Dutch Auction Company

Dutch Auction Company describes itself as the auction house for collectables of every kind, and its calendar is built around single-owner events as much as general sales. The one it is currently known for is the complete G. Perlee Amsterdam organ collection — after more than 150 years, one of the world's iconic street organ workshops is closing, and its entire contents go under the hammer publicly for the first time.

What you can buy

• Collectables across categories, from the everyday to the specialist.
• Single-owner collections sold complete — street, dance and fairground organs, original machines, workbenches, organ books, music books, tools, archives and family possessions in the Perlee sale.
• Art and antiques.

How the bidding works

Bidding runs online through a separate auction environment linked from the site, with lots browsable in advance. A printed catalogue can be requested for the larger events — a habit that has survived here because the buyers for a collection like this are museums and specialist collectors as much as general bidders. Viewing at the saleroom is arranged per sale, and a webshop runs alongside the auctions.

What to check before you bid

Landmark single-owner sales attract international attention and price accordingly; the general sales are a different market. Read the auction conditions (veilingvoorwaarden) before your first bid, and for anything mechanical from a workshop clearance, establish what "working" means in the description. The site runs in Dutch and English.