Ancient Objects, Native American & Tribal Art

1. Correctness of Description: Taos Auction Co., (hereinafter referred to as Taos Auction) has exercised reasonable care to catalog and describe correctly the property to be sold, but neither Taos Auction nor its consignors warrant the correctness of description, attribution, authenticity, or condition of said property. No statements shall be deemed such a warranty or representation or an assumption of liability with respect thereto but are to be construed as opinions only. Bidders are encouraged to personally examine all property to be sold prior to the beginning of the auction.

2. Unless otherwise announced by the auctioneer at the time of sale, all bids are per lot as numbered.

3. Taos Auction reserves the right to withdraw any property before the sale.

4. Determination of Highest Bidder: The highest bidder accepted by the auctioneer shall be the buyer. In the event of any dispute between bidders, the auctioneer may determine who is the successful bidder or the auctioneer may re-offer the article in dispute and his decision shall be final.

5. Rejection of Bids: The auctioneer reserves the right to reject any nominal raise or any bid or raise which, in his opinion, is not commensurate with the value of the article being offered. At his discretion, he may also reject any nominal raise or any bid that he may determine as having a detrimental effect on the item in question or the sale as a whole. Taos Auction may refuse to issue bidding privileges to any person not in good credit standing with Taos Auction, or to any person who is deemed by Taos Auction in its sole discretion, to be disruptive of or harmful to established auction practices, either before or after the acceptance of bids or the fall of the hammer.

6. Title: Except as herein otherwise provided, title will pass to the highest bidder as determined by the auctioneer, and the property is thereafter at the purchaser’s sole risk and responsibility.

7. Payment: On title passing to the highest bidder acknowledged by the auctioneer, and subject to all the conditions set forth herein, such bidder will thereupon pay the full purchase price. Payment in full is due at the time of sale. If the lot is unpaid, the purchaser may be subject to one or more of the following actions: a) Any and all legal remedies available to Taos Auction and its consignors by law including without limitation the right to hold the purchaser liable for the total purchase price; b) Immediate cancellation of the sale, with Taos Auction retaining as liquidated damages all payments made by the purchaser; c) Resale of the property at public auction, wherein the original purchaser shall be liable for any deficiency, costs, and Taos Auction commission on both sales. At Taos Auction option, payment will not be deemed to have been made in full until Taos Auction has collected funds represented by checks, or in the case of bank or cashier’s checks, their authenticity has been confirmed. A buyer’s premium will be added to the hammer price to be paid by the buyer as part of the purchase price.

8. Order/Absentee/Online Bids: Subject to these Conditions of Sale and to such terms and conditions as it may prescribe, but at no charge to the customer, Taos Auction will undertake to execute all order bids submitted to it by a customer who has established credit with said company. Requests for such bidding must be given in writing with such clearness as to leave no room for misunderstanding as to the amount to be bid and must state the catalog number and the name or title of the article to be bid on. Telephone bids must be confirmed in writing. All bids are kept in strict confidence. In the event of identical bids, the earliest received by Taos Auction will take precedence. Taos Auction shall not be held responsible for errors or failure to execute bids. Telephone Bids: While the sale is in progress, bidding by telephone may be allowed by the auctioneer at his discretion. Taos Auction shall not be held responsible for any failure to properly execute such a bid whether it be due to equipment failure, loss of connection, or failure to hear or understand the bidder’s directions. Any advice or opinions provided by Taos Auction or its employees are given strictly as a courtesy and are not a warrant of condition, attribution, authenticity, or description of said property. All bidding by telephone is solely at the risk of the bidder. Online Bids: Taos Auction shall not be held responsible for any failure to properly execute bids placed online. All online bidding is solely at the risk of the bidder.

9. Condition: If for any cause whatsoever any article sold cannot be delivered, or cannot be delivered in as good condition as the same may have been at the time of sale, due to a failure or damage on the company’s part, the sale will be cancelled, and any amount that may have been paid on account of the sale will be returned to the purchaser. 

10. Reserves: Unless advertised as an “Unreserved Auction”, all sales may have items subject to reserve (an agreed upon price between the auctioneer and the consignor, below which the article will not be sold).

11. Collection of Purchases: Delivery or shipping arrangements must be made within seven (7) days from the close of the auction for all purchases. All items must be removed from Taos Auction facilities within eighteen (18) days of the end of the auction. All items remaining after eighteen days may be subject to a $5/per item/per day storage fee. No items will be released unless storage fees are paid in full. Items remaining over forty (40) days from the close of the auction may be sold for the buyer’s account minus auction and storage fees.

13. These Conditions of Sale cannot be altered except in writing by Taos Auction or by public announcement by the auctioneer at the time of the sale.

14. Bidding on any article(s) indicates acceptance of the terms set forth above.

15. These Conditions of Sale and any suits arising thereunder shall be construed and governed by the laws of New Mexico.