Vintage Home Furniture

How do I sell antiques collection?

I inherited a large theatrical collection dating from 1850 which the V&A museum says is of inestimable value. I found museums in the UK & USA who are interested but I don't know how to market the collection or how to converse with these types of people.Auction dealers get toffee-nosed & only want to auction the Will-Look-Good-In-Our-Auction-Brochure Oil Painting, ignoring the collection as a whole. I have already been advised not to separate the collection. There are some items there which are famous. All I have to work with in my search is the internet - but the antiques & collectibles sites only deal with Beanies or thimbles or comic books, and so on. I have not found a really serious site where really serious people look for the stuff of museum collections. Before anyone gives the answer - the library is of no help whatsoever. Has anyone got a clue?

Public Comments

1. IF its something you thik you can make good coin on, photograph everything, place ads in theater journals, send announcements to museums, gallerys, etc... Describe all you have. Make a catalog. Advertise the collection as a set, and see what responses you get. Dont make an auction announcement until you get an idea of what response you get. Pay an theatrical appraiser a couple hundred $$'s to give you a round figure for the collection. Contact museums, etc..., for as much contact info as you can, for other galleries, etc...