Value of this wheel thrown, hand carved piece?

Any anyone help me identify the value of this? I'm worried I may be highly under pricing it.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/182264023365?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

 

I have no idea about the potter, of whom I have never heard, but your BIN price is so much above the lowest bid that as a buyer I'd assume you had a reserve price nearer the BIN and not bother to bid at all, even if $750 was a reasonable price.

I'd expect any bids you do get to come in the last few seconds of the listing.

 

okay, thanks. I will adjust it down a bit. This piece was carved by Irving H. Whitt but he wasn't the potter. I think the value comes in at his artwork and carving (over 27 hours worth of time). He is known for making custom carved turkey calls. I will lower the BIN because you are right, it is quite a bit higher.

Thanks for your input!

 

Hello. If you were under-pricing it, chances are it would be sold already. A lot of buyers are on Ebay hoping to find under-priced BIN items so very few seriously under-priced items stick around more than a few hours. I see that you have listed this a number of times, lowering the price each round. (I've done that with auctions where I wasn't sure of value.) Anyway, fair to say this has had pretty good exposure.

If it doesn't sell this time, the one thing you know is that for better or worse, the market has decided it is worth less than $750. I see that his turkey whistles have a good following under Ebay sold, but this is a different kind of item, being that it isn't a whistle.

One idea would be to list as a FIXED auction at a price you are comfortable with, with "Best Offer" option included and see what offers come in.

 

okay, I've never used the fixed auction before. Thank you for the tips! I'm glad to know your opinions as I wasn't sure about the exposure. You are right the calls are popular but a whole different category even though it's by a well known artist/woodcarver of the turkey calls. Thanks again!

 

Why not try asking at one of the big auction houses that might handle this type of thing. Crocker Farms comes to mind though I don't know about something this recent.

As for your listing, I think I'd add the actual potter's name to the title as well as Edgefield SC as it's a big pottery area and include a photo of the bottom of the pot.

 

There's an Irving Whitt web site if anyone is interested.

 

Thanks for pointing those things out, very helpful. I wasn't sure where to start in terms of auction houses so this will point me in the right direction, much appreciated!!

 

I'd contact Charlton Hall auction in Columbia SC. They're a high end auction house, and they auction a lot of Edgefield pieces and do extremely well with them. They'll do a free assessment of your piece.

My 2 cents on your Ebay auction: I don't subscribe to the "if it didn't sell at the starting bid, it's not worth that" thinking. There are plenty of items well worth the opening/asking price that don't sell. I won't go into the laundry list of negatives with buying and selling on Ebay, but using Ebay as a marker for value and/or desirability is far from accurate.