be flambéed and eaten by a determined royal fan. The fruit cake, originally served at the couple's 1947 Buckingham Palace reception, had been stored in a...

Somebody Paid $45K for David Lynch's Coffee Machine

Hundreds of legendary director's belongings sold for way over estimates

(Newser) - Many of David Lynch's personal belongings were sold off in an auction this week and most of them sold for way over Julien's Auctions' estimates—including two taxidermy deer heads seen in Twin Peaks, which sold for $16,250, including fees. The estimate was $200 to $300. The...

'Poignant' Yet 'Smutty' Lennon Love Letter Is Up for Auction

Beatle wrote it to future wife Cynthia in 1962

(Newser) - A playful, lovesick letter from a young John Lennon to his future wife Cynthia—complete with a complaint about Paul McCartney's snoring—is hitting the auction block, offering a rare glimpse into the Beatle's private world before fame. The intimate handwritten note is expected to fetch up...

Rare Diamond Tied to Marie Antoinette Goes Up for Sale

Pink 10-carat jewel expected to fetch up to $5M at auction in New York

(Newser) - A rare 10-carat pink diamond with roots in French royalty is set to draw millions when it hits the auction block in New York next month. Believed to have been passed down from French Queen Marie Antoinette to her daughter, this historic, kite-shaped gem has been hidden from public...

Auction of Lincoln Artifacts Called a 'Woeful Calamity'

Lincoln Presidential Foundation raised millions to pay off loan used to purchase wider collection

(Newser) - Nearly 20 years ago, the Lincoln Presidential Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to promoting Abraham Lincoln's life and legacy, bought more than 1,500 artifacts related to the 16th US president. The collection "was intended to be available for public display forever," per the AP . But nearly 10%...

Town Aims to Buy—or Seize— Pope's Childhood Home

Dolton, Illinois, currently in negotiations with seller

(Newser) - Auction bids on Pope Leo XIV's childhood home in a Chicago suburb will be accepted for another month , but we may already know who will end up with the property. The village of Dolton, where the modest three-bedroom home stands, plans to take possession of the property one way...

New Pope's Old Home Is Up for Grabs
There's One Very Lucky
House-Flipper Near Chicago
in case you missed it
May 18, 2025 3:30 PM CDT

There's One Very Lucky House-Flipper Near Chicago

Leo XIV's childhood home is up for auction, could bring 7 figures; owner bought it for $66K last year

(Newser) - The owner of a modest three-bedroom brick house in the Chicago suburb of Dolton had been trying to sell the property for $199,000 in recent weeks, only a year after he'd bought the Cape Cod home for $66,000 and tried to flip it. Now, the New York ...

Auction of Gems Found With Buddha's Remains Called Off

Indian government strongly criticized Sotheby's sale of gems unearthed in colonial times

(Newser) - Sotheby's has postponed the planned auction of a collection of jewels found with what are believed to have been the cremated remains of Buddha. The sale, scheduled for May 7, was criticized by the Indian government and Buddhist leaders, reports the BBC . Nearly 1,800 items, including gemstones...

Note From Passenger Reserving Judgment on Titanic Auctioned

Archibald Gracie reached the Carpathia but didn't recover from hypothermia

(Newser) - A lettercard written onboard the Titanic by one of the sinking's best-known survivors has sold at auction for $399,000. In the note, written to the seller's great-uncle on April 10, 1912, first-class passenger Archibald Gracie wrote of the ill-fated steamship on the day he boarded, "It...

One-of-a-Kind Baseball Card Sells for $1.1M

Proceeds from the sale of the Paul Skenes rookie card will go to the LA Fire Relief Fund

(Newser) - A one-of-a-kind Paul Skenes baseball card has been sold for $1.11 million after a two-week auction. There were a total of 64 bids on Skenes' debut patch card, which is autographed and contains a patch that was on the pitcher's jersey for his heralded major league debut in...

Winning Bid Would Return Railroad's Golden Spike
Alaskans Want Railroad's
Golden Spike Back
photos
Jan 23, 2025 5:20 PM CST

Alaskans Want Railroad's Golden Spike Back

Warren Harding drove it in a ceremony just before his death

(Newser) - President Warren G. Harding drove a golden spike into the final coupling of the Alaska Railroad more than a century ago, a ceremonial act marking the launch of a system to easily bring coal and other natural resources out of the wilderness, a few days before he died of a...

Jeff Beck's $1.2M Guitar Collection Going Up for Auction

Christie's is selling rock icon's storied axes on Jan. 22

(Newser) - Some of the most iconic guitars in rock history are going on display in London before they go under the hammer at auction, reports the AP . Auctioneer Christie's held a preview on Tuesday for the collection of the late Jeff Beck, who died in January 2023 at age 78....

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