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The Roundness of Antiquity Valuations from Auction Houses and Sales

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Listed:
  • Melissa Boyle

    (Department of Economics, College of the Holy Cross)

  • Justin Svec

    (Department of Economics, College of the Holy Cross)

Abstract

Auction houses employ in-house art experts to assess the value of objects that will potentially be offered for sale. Items that will be placed on the auction block are first published in catalogs with the experts' estimates of the objects' valuations. For each item to be auctioned, the catalog provides an upper- and lower-bound estimate of the object's market value. This paper examines whether the roundness of those estimates is related to the likelihood that the item was sold and its eventual hammer price. We find that rounder lower estimates reduce the likelihood that the item is sold and, if it is sold, the hammer price is lower. The roundness of the upper estimate seems to have no impact on the auction outcome.

Suggested Citation

  • Melissa Boyle & Justin Svec, 2019. "The Roundness of Antiquity Valuations from Auction Houses and Sales," Working Papers 1908, College of the Holy Cross, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:hcx:wpaper:1908
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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • D44 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Auctions
    • G41 - Financial Economics - - Behavioral Finance - - - Role and Effects of Psychological, Emotional, Social, and Cognitive Factors on Decision Making in Financial Markets
    • Z11 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economics of the Arts and Literature

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