Bonhams vs Clars Auction Gallery

Bonhams Fine Art Auctioneers & Valuers: auctioneers of art, pictures, collectables and motor cars. Bonhams, founded in 1793, is one of the world's largest auctioneers of fine art and antiques. The present company was formed by the merger in November 2001 of Bonhams & Brooks and Phillips Son & Neale. In August 2002, the company acquired Butterfields, the principal firm of auctioneers on the West Coast of America. Today, Bonhams offers more sales than any of its rivals, through two major salerooms in London: New Bond Street and Knightsbridge; and a further three in the UK regions and Scotland. Sales are also held in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Carmel, New York and Connecticut in the USA; and Germany, France, Monaco, Hong Kong and Australia. Bonhams has a worldwide network of offices and regional representatives in 25 countries offering sales advice and valuation services in 60 specialist areas.

Clars Auction Gallery has hosted Bay Area auctions of Fine Art, Decorative Objects, and Jewelry for more than forty years and has built a strong reputation for knowledge and experience in handling quality estate property. Clars Auction Gallery got its start in the auction business in 1948 with Harvey Clar, an Oakland, California native who at 18 began conducting industrial auctions, including machine, woodworking and automobile dealer and repair shops. His skill and reputation grew over the next few decades as he conducted a wide variety of commercial and industrial auctions as well as the occasional estate auction. The demand for his services in evaluating and auctioning personal property, such as fine art, furniture and jewelry, continued to increase, and in 1972 Harvey Clar and his wife established their auction gallery in Oakland. In 1996, Harvey Clar sold the estate auction gallery business to Oakland resident Redge Martin. Mr. Martin has a Bachelor's Degree from Cornell University and an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley. After graduate school, he worked for Ford Motor Company, Dole Foods, and Butterfield & Butterfield Auctioneers. Mr. Martin serves as CEO of the Gallery, as well as one of the main auctioneers and specialists. Under his stewardship, Clars Auction House has grown in reputation and prominence, and is considered the West Coast's premier auction house. It works with buyers and sellers throughout the world. In mid-2004, the gallery began offering simultaneous internet bidding on many of its lots. Clars Auction Gallery conducts monthly three-day estate auctions of 2000 lots at its North Oakland location. The auctions and previews are attended by 3000-5000 people, and the online auction catalog is distributed to more than 100,000 dealers and collectors worldwide. Since 2001, Clars Auction Gallery has sold over $165,000,000 of Fine Art, Furnishings, Jewelry, Vehicles and Collectibles. Follow Clars on Facebook and Twitter!