Heritage Auctions
Heritage Auctions is an American multi-national auction house based in Dallas, Texas. Founded in 1976, Heritage is an auctioneer of numismatic collections, comics, fine art, books, luxury accessories, real estate, and memorabilia from film, music, history, and sports.
Company type
1976 in Dallas, Texas, U.S.
Steve Ivy
(founder and CEO)
Jim Halperin
(co-founder)
Antiques and collectibles
History[edit]
In 1982, Heritage Auctions became an equal partnership between two collectors, Steve Ivy and Jim Halperin.[1] In 1967, Ivy dropped out of the University of Texas at Austin to form Steve Ivy Rare Coin Co. in Dallas, Texas.[2] In 1971, while still a freshman at Harvard University, Halperin established New England Rare Coin Galleries. He would later drop out of school. In the same vein, Ivy, the one who initially formed Heritage Auctions in Dallas in 1976,[1] transitioned from his earlier, smaller enterprise. These two individuals frequently crossed paths at industry trade shows and auctions. In 1982, Halperin sold his Boston-based business and relocated to Dallas to join Ivy. Alongside him, he brought Marc Emory, a partner who currently oversees a segment of Heritage's European operations. Another key addition to the company was Greg Rohan, who joined in 1986 and now serves as the president of the company.[2][3] Besides Ivy, Halperin, Rohan, and Emory, the company includes four other partners: Paul Minshull, Ryan Carroll, Todd Imhof, and Cristiano Bierrenbach.[2]
In 1996, Heritage Auctions initiated a website that facilitated online auctions for buying and selling coins. This online platform significantly expanded the pool of potential sellers and buyers for the company. Following Halperin's guidance, Heritage took steps to broaden its business scope by incorporating collectibles beyond numismatics. This diversification began with comic book auctions in 2001. Subsequently, in 2003, the company introduced a memorabilia department, which hosted its inaugural auction valued at approximately $2 million.[2] During the mid-2000s, Heritage Auctions ventured into the market of music, entertainment, and film memorabilia. By April 2006, the auction house had already conducted its third biennial auction featuring collectibles previously owned by renowned actors, musicians, directors, and other figures in the film industry. These auctions showcased diverse collections comprising props, set elements, and attire from some of the most iconic films and television series in history. Additionally, personal items belonging to various musical artists were also part of these auctions.[1] In 2010, Heritage launched its luxury items division, which includes jewelry, handbags, and other accessories.[4] In some instances, rare items from these auctions have sold for over two hundred thousand dollars.[5] By 2013, the auction house was also auctioning modern and contemporary art including works by artists such as Pablo Picasso, Andy Warhol, Joan Mitchell, and Edward Ruscha.[6]
In the immediate aftermath of the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically between April 20 and 27, the online sales conducted by the auction house amounted to $41 million. This figure accounted for approximately 10% of the entire previous year's annual online sales, which had reached $483 million in 2019.[7] In the year 2022, Heritage Auctions accomplished remarkable sales surpassing $1.45 billion. This impressive figure does not include the charity auction organized by Heritage for Dmitry Muratov's Nobel Peace Prize, which amassed $103.5 million. The entirety of these proceeds was directed towards UNICEF to support humanitarian initiatives for refugee relief.[8]
By 2023 Heritage Auctions was ranked third among Western auction houses with total sales of $1.76 billion.[9]
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Operations[edit]
On June 1, 2020, Heritage Auctions consolidated three Dallas-area locations to a new world headquarters in Dallas, located at the northwest corner of West Airport Freeway and Valley View Lane near Dallas Fort Worth International Airport.[10] The 160,000 square foot facility is located in the DFW Airport international trade zone and will house 450 of the company's 600 employees.[11] The company also has offices in New York located on Park Avenue.[2] Its New York operations are mostly geared towards the fine arts industry.[12] Heritage has a West Coast location in Beverly Hills, California, located on Olympic Boulevard.[2] In 2011, Heritage acquired Greg Martin Auctions in San Francisco, California, forming the auction house's division specializing in weapons and armament.[13]
Heritage expanded operations by adding an office in Hong Kong in 2015.[14] In spring 2017, the company formed a Florida branch with offices in Palm Beach.[15] In January 2017, company opened an office in Chicago, also, opened a new London office in 2017.[16]
In 2015 Heritage Auctions took over MPO located in IJsselstein, The Netherlands. Founded in 1988 as a coin and stamp fair organizer, Jacco Scheper and Huib Pelzer acquired the company in 1996 and three years later began auction operations. Through the merger with MPO Heritage Auctions also has a Belgium office located on the outskirts of Brussels in Zaventem.[17]
In 2023 sales were $1.76 billion – the highest in its 47-year history.[18] The 21% year-over-year increase was driven by records in many categories including coins in the Harry W. Bass Jr. collection, comics and comic art, and sports and entertainment memorabilia.[19]
Controversies[edit]
In 2009, Heritage Auctions faced a lawsuit from a former employee named Gary Hendershott. The allegation made in the lawsuit was that the company had participated in fraudulent activity by employing a "shill" bidder under the pseudonym "N.P. Gresham." This shill bidder was purportedly used to manipulate bidding prices artificially, an action claimed to be in violation of anti-racketeering laws.[58][59] The lawsuit was dismissed with prejudice.[60]
In 2012, the country of Mongolia sued Heritage Auctions for auctioning a 70-million-year-old fossil skeleton of a Tyrannosaurus bataar (75% complete) because the specimen came from Mongolia where exports of fossils are prohibited.[61] Heritage subsequently assisted the Mongolian government in resolving ownership and storing the specimen for the parties until it could be legally repatriated to Mongolia[62]
In 2014, Heritage Auctions took legal action against Christie's for hiring their primary expert in handbags and two additional handbag specialists. The lawsuit alleged that this act constituted a breach of contract and that it also involved the misappropriation of trade secrets.[63]
In 2016, Heritage Auctions filed a lawsuit against Christie's and its subsidiary Collectrium, alleging copyright infringement. The claim centered around the accusation that Collectrium had engaged in improper web scraping of three million of Heritage Auctions' listings. It's noteworthy that at that point in time, Collectrium had been recently acquired by Christie's in 2015.[64][65]
In 2019 a judge ruled that Collectrium had to pay Heritage Auctions close to $1.8 million of the $49 million Heritage initially sought. The judge dismissed Heritage's claims of trespassing, unfair competition, and civil conspiracy, and also ruled that only Collectrium had any liability.[66]
In December 2020, Heritage Auctions sold a painting titled Eyes Upon You by Margaret Keane. It was later revealed that this painting had been stolen from its rightful owner back in 1972. Following an intervention facilitated by the FBI, the painting was returned to the owner's daughter. The buyer of the painting was issued a full refund. The true owners expressed their gratitude in a written statement, acknowledging both the FBI agent and Heritage Auctions for their roles in resolving the situation.[67]
In August 2021 YouTuber Karl Jobst released a video that claimed that Heritage Auctions, along with the grading company Wata Games, had artificially created a collectable bubble in the sealed video game market through a conflict of interests.[68][69] In a statement to Video Games Chronicle released following the video's publication, Heritage Auctions denied engaging in any illegal or unethical practices. Wata Games also denied the claims made in the video.[70][68]
On April 13, 2024, Heritage Auctions played a crucial role in resolving the controversy over the original USS Enterprise model from "Star Trek". Initially listed on eBay but flagged by fans who recognized it as the missing model used in the opening scenes of the original TV series, Heritage Auctions authenticated and facilitated its return to Gene Roddenberry's son, Rod. Valued at more than $1 million, but considered priceless, Rod plans to restore it and place it in a museum.[71]
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