Online Auctions Put A Price On Strange
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A drawer containing 171 early 20th-century German glass prosthetic eyes sold for $2,640 at Potter & Potter’s Oct. 1 auction, after 11 bids. The 569-lot online-accessible sale also featured tattoo designs, outsider art and medical curiosities, showing how specialized auctions connect unusual objects with buyers. Prices for other featured lots were estimates, not confirmed sale results in the available report.

A drawer of 171 early 20th-century German glass prosthetic eyes sold for $2,640 after 11 bids at Potter & Potter’s Oct. 1 auction, according to the auction house’s listing. The sale was part of a 569-lot event devoted to UFOs, curiosities, tattoos and outsider art, illustrating how online-accessible auctions can connect highly specialized objects with buyers beyond a local market.

The eyes were arranged in a wooden grid drawer. The auction listing’s condition report noted light dust and said some glass ends were occasionally sharp. The reported $2,640 price includes the buyer’s premium, according to the source report; it should not be treated as the hammer price alone.

Potter & Potter titled the sale “Weird Tales! UFOs, Curiosities and Tattoos.” Its 569 lots ranged across outsider art, tattoo memorabilia and medical curiosities. Among the other items was Hairy Creature in Shower, an oil painting by New Jersey artist David Huggins, whose work depicts what he describes as encounters with otherworldly beings. The painting carried a presale estimate of $4,000 to $6,000; the source does not give a confirmed sale price.

The catalog also included original tattoo designs. Bidsquare’s preview highlighted a hand-colored 1980 sheet by Don Nolan and a blueprint sheet by Percy Waters dating to around the 1920s. Both were estimated at $1,000 to $2,000. Those figures are estimates, not verified results, in the material available for this report.

At a glance
reportWhen: Auction held Oct. 1, 2026; reported Oct…
The developmentPotter & Potter reported that a drawer of 171 antique glass eyes sold for $2,640 at its Oct. 1 curiosities auction.

How Niche Auctions Find Buyers

The sale offers a concrete example of how an online catalog can put unusual property in front of collectors who may not live near the auction house. A drawer of antique prosthetic eyes has little obvious place in conventional retail, but a specialized listing can give interested buyers photographs, descriptions and a route to bid. The report does not establish how many bidders participated online or where the buyer was located.

For collectors, the objects may hold value as examples of craft, medical history or visual culture. The tattoo sheets, for instance, can appeal to people interested in historic tattoo design, while a medical curiosity may suit a different collection. What appears eccentric to a general audience can have a defined audience among specialists.

The transaction also shows that the unusual item is only part of the sale. Buyers must understand the final charges, and sellers and auction houses must arrange payment, packing and delivery. In its conditions of sale, Potter & Potter sets out buyer obligations for the purchase price, premium, applicable taxes and other charges. The eye listing says shipping expenses include labor, materials, insurance and transportation. Those practical details shape what a successful bid ultimately costs.

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Inside Potter & Potter’s Curiosities Sale

The auction combined objects that would not typically appear together in a standard household sale. Its title grouped UFO-related material, curiosities and tattoo pieces, while the catalog also featured outsider art and medical items. That mix gave collectors a single place to browse categories that each may have a relatively small audience.

The source report describes online access as a way to reach beyond shoppers who happen to visit a local storefront. A searchable catalog can be found by people already looking for a particular artist or type of object, as well as by browsers who encounter an unfamiliar collectible. The sale’s reported result for the glass eyes provides one observed transaction, not a general measure of demand or a price guide for similar objects.

In auctions, the estimate and the final result serve different purposes. An estimate is a presale guide; a reported sale price reflects a completed transaction and may include charges beyond the winning bid. Here, the $2,640 figure is expressly reported as including the buyer’s premium, while the painting and tattoo-sheet prices cited in the catalog remain estimates in the source material.

“The condition report noted light dust and occasionally sharp glass ends.”

— Potter & Potter auction listing, as described in the PYMNTS report

Final Prices Beyond the Eye Lot

The available report confirms a $2,640 result for the drawer of eyes, including the buyer’s premium, and says it drew 11 bids. It does not identify the buyer, give the hammer price separately, or state whether the bidding was online, in person or through multiple channels.

Results for the Huggins painting and the two tattoo-design lots are not provided. Their catalog estimates should not be read as completed prices. The source also does not disclose the auction’s total proceeds, bidder count, platform fees, shipping destinations or whether all 569 lots sold.

The sale is one example, not evidence by itself of broader growth in online auctions or a reliable benchmark for comparable medical curiosities. The available details do not show how the auction house arrived at the estimates or whether similar objects have sold recently.

What Sale Records May Show

The immediate next step for readers seeking a fuller account is to consult the auction house’s lot records and sale documentation for any additional realized prices, including whether reported amounts include buyer’s premiums. Those records could clarify the outcome for the painting and tattoo designs, if results are published.

For the buyer of the glass eyes, the auction’s stated terms indicate that payment and shipping arrangements follow the sale, with shipping charges covering labor, materials, insurance and transportation. The source does not say when the lot will be shipped or where it is going.

Further results from similar auctions could provide more evidence about demand for unusual collectibles, but one sale cannot settle that question. For now, the confirmed takeaway is narrower: this particular drawer sold after 11 bids for a reported price of $2,640 including the buyer’s premium.

Key Questions

What sold at Potter & Potter’s Oct. 1 auction?

A drawer containing 171 early 20th-century German glass prosthetic eyes sold for a reported $2,640, including the buyer’s premium, according to the auction house’s listing as cited by PYMNTS.

How many bids did the glass-eye lot receive?

The auction listing reported 11 bids. The available account does not say whether those bids came online, in person or through more than one method.

Did the David Huggins painting sell for $4,000 to $6,000?

That was its presale estimate, not a confirmed result in the source material. The report does not provide the painting’s final sale price.

What other objects were in the sale?

Potter & Potter’s 569-lot “Weird Tales! UFOs, Curiosities and Tattoos” sale included outsider art, tattoo memorabilia and medical curiosities. Featured tattoo designs included works by Don Nolan and Percy Waters, each estimated at $1,000 to $2,000.

Does the $2,640 figure include shipping?

No shipping amount is given. The reported $2,640 includes the buyer’s premium; Potter & Potter’s terms separately describe shipping expenses as covering labor, materials, insurance and transportation.

Source: rss

This content is for general information only and is not financial, tax or legal advice. Consult a qualified professional for decisions about your money.
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