Buzz2001
CSR MAN!!
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PITTSFIELD, Ma. -- In what is believed to be the largest non-real estate auction transaction in the county's history, a anonymous buyer paid $690,000 on Saturday for a solid-gold statue of Mickey
Mouse at Fontaine's Antiques and Auction Gallery on West Housatonic Street in Pittsfield, Ma.
The statue, which stands two feet tall, weighs about 100 pounds. The one-of-a-kind cast was made in 2001 by the Great Western Mint to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Walt Disney, said Garrett Johnson, an auctioneer who is associated with the gallery.
Johnson declined to identify either the seller or the buyer of the statue, which was kept under armed guard.
"It's a dangerous item just to have around", said Johnson, who observed that unlike most other items in an auction sale, the 24-carat gold statue could be converted into cash -- a lot of it -- fairly easily.
Johnson said bidding on the statue was brisk. "Sometimes, we have a really long bidding process, which is fun, but this
bidding went quickly", he said. Johnson wouldn't say whether the buyer bid in person or by telephone. The price includes a 15 percent buyer's premium.
The statue's presence at Saturday's auction was widely advertised in the trade press in this country and in the United Kingdom, said Johnson. He said visitors to the gallery were drawn to the statue.
"People were having their pictures taken with it", he said.
photo from dizneypins.com
Mouse at Fontaine's Antiques and Auction Gallery on West Housatonic Street in Pittsfield, Ma.
The statue, which stands two feet tall, weighs about 100 pounds. The one-of-a-kind cast was made in 2001 by the Great Western Mint to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the birth of Walt Disney, said Garrett Johnson, an auctioneer who is associated with the gallery.
Johnson declined to identify either the seller or the buyer of the statue, which was kept under armed guard.
"It's a dangerous item just to have around", said Johnson, who observed that unlike most other items in an auction sale, the 24-carat gold statue could be converted into cash -- a lot of it -- fairly easily.
Johnson said bidding on the statue was brisk. "Sometimes, we have a really long bidding process, which is fun, but this
bidding went quickly", he said. Johnson wouldn't say whether the buyer bid in person or by telephone. The price includes a 15 percent buyer's premium.
The statue's presence at Saturday's auction was widely advertised in the trade press in this country and in the United Kingdom, said Johnson. He said visitors to the gallery were drawn to the statue.
"People were having their pictures taken with it", he said.
photo from dizneypins.com
