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Antiquorum, it seems caution is advised.

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  • 02-01-2016 2:19pm
    #1
    Wibbs
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,095 Mod ✭✭✭✭


    The giant timepiece specific auction house Antiquorum(who also own Timezone.com) are less than stellar when it comes to background checks. Here's a chap whose stolen Lange they sold. Now bad enough that the very basic of spot checks with any number of sources would have flagged this, how they dealt with this afterward would lead me to suggest avoiding them like the very plague. Now auction houses have always had a sniff of the Arthur Daley type vibe about them that no amount of polish from Antiques Roadshow can quite dispel, but this is taking the mickey and no mistake. From the above link;

    On the 25th of October, 2015, Antiquorum auctioned several watches in Hong Kong. Among them was a watch that was stolen from me on the 18th of January, 2011

    It goes on from there, but basically the upshot is they sold the watch, the buyer returned it when he found out it was nicked and Antiquorum returned the watch not to the owner but the seller of said stolen watch.

    This needs to get out across the web. Timezone of course disappeared all trace of it… Antiquorum have a rep for redials, frankens and the like(as do other "big names". Like I say avoid. Crazy to think but as a buyer you are far more protected buying at auction on Ebay than you are at established auction houses.

    Rejoice in the awareness of feeling stupid, for that’s how you end up learning new things. If you’re not aware you’re stupid, you probably are.



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    #2
    Mredsnapper
    Registered Users Posts: 477 ✭✭Mredsnapper


    Wibbs wrote: »
    The giant timepiece specific auction house Antiquorum(who also own Timezone.com) are less than stellar when it comes to background checks. Here's a chap whose stolen Lange they sold. Now bad enough that the very basic of spot checks with any number of sources would have flagged this, how they dealt with this afterward would lead me to suggest avoiding them like the very plague. Now auction houses have always had a sniff of the Arthur Daley type vibe about them that no amount of polish from Antiques Roadshow can quite dispel, but this is taking the mickey and no mistake. From the above link;

    On the 25th of October, 2015, Antiquorum auctioned several watches in Hong Kong. Among them was a watch that was stolen from me on the 18th of January, 2011

    It goes on from there, but basically the upshot is they sold the watch, the buyer returned it when he found out it was nicked and Antiquorum returned the watch not to the owner but the seller of said stolen watch.

    This needs to get out across the web. Timezone of course disappeared all trace of it… Antiquorum have a rep for redials, frankens and the like(as do other "big names". Like I say avoid. Crazy to think but as a buyer you are far more protected buying at auction on Ebay than you are at established auction houses.

    Sounds like an nightmare. The original owner has effectively had his watch stolen twice.


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