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Firsthand Account of the Christie's Star Trek Auction

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the that's-a-lot-of-gold-pressed-latinum dept.

DustCollector writes to mention a Scientific American blog post about the highly successful Star Trek auction at Christie's on Thursday. The props, from many different shows, went for far more than was estimated. From the article: "The auction board flickered in perpetual motion as dollars changed along with the equivalent in euros, British pounds, Hong Kong dollars and Japanese yen (what, no quatloos?). Picard's Enterprise-E captain's chair, estimated to sell for $7,000-$8,000, went for $52,000. Two prop wine bottles of 'Chateau Picard,' estimated to go for $500 to $700, sold for $5,500. 'That's probably a record for empty wine bottles,' the auctioneer quipped. The sale prices so exceeded the estimated price that absentee bidders--those who place a maximum and hope for the best--hardly stood a chance: I counted only two successful absentee bids in the first 124 lots."

18 of 151 comments (clear)

  1. Shocking by eldavojohn · · Score: 4, Funny

    You know those guys we always used to beat up in gum class?

    Yeah, they ended up with all the money.

    I'm being sarcastic of course, I lacked the bicepts to ever raise a fist in anger/frustration ...

    --
    My work here is dung.
    1. Re:Shocking by Osty · · Score: 5, Funny

      Yeah, they ended up with all the money.

      But now they only have empty wine bottles, and Christie's has all the money.

  2. obviously by macadamia_harold · · Score: 5, Insightful

    The high bids made me wonder just why people were willing to pay thousands of dollars for cast resin and foam.

    It's not just "cast resin and foam". It's "cast resin and foam" that was in Star Trek

    --
    Push Button, Receive Bacon
  3. Full scale models by waynemcdougall · · Score: 5, Funny
    Full-scale models of the Enterprise-A and Enterprise-D dominated the front of the room.

    Full-scale? That must have been a large room.

    --
    Recycle PCs and build a wireless community network www.hillsborough.org.nz
    1. Re:Full scale models by jcr · · Score: 4, Funny

      Full-scale? That must have been a large room.

      Nah, the actors were tiny.

      -jcr

      --
      The only title of honor that a tyrant can grant is "Enemy of the State."
  4. Authenticate it! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    You better get some kind of certificate of authentication so your
    parents can sell it after you move out of the basement.

    1. Re:Authenticate it! by morcego · · Score: 3, Funny

      They can afford their own girls :)
      *ducks and hide*

      --
      morcego
  5. Re:Picard's Flute by Y-Crate · · Score: 5, Informative
    No mention of the flute from 'The Inner Light' that Picard played. I was thinking of putting in an absentee bid on that, but I knew no way I'd get it. I think they first listed it for something like $300, then upped it to $800 because of interest. Can't imagine what it really went for.
    $40,000
  6. FTA by nihaopaul · · Score: 5, Informative

    Some notable items and sale prices, along with original estimates in parentheses:

    -Borg alcove: $8,000 ($700)
    -Borg mannequin: $9,000 ($800)
    -Worf's Klingon baldric sash: $3,200 ($300)
    -Six Romulan Senate chairs: $1,900 ($800)
    -Type 2 phaser from Star Trek: Nemesis: $3,200 ($1,200)
    -17-inch tall latex-foam statue of Zephraim Cochrane: $5,500 ($500)
    -Captain Picard's black-and-grey uniform: $15,000 ($8,000)
    -Borg cube model, 30 inches across (the small one): $80,000 ($1,500)
    -Enterprise-E model: $110,000 ($12,000)

    --
    i got a picture i drew when i was a kid of the enterprise, i've priced it at $3 for cost of supplies, its coloured in pen to! taking bids

    1. Re:FTA by DarrylM · · Score: 3, Informative

      "That's odd. Maybe it's just me, but I thought the Enterprise-E was a 100% digital effects model? Why would they bother creating a physical model if they're only shooting the digital set? The only thing I can think of is a rough model to prototype the design before making a digital version."

      <geek_mode>
      From the Star Trek The Next Generation Companion, the First Contact movie used minatures for most of the space scenes, including a 10 foot model of the Enterprise-E. I'm assuming this was the one sold here. Part of the saucer section was also built in minature for the crash sequence in Nemesis.
      </geek_mode>

      (Yes, I am moved out of my parents' basement.)

  7. Funding by PresidentEnder · · Score: 4, Insightful
    So... wait. People are willing to pay a grand total of hundreds of thousands of dollars for the old props, right...?

    How much does it cost to make a season of Star Trek?

    --
    I used to carry a bottle of whiskey for snake bite. And two snakes. -Nefarious Wheel
  8. Estimates are bogus. by rolfwind · · Score: 4, Insightful
    The Summary:
    The props, from many different shows, went for far more than was estimated.


    Appraisers working for auctions routinely set estimates lower than what they really expect the item will fetch at auction - both to encourage bidders to step up to the plate early on and so the auction can claim to get "much higher prices" than expected, thus enforcing the Christie's premium name to sellers/estates who are thinking of consigning items there. Afterall, they have to compete with Sothebys.

    And if it turns out to be a very bad auction, at worst, they'll probably just hit estimates - and that doesn't sound as bad P/R wise than missing estimates entirely.
    1. Re:Estimates are bogus. by no+haters · · Score: 3, Informative
      Appraisers working for auctions routinely set estimates lower than what they really expect the item will fetch at auction - both to encourage bidders to step up to the plate early on and so the auction can claim to get "much higher prices" than expected

      This is ridiculous. Please try to use some common sense. Have you ever worked in an auction house? The Christie's premium name to sellers/estates has to do with 2 things: The amount of money (people) they can bring to bid to an auction and the ACCURACY of their estimates. If an auction house tried to routinely lowball their estimates to generate interest, it would destroy any credibility they might have and it would have the exact opposite effect: People, unable to know whether or not estimates were legitimate or not, would not bid on items. Also, encouraging bidders to "step up to the plate" as you put it is the job of the auctioneer, who sets the opening bid, not the appraisers. Most items have a reserve price set by the seller, separate from the estimate put out by the appraisers, thus ensuring their independence and (when they get it right) their accuracy.

      The Star Trek auction generated far more interest than the company expected. I went to Christie's before the auction and looked at all the items, and it is easy to see how they set the estimates where they did. Most of the stuff had very obviously been sitting unattended in a warehouse for an extended period of time, and Star Trek has been on the decline (in terms of viewership) for a while now. How would they know that the 40th anniversary sale would reawaken the inner geek in so many people with so much disposable income?

  9. Re:Picard's Flute by kfg · · Score: 3, Funny

    I've always wanted a 4,000,000 pennies whistle.

    KFG

  10. Re:Complete listing by IanDanforth · · Score: 4, Informative

    Lot descriptions

    http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/search/LotSumma ry.asp?intSaleID=20723

    Final Prices

    http://www.christies.com/auction/results/results_l otlist.asp?saleno=NYC1778

    Thousands of lots, have fun!

  11. Re:Picard's Flute by IanDanforth · · Score: 5, Informative

    Incorrect

    It actually went for $48,000. And at least to me that 8k matters.

    PICARD'S RESSIKAN FLUTE - Lot 537

    http://www.christies.com/LotFinder/search/LOTDETAI L.ASP?sid=&intObjectID=4780101

    Lot Results

    http://www.christies.com/auction/results/results_l otlist.asp?saleno=NYC1778&page=6

  12. Must be nice to have such high standards.. by Lactoso · · Score: 5, Insightful
    "Well, considering Shatner is Priceline's whore for about $6 million"

    'whore'? I think you need to hold either the higher moral or economic ground to make that kind of statement. I 'whored' myself out to former employers for considerably less. :-(

  13. Somewhere in the Universe by ndogg · · Score: 4, Funny

    A ferengi is crying happy tears.

    --
    // file: mice.h
    #include "frickin_lasers.h"