Nyshowplace

My contact with the auction house, New York Showplace, was through the "Invaluable " on-line bidding platform. In on-line auctions, when the auction begins for an item all previous bids are shown and the next highest increment is asked for. In the auction in which I was participating, even though I had placed an advance bid and there had been other advance bids, the item appeared with no bids. The auctioneer called for a opening bid of $100. I assumed there had been a problem with my bid so I bid $100 I was therefore surprised to see the bid rise to $400, my max bid, with none of the previous bids showing; thus there was no $350 bid i. E. the increment before my bid. I immediately considered the possibility that I was not bidding against a real bidder but rather a phantom bidder (the auction house). I refused to complete the purchase and NY Showplace registered a complaint with "Invaluable" to which I responded. Ultimately, I did not complete the purchase. My suggestion: follow some on-line auctions until you are familiar with what to expect. Then if irregularities not in your favor occur and you don't get an adequate explanation, stand your ground and refuse payment.