For Those Who Want Choices
This auction platform moves 2,000 unique lots per week.
Based in the Netherlands, Catawiki stakes claim to the most heavily trafficked curated marketplace for special objects in Europe, with over 65,000 lots up for auction each week. While other sellers tout only the rarest, most high dollar items, Catawiki has something for everyone.
“We have highly skilled staff with different areas of expertise who help us sell many items at once,” Marc Harrison, category manager of Books, Manuscripts, and Cartography at Catawiki said. “While people are getting back out to book shows and the like as COVID-19 subsides, we are still seeing a great deal of traffic because people can find such a diverse variety of items on our platform.”
While sellers can easily post items for sale across a wide variety of categories at Catawiki, Harrison believes that buyers love Catawiki for its reliability and trustworthiness, reporting that less than one percent of books sold by Catawiki end up being returned due to the buyer being dissatisfied with what they received. So while buyers do not get to handle items before bidding, they can rest assured that the item is described with a great attention to detail and the utmost accuracy.
“You can buy with confidence at Catawiki,” Harrison said. “We pride ourselves on taking care of the buyer’s financial security. All of our transactions go through an escrow process, which means that buyers get full refunds in case something goes wrong, but that happens so seldom.”
A few upcoming auctions help outline the impressive breadth of fine books and other artifacts Catawiki has for sale on its site. For example, a Fine Bindings Auction will begin Wednesday, Nov. 10, and run through Saturday, Nov. 20. The auction, focused on beautiful and elaborate bindings, will feature items such as an edition of “Voyage autour de ma Chambre” by Xavier de Maistre & Hedouin, with a French binding signed by Kauffman, in half blue morocco, and “notable for the quality of work and elegance of the finish,” Harrison said.
Two other auctions beginning on Nov. 10 include a Leather Bound Old & Rare auction, which has a particular focus on high quality contemporary leather bindings, and a Primary Colours Auction, with a variety of art and photography books displaying works executed in primary colors, such as the work of Mondriaan.
“We are always looking at new trends that are dominant in the marketplace, and historical photography seems to hook into many of those trends.” Harrison says. “There are a lot of people who are reimagining what the past was like and trying to find items that can be that bridge to the past so that you can imagine yourself there.”
A final auction Harrison wished to highlight is the forthcoming Street Art Books auction, which runs from Nov. 12 to Nov. 19. On sale are books by and about street artists such as Banksy. The auction also includes a signed copy of the work “What party” by Kaws.
For more information on Catawiki’s auctions, visit catawiki.com.
