The firm
A specialist, in the proper sense
VALÉORINE is a curated online auction platform and knowledge infrastructure. VALÉORINE conducts its own specialist auctions, while admitted independent auction houses may conduct their own sales under their own identity. Private owners submit objects for review; they do not self-list. The Encyclopedia publishes source-backed reference records. Every sale identifies the house conducting it. VALÉORINE itself specialises in manuscripts, rare books, autographs, photography and works on paper.
We accept responsibility for what we sell. That is the whole of our method.
The firm was founded on a simple conviction: a serious collector should not have to verify a description. Every object we offer is reviewed before it is accepted, described in language we are prepared to defend, and illustrated to publication standard.
Independent specialists
For sales conducted by VALÉORINE, specialist work is commissioned according to the subject of the catalogue rather than presented as a permanent resident department. Independent specialists may contribute where their expertise is required — for example a fifteenth-century book of hours, a scientific quarto, a photographic archive or an engraved wall map. Admitted auction houses remain responsible for the catalogues they conduct under their own identity.
Where an independent specialist contributes to a VALÉORINE catalogue, the contribution is attributed with the sale. Partner auction houses publish their own expertise and catalogue responsibility under the house named on the sale.
We decline objects, frequently. A firm that accepts everything is a listings site with better typography, and the catalogue is the only thing we truly sell.
How a sale is conducted
Auctions conducted by VALÉORINE are online: there is no public auction room, telephone bidding or floor. Admitted auction houses may also conduct their own online sales through the platform under their own name. Every sale identifies the house conducting it, and any additional distribution channel is stated without implying exclusivity.
Nor do we warehouse what we sell. An object stays with its owner through review, cataloguing and the sale itself; when it sells, the buyer pays VALÉORINE, and the consignor despatches directly to the buyer under a tracked service within the deadline the platform enforces. Proceeds are released only once payment has cleared, despatch is evidenced and the buyer’s protection window has elapsed. Owners are guided in writing at every stage — from receipt of the submission to settlement of the proceeds. Buyers receive condition reports, provenance and documentation before bidding opens, never after.
Newly established
VALÉORINE is preparing its inaugural catalogue, and is already accepting objects for expert review.
We claim no history we have not yet made. What we offer is a standard of cataloguing, a discreet and written process for owners, and five fields we know well: manuscripts, rare books, autographs, photography and works on paper.
The process
From submission to settlement
Unless specifically arranged, you keep the object with you throughout review and auction. VALÉORINE does not routinely warehouse submitted objects: the lot travels once, directly from you to the buyer, and only after the buyer has paid.
01Submit an object online
The owner completes the online submission form, with photographs, dimensions, condition and what is known of the history. The object itself stays where it is.
02Review by VALÉORINE
The submission is reviewed by VALÉORINE and, where the subject requires it, assessed by an independent specialist engaged for that field.
03Acceptance decision
Every submission is answered in writing. Objects we cannot describe with confidence are declined rather than offered with hedged wording.
04Estimate and reserve
An estimate is proposed and, where appropriate, a reserve is agreed with the consignor in writing before the lot is published.
05Cataloguing and publication
The catalogue entry is written from the material supplied and the specialist's assessment, then published in a sale with its condition notes, provenance as documented, and estimate.
06Online auction
The lot is offered in a curated timed online sale, with published increments and closing extensions, on our own platform and, where it serves the consignor, on selected international platforms.
07Buyer payment through the platform
The buyer pays VALÉORINE. Funds are never sent directly to the consignor, and the consignor is notified once payment has cleared.
08Despatch by the consignor
The consignor despatches the lot directly to the buyer by an approved tracked service within the published deadline, and records the tracking in the client portal.
09Delivery and protection window
Delivery is recorded against the transaction. The buyer has the published protection window in which to raise a discrepancy before funds are released.
10Settlement
Proceeds are remitted to the consignor once payment, evidenced despatch, the protection window and any compliance check are satisfied, with a written statement of account.
How the work is done
Our work is cataloguing and editorial work, specialist coordination, research and provenance, administration and client services. There is no saleroom and no warehouse: every sale takes place online, and every lot travels once — from the consignor to the buyer.
How a VALÉORINE catalogue is made
Selection
Objects are submitted for review and considered on their merits. Only those we can describe with certainty are accepted.
Collaboration
Independent specialist work is commissioned when the subject requires it, with responsibility and attribution stated on the catalogue.
Publication
The catalogue is designed and published online in a curated sale. Transaction records remain available to the parties; published scholarship remains part of the permanent knowledge record.