Creative auction house descriptions

[ullmandds]

Don't you all just love some of the "creative" terms that auction houses use to describe their items?

What are some of your favorite "terms" you've seen?

Personally one of my favorites is how many poses are described as "haunting." These players are dead after all. are they now believed to be ghosts?

[wolf441]

Not really creative, but I get a kick out of "extant".

Everything is "The finest example extant".

It's like when someone gets attached to a particular buzz word. I had a co-worker that would drop "fundamentally" 15 times in a half hour meeting...

[ullmandds]

MY assistant uses the word "literally" constantly! Extant is on my list of overused auction descriptors too!

[Bpm0014]

I personally cringe each time they give a description about a famous players career. For example, if you are auctioning off a Babe Ruth autographed baseball, just please describe the baseball! No need for 4 paragrahs at the beginning outlining Babe Ruth's career. If you are auctioning off a Honus Wagner T206, just please describe the card! No need for a 5,000 word diatribe on Honus Wagner's career. I'm sure we all know who Babe Ruth and Honus Wagner are already.....

[bn2cardz]

Originally Posted by Bpm0014

I personally cringe each time they give a description about a famous players career. For example, if you are auctioning off a Babe Ruth autographed baseball, just please describe the baseball! No need for 4 paragrahs at the beginning outlining Babe Ruth's career. If you are auctioning off a Honus Wagner T206, just please describe the card! No need for a 5,000 word diatribe on Honus Wagner's career. I'm sure we all know who Babe Ruth and Honus Wagner are already.....

As much as this bothers me so does boosting up an average or below average player. If they are new cards of a draft pick or prospect that struggled his first year but shows signs of hope that would make sense to try and sell the player. Yet when it is a player that has been out of the game or even dead for over 50 years it makes no sense, they aren't going to improve their numbers.

One that I always think of is from a Goodwin auction for a Germany Smith Mayo.

An outstanding glove man with exceptional range, Smith would have been a superstar if he only could have hit. With a career average of .243, teams found room for Smith--his glove saved runs and made him valuable. But if he could have boosted his average to the standards of the day, Smith might be remembered as one of the finest to ever play.

*emphasis added by me

[batsballsbases]

The words "Magnificent Example" come to mind!

[wolf441]

Originally Posted by ullmandds

MY assistant uses the word "literally" constantly! Extant is on my list of overused auction descriptors too!

Ha!, my son does the same thing! I also give him crap any time he uses the word "irregardless" and now they've added it to the dictionary.

God forbid we hurt our kids feelings and say "Hey pal, that's not a word. Use regardless or irrespective".

[Al C.risafulli]

"iconic."

-Al

[brianp-beme]

Too bad fundamentally is not literally extant, irregardless of its iconic status.

Brian

[Peter_Spaeth]

It is a rare day when I don't hear or see "reach out" multiple times. Cringe.

For auctions, I always hated the term "blazer."