If you are the successful bidder, prompt payment is required. All purchases are subject to a buyer’s premium (a percentage of the hammer price) and sales tax (if applicable). The following forms of payment are accepted: cash, check (with prior approval), Mastercard, Visa or American Express (AmEx subject to additional 1.5% processing fee), Paypal or wire transfer. Contact Christine Messing for more information.

Items are available for pick up once payment has been received. All purchases should be paid for and removed the day of the sale, but in no event later than one week post-sale.

Shipping is the responsibility of the buyer. If you need to arrange for shipping, please consult our list of recommended shippers on the Auction Forms page. Weschler’s assumes no responsibility for error or omission by any third-party/shipper. Please inform our office as to which third-party/shipping company to release your purchase to (if applicable) by emailing Deborah Knott.

Bid increments are as follows:

$1-$99                  Auctioneer’s Discretion

$100-$499          $25 increments

$500-$999          $50 increments

$1,000-$1,999     $100 increments

$2,000-$4,999   $200 increments

$5,000-$9,999    $500 increments

$10,000+              Auctioneer’s Discretion

If you are unable to attend the auction in person, you may leave an absentee bid using the form found here. Absentee bids are due by 5pm the day before the auction.

You can request a condition report directly from the lot page of the item you are interested in, otherwise contact a department specialist by email here or call our office at 202-628-1281.

Telephone bidding is offered as a courtesy to clients who can’t attend an auction in person.  Telephone bidding is available for our Metro Online Auctions and our Capital Collections Auctions. During the auction, a member of Weschler’s staff will call you from the auction floor to bid on your behalf for the desired lot. To make arrangements for a telephone bid, complete the absentee bid form, including the telephone number(s) where you can be reached on the day of the auction. As a guide, Weschler’s auctions proceed at a rate of approximately eighty lots per hour. We will attempt to call you several lots in advance of your lot. While we do our best to reach you during the auction, we cannot be held responsible for bad connections or missed or dropped phone calls. Contact Linda Niehaus for more information or to arrange a telephone bid.

An absentee bid is left by a bidder who cannot attend an auction. The bid represents the maximum amount the bidder is willing to pay for a particular lot. There must be a competing bid to authenticate the bid, therefore, the Auctioneer does not automatically start with the top limit of an absentee bid. A bidder can consequently win the lot for less than the top limit left on the Absentee Bid Form. If there are no competing bids, the lot may be passed, and will be auctioned again at the next auction. Absentee Bid Forms are available online here and at the office.