Buying

For Viewing times please see our Auction Dates page which can be found under the calendar tab at the top of every page. Our members of staff are on hand during viewing in the sale room to help with enquiries about the sale and specific lots. Please note that when handling any item at the view you do so at your own risk – All BREAKAGES MUST BE PAID FOR.

Anyone wishing to bid in person should register at the office and will receive a paddle number before the start of the sale. The paddle number costs £1 and can be used for the year (We re-register paddle numbers annually from January)  This number should be held up when bidding and paying. Registration is carried out on the day of the sale only.

All lots carry a catalogue description.  Vendor’s (or Seller’s) reserves may be set, they are confidential. Estimates do not carry buyer’s premium. Lots may carry abbreviations such as a/f (as found – considerable damage). Many lots are of an age or nature, which preclude their being in pristine condition. Some catalogue descriptions may make reference to damage and/or restoration; however, omission of such a reference does not imply a lot is free from defects nor does any reference to a particular defect imply the absence of others. All clients should satisfy themselves of both condition and descriptions prior to purchase. Any measurements and weights may be approximate.

Artist’s Resale Right (Droit De Suite)
Living artists and descendants of artists deceased within the last 70 years are entitled to receive a resale royalty each time their work is bought. The right applies only when the sale price reaches or exceeds the sterling equivalent of 1,000 Euro and is calculated on a sliding scale. 

From 1st April 2024 the UK Government has announced that the currency operating in the ARR Regulations will change from Euros to GBP Pound Sterling.

Please note that ARR is calculated in Euros.  Boldon Auction Galleries will apply current exchange rates.
Royalties are also capped so that the total amount of the royalty paid for any single sale of a work cannot exceed 12,500 euro.  ARR is exempt of VAT.

We strongly recommend that you have either viewed items in person or have received a condition report. NO REFUNDS will be given after sale due to the condition of items.

Our catalogues can be viewed on this website. We aim to illustrate every lot in our catalogues on-line. Our catalogues are displayed with the-saleroom.com and the Auctions are live. These Catalogues are available five days prior to the auction.

If you are unable to attend the sale but wish to bid on a lot, we can do this on your behalf. You will need to fill out a commission bidding form which is found at the back of the catalogue, in the saleroom or on-line via this web site. You should complete the contact details, list the lot and the maximum price you wish to pay, excluding the buyer’s premium. You can then either e-mail us directly from the website, submit the bid by telephone or hand it in person to the Office. The bid will be carried out by us and is completely confidential. Successful buyers will be contacted by telephone or email or will receive a postal invoice after the sale.  Please note we will be automatically register you with a paddle number which costs £1 for the year if you are successful.

We can only offer a limited number of telephone bidding lines on sale day. This facility is available on lots where the bottom estimate is over £500.00. Requests for telephone bids must be made at least 24 hours prior to the sale and are allocated on a first come first served basis. We require two contact telephone numbers and full address details at time of registration to bid by telephone. Boldon Auction Galleries do not take any responsibility if they are unable to make contact with the bidder.

Boldon Auction Galleries offer an online bidding service for all our Sales via the-saleroom.com for bidders who cannot attend the sale.

Online bidding allows you to follow an auction as it is happening via the internet and bid in real time against those in the room or on the telephone. To participate in this way you need to register your details before the sale just as you would with us.  Typically, the lot being sold will be shown on screen with the level of bidding displayed alongside.  For the internet bidder it is then simply a matter of clicking to register a bid.

In completing the bidder registration through www.boldonauctions.co.uk and clicking on the On-line Auction tab on and providing your card details and unless alternative arrangements are agreed with Boldon Auction Galleries you:
1. authorise Boldon Auction Galleries, if they so wish (within 24 hours after the sale), to charge the debit card given in part or full payment, including all fees, for items successfully purchased in the auction via the-saleroom.com, and
2. confirm that you are authorised to provide these debit card details to Boldon Auction Galleries through www.the-saleroom.com and agree that Boldon Auction Galleries are entitled to ship the goods to the card holder name and card holder address provided in fulfilment of the sale.

Please note that any lots purchased via the-saleroom.com live auction service will be subject to an additional 4.95% commission charge + VAT at the rate imposed on the hammer price.

Any commission bids left via the-saleroom.com must be left by 9.30am on the day of the sale.

Purchasers shall pay for and remove lots at their own risk and expense within 48 hours of the date of sale.  Any extension of this must be agreed with us or a storage charge of £5 per day will be applied.  The Auctioneers reserve the right to re-sell uncollected lots by auction or private treaty or alternatively, warehouse goods at a Purchaser’s expense. In all cases, the Auctioneers may act without notice and any incidental expenses incurred will become a liability to the defaulter.

Notwithstanding any other terms in these Conditions of Sale, if within seven days of a Sale, a Purchaser gives notice in writing to the Auctioneers, that in his/her opinion a particular lot (this shall not apply to books or similar printed matter) is a deliberate forgery, as defined below and within fourteen days after such written notice, returns lots to the Auctioneers in the same condition as it was at the time of Sale – and by producing evidence, the burden of proof to be upon the Purchaser – satisfies the Auctioneers that the lot is a deliberate forgery, then the Auctioneers are authorised to do so and will rescind the transaction and refund the purchase price received by them. This benefit is not assignable.

In the context of this guarantee, a ‘deliberate forgery’ means a lot made with an intention to deceive, when considered in the light of the catalogue entry and at the date of the Sale had a value substantially less than it would have had, had it been in accordance with the description. However, there will be no right where the description in the catalogue at the time of the Sale was in accordance with the general opinion of experts or fairly indicated there to be a conflict of opinion. The Auctioneers reserve the right in forming their opinion to consult and rely upon any expert or authority considered by them to be reliable.

The Auctioneers reserve the right to ask for evidence before clients complete transactions.

Buyer’s Premium is 20% plus VAT @ 20% (24%). This is a commission that is paid in addition to the hammer price.