Doug Allen

We were expecting the free agency period to come and go. Negotiations were done.

We were expecting the free agency period to come and go. Negotiations were done.

[According to Doug Allen, president of MastroNet, the rapidly growing Americana division provided fertile ground for establishing some new favorite read more

[According to Doug Allen, president of MastroNet, the rapidly growing Americana division provided fertile ground for establishing some new favorite collecting items and areas of interest.] There can be little doubt that Americana collectors are increasing in numbers, ... With each auction we see new categories of collectibles emerging, many with selling prices that seem to be giving previously obscure items new value.

[Doug Allen, the owner of Long Acre Farms in Macedon, N.Y., spends his days operating heavy machinery, welding and handling read more

[Doug Allen, the owner of Long Acre Farms in Macedon, N.Y., spends his days operating heavy machinery, welding and handling chemicals.] My hands are a mess, ... I've had problems with my hands cracking and not being studious enough to use lotion every night.

It's a fantastic piece. The bidding was at $20,000 when we withdrew it, and I'm sure it would've gotten crazy read more

It's a fantastic piece. The bidding was at $20,000 when we withdrew it, and I'm sure it would've gotten crazy tonight but we wouldn't let it get to that point.

[One such item was an early 1900s royal scepter of England's King Edward VII. The lot opened with a minimum read more

[One such item was an early 1900s royal scepter of England's King Edward VII. The lot opened with a minimum of $1,000. Thirty-five bids later, it sold for $40,100.] Any time an item sells for 40 times its opening bid, you've got to give it the credit it deserves, ... This auction has gone a long way to establishing the standards for many collectibles that to this point did not have benchmarks.