Insights on Auction Sales: Narwhal Tusk, Cigarette Sign

Will Seippel, CEO of WorthPoint, enjoys watching the gadgets offered at auctions held by our WorthPoint Trade Companions. We thought it could be an awesome thought for him to pick a few of his favourite offered gadgets and clarify why these gross sales stood out to him. Gaining insights from Will is a wonderful strategy to study shopping for and promoting traits in our business. We need to empower you to purchase and promote with confidence. Check out his ideas on a couple of of our companions’ latest gross sales.

On September 22, 2025, WorthPoint added 201,234 gadgets to its Value Information, totaling $13,684,707.49 and a median lot worth of $68.00.

Kicking off the day, Alaska Premier Auctions hosted a captivating sale that grossed $472,239 throughout 273 gadgets. The star of the public sale was an enormous narwhal tusk that measured an astounding 99.5″—close to the very higher restrict of tusk development and the most important recognized specimen to seem at public public sale in a long time. Narwhal tusks, technically elongated enamel, develop all through the whale’s lifetime and might attain lengths of ten toes, spiraling like a pure drill bit. This tusk stood out for its dimension, impeccable provenance, and uncommon authorized standing, having been documented as predating the Marine Mammal Safety Act of 1972. With its intact tip, unique bill from a 1978 Danish public sale, and full documentation of its chain of custody, it grew to become one of many few narwhal tusks eligible for resale in america. The piece finally realized $74,400, a determine befitting its extraordinary rarity and story.

Gold nuggets additionally had their second at Alaska Premier, becoming for a state referred to as the house of gold. Three separate nuggets weighing between 4.18 and 6.43 ounces hammered in at costs starting from $16,500 to $25,800. These spectacular finds supplied consumers a tangible piece of Alaskan heritage and a reminder of the state’s historic ties to gold mining. Past the pure historical past highlights, the sale additionally featured loads of breadth, together with gadgets like U.S. WWII Europe and North Africa subject maps that went for discount costs. The public sale blended the majestic with the sensible, from a sea unicorn’s tusk to the hard-earned treasures of the goldfields, making it a memorable occasion for collectors of all stripes.

Wall to Wall

Antikeo introduced 18th-century Louis XV refinement to life with a rare set of paneled inside wooden partitions from a room. These partitions weren’t simply ornamental—they’d the ability to remodel any area into a proper, elegant setting immediately. Painted in a “robin’s egg blue” with crisp white highlights on the chamfered edges, they radiated sophistication and attraction. Whereas the size weren’t listed, they appeared like they may cowl roughly forty-eight toes of wall, full with a powerful doorway centerpiece. This itemizing was not the form of merchandise you purchase on a funds—the ultimate value soared to $104,468.96. The sale introduced in $557,699, a testomony to the enduring attraction of finely crafted French design.

Oddity of the Day

On the oddity entrance for the day, a exceptional Canadian Black Cat Cigarette signal clawed its strategy to the highest at Miller and Miller Auctions, promoting for $24,711.28. This signal wasn’t simply any signal—it was minimize in a keyhole form and featured a daring black cat with the cheeky slogan “They style higher.” At 50.25″ tall, it made for an attention grabbing piece that might positively pounce out at you from throughout a room. It was the highest-priced lot in a sale that grossed $736,268.24. Not unhealthy for a cat that’s been hanging round because the Forties! Particulars apart, it’s a must to admit—this signal would flip any storage, den, or bar into an prompt dialog starter. A black cat by no means appeared so fortunate.

Exhausting to Ignore

Lastly, I couldn’t ignore the 1952 Willy Korea US Military classic Jeep—a customized modified beast with a turbocharged 427 cubic engine, giving it the pace that would outrun nearly something on the battlefield. Again within the day, these Jeeps have been so plentiful that the Military offered them as surplus kits, transport the components straight to your private home in a crate for $100. Children like me dreamed of constructing one, although for many of us, the celebs by no means aligned, leaving it extra a fantasy than actuality. Nonetheless, it served as a hanging reminder of simply how huge U.S. army manufacturing was, with Jeeps nonetheless circulating twenty years after WWII and even after the Korean Struggle. This specific Jeep, now a tricked-out collector’s merchandise referred to as the “LSX Willys,” packed an astounding 1,142 horsepower and got here full with a roll cage, nitrous, and even a trailer. It roared throughout the public sale block at Uneek Auctions, fetching a formidable $68,750.

Will Seippel is the founder, president, and CEO of WorthPoint. Will has been an avid collector since 1974 and vendor of nearly all issues vintage—with an emphasis on ephemera— since 1984. He’s additionally the creator and founding father of HIP, an internet site dedicated to recording the most effective of the world’s historical past that has been saved on movie.

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