alexanderhistorical

Interesting story - with a warning to all auction bidders. Some people are

just so unscrupulous.

In the UK it is a serious offence to create a 'ring' in order to purchase an

auction item below it's value. Mainly it is dealers' who do this - they

nominate one of the group to bid - the others holding back to keep the price down. Afterwards, they hold a small auction amongst themselves in the

car park to see who is the new owner. We used to keep an eye on these

groups and if money was seen to change hands they would be arrested.

Bidding pools, as they call them in the U.S., are also illegal. In my 25 years in the business, I've never seen one from either side of the gavel. Bear in mind it is perfectly legal for bidders to get together to buy an item "jointly" and then resell it "jointly" at a later date.

Safest way to bid: live, in person, on the telephone, or via the internet in real time.

Bill