Collecting guides, market insights, hallmark and maker identification, and auction commentary from our specialist team. Showing the 24 most recent articles — use the pagination at the bottom of the page to browse all 698 published articles.
Most George Bellows lithographs sell for $500 to $3,000. A Stag at Sharkey's brings $40,000 to $80,000 and has topped $200,000. Here is why the image matters so much, and how to tell what you have.
Tiffany Studios desk sets are some of the most collected decorative metalwork in America. Here is how to read the marks, spot a fake and know what your desk pieces are worth.
Most fountain pens sell for less than people hope, but some bring real money. Here is which Montblanc and other big name pens collectors pay for, and how to spot a fake.
Hudson River School landscapes still turn up in Minnesota homes. Here is how to recognize a 19th century American landscape, read attribution terms, and what they sell for.
Some Picasso prints are worth thousands. Many are reproductions. Here is how to tell an original etching or lithograph from a copy, and what Picasso prints sell for.
Peter Max's bright pop art hangs in a lot of homes. Here is how to tell an original painting from a print or poster, and what each type sells for.
The Tiffany Holiday pattern is discontinued, and complete sets draw strong bids. Here is how to identify Tiffany & Co. china and barware and what makes a set worth more.
Most old posters are worth little, but some bring thousands or more. Here is which posters collectors want, how to spot a reprint, and the mistakes that cost you money.
Before you melt a gold watch, find out what it is. Here is how much gold a watch really holds, how to read the marks, and when collectors pay far more than scrap.
Most old leaded and decorated lamps are not Tiffany, and many are worth serious money anyway. A Limbert Arts and Crafts lamp brought $6,750 at our sale, and a pair of Art Nouveau bronze lamps estimated at $1,000 to $2,000 sold for $6,500. Here are the makers to know and what drives value.
Some Edward S. Curtis pictures are original photogravures or orotones worth thousands of dollars. Many more are later prints or posters. A Curtis orotone of The Rush Gatherer that we estimated at $8,000 to $10,000 sold for $11,000. Here is how to tell what you have before you sell.
Gorham Martelé is some of the most valuable American silver ever made, and it still turns up mixed in with ordinary sterling. A Martelé water pitcher we estimated at $3,000 to $5,000 sold for $7,000. Here is how to spot it, what drives its value, and what to avoid before you sell.
Estate sales and local auctions are great at clearing a house. An auction house is built to find the buyer who wants your best piece most. Here is how each option works, where the value usually is, and how we help you use all three together.
A real Tiffany Studios lamp can sell for five figures or more. A lamp with a Tiffany stamp on it may be worth a few hundred dollars. Here is how we tell them apart, what drives value, and how to handle your lamp before you sell it.
A gold buyer pays you for weight. A bidder pays you for the piece. A 14K gold and ceramic link bracelet we estimated at $200 to $400 sold for $1,400. Here is how to tell which of your jewelry belongs at auction and which belongs on the scale.
Squash blossoms, turquoise cuffs and Zuni inlay turn up in Minnesota houses far more often than geography would suggest. We have sold thousands of pieces of Native American jewelry out of Twin Cities estates — a plain-looking Navajo cuff estimated at $50–100 recently made $2,300. Here is what the market actually pays, what drives the number, and what to look for before you sell.
Vickrey painted 78 Time covers and became the leading modern practitioner of egg tempera. At auction the medium is everything: a five-inch tempera made $10,625 while a 32-by-48-inch oil failed to sell at a $7,000 estimate. And the worst thing you can do to one is clean it.
In one afternoon in May 2026, Allan Houser's auction record was broken twice — finishing at $243,200. That headline does not lift every Houser. Scale, edition size and whether a work is unique matter more than the name, and the unique stone carvings may be the most underrated thing he made.
Wright designed the only gas station he ever built in Cloquet, and his largest Minnesota house was dismantled by the Metropolitan Museum in 1972 — its windows are still in private hands here. A guide to what he built in this state, what the Prairie School left behind, and how to tell a $20,000 window from a $200 reproduction.
Two federal duck stamps, five-time Ducks Unlimited Artist of the Year, and a Long Lake studio. Maass originals sit among the stronger wildlife paintings in the American market. His prints — 215,000 of them and counting — are among the weakest. Knowing which you own changes everything.
He painted murals in Duluth, lived in St. Paul, and turned out 347 canvases for the Great Northern Railway's 'See America First' campaign. The best of his Glacier Park oils reach five figures, though most Ferys sell for far less. Most people misspell his name — which is exactly how these paintings stay undiscovered in Minnesota houses.
How well Swarovski pieces retain value, what drives their resale prices, and practical steps owners can take to protect their investment.
Coin silver and sterling silver look alike, but their purity, history, and value tell two very different stories.
Learn what determines the value of International Silver Company sterling, typical price ranges, and how to identify pieces worth more than melt value.