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  • Search Auction Items
  • Sign In/Register
  • Auctions
    • Upcoming Auctions
    • Past Auctions
    • Search Auction Items
  • Buying
    • How to Bid
    • How to Pay & Ship
    • New to Auctions?
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Upcoming Auctions
  • Selling
    • How to Consign
    • How Auctions Work
    • Request an Auction Estimate
    • Contact a Specialist
  • Departments
    • American History
    • American Indian Art
    • Decorative Art
    • Fine Jewelry & Timepieces
    • Fine Paintings & Works on Paper
    • Historic Firearms and Militaria
    • Modern & Contemporary Art + Design
    • Modern Ceramics
  • Services
    • Request an Auction Estimate
    • Estates and Trusts
    • Private Treaty Sales
    • Museum, Historical Society and Institutional Sales
    • Appraisals and Evaluations
  • About Cowans
    • Contact / Locations
    • History

When selling at auction, you agree to allow the auctioneer to act as your agent. Our job is to realize the highest possible value for your property. In exchange, we retain a percentage of the sale price, a commission. We charge the buyer a commission as well.

In deciding what items to accept for consignment we consider condition, provenance (history of ownership), and current market trends. We hold over 40 auctions per year in a variety of formats. We print full-color catalogs for major auctions, with photographs and scholarly descriptions. Online catalogs (created for all auctions except Discovery) include additional photographs, photo-zoom capabilities and “Bid Now” options.

Our services include photography, marketing, research, catalog description and catalog production. We store and insure your property while under our care, and provide condition reports for interested buyers.

Auction Timeline

Consignment deadline is 10 weeks before a cataloged auction; 5 weeks before a timed online auction.

After we determine if your property is a good fit, we email or mail an itemized consignment contract specifying the auction date, low-to-high estimate, commission rate and fees.

Once your property arrives at Cowan’s, we prepare it for auction (research, description, and photography). You can follow the progress via a private portal by registering at Cowan’s.

Approximately 7 days before a live auction, your property is displayed in our showroom for potential buyers to examine.

Auction results are available in real time; we also notify you by email.

You will receive a settlement check 45 days after the buyer has paid us. The check amount equals the hammer price (highest bid), minus the commission and fees.

New to Auctions?

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Auctions

  • Upcoming Auctions
  • Past Auctions
  • Peek in the Warehouse

Buying

  • How to Buy
  • How to Bid
  • How to Pay and Ship?
  • New to Auctions?
  • Terms and Conditions

Selling

  • How Auctions Work
  • How to Consign
  • Auction Timeline
  • Contact a Specialist

Departments

  • American History
  • American Indian Art
  • Decorative Arts
  • Fine Jewelry & Timepieces
  • Fine Paintings & Prints
  • Historic Firearms & Militaria
  • Modern Art & Design
  • Modern Ceramics

Services

  • How Auctions Work
  • How to Consign
  • Auction Timeline
  • Free Account Estimates
  • Contact a Specialist

About Cowan’s

  • Locations
  • Team
  • History

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