Just looking

Trompe l'oeil with malachite obelisk and other objets, oil on panel, signed and dated "William Ward Beecher (1921-2006) - '51", lower right, 27" x 22.5" (image/panel). Sold for USD800.

Whilst I'm constantly on the lookout for paintings through online auction houses, I do have other items that appeal to me, such as silver, glass and furniture. However, I'm very unlikely to buy the latter, as I have more silver than I need, or indeed use on a daily basis, and certainly more glass, (mostly of the Waterford variety), which borders on the obsessive. And furniture is just prohibitively expensive to ship.

But this doesn't stop me looking, and indeed checking subsequently to see what the items that interested me fetched at auction. The better auction houses give good details about the pieces for sale, and it's interesting to supplement that with one's own research. Because it interests me, it's fun to learn. I realise it's not everyone's cup of tea; I remember a friend telling me she felt physically sick every time she went near a fabric shop. Something I found hard to understand, but different interests have different effects on people.

I suppose it helps to have a curious mind. I was trying to think of something that would have the same effect on me, but I couldn't.

But I find the interest in antiques partly assuaged by the ability to trawl through auction house websites. It's the same as going to an antique shop, but better, because you can see the item more clearly, (although admittedly not in the flesh); you know approximately the price, or can bid what you think it's worth; and you don't have that embarrassing feeling of obligation to buy, and of hurting the shop owners' sensitivities if you don't.

And it beats doing an inventory of light bulbs. (But not even that makes me have the same reaction that my friend has to fabric.)