Sell Antiquities and Ancient Art to Art for Eternity, New York

Art for Eternity buys antiquities, ancient art and tribal art, as single pieces or whole collections, and takes work on consignment. We have been in business in New York since 1996 and online since 1998. Howard Nowes, the gallery's director, is a certified appraiser (AAA) and a member of ATADA, the Antique Tribal Art Dealers Association.

What we buy

  • Egyptian: ushabtis, amulets, scarabs, bronzes, stone vessels, wood and faience
  • Greek, Roman, Etruscan and Near Eastern: pottery, glass, bronze, marble, jewelry, seals
  • Pre-Columbian: Maya, Aztec, West Mexico, Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, Peru, including gold and textiles
  • African, Oceanic and Native American art: masks, figures, baskets, bronzes
  • Asian art: Gandharan, Chinese, Southeast Asian sculpture and ceramics

We are most interested in objects with a history: an old collection, an auction record, a dealer invoice, family papers, old photographs. If you are not sure what you have, send it anyway. Part of what we do is tell people what they own.

How it works

  1. Send photographs. Email a few pictures of each piece, front and back, with a ruler or a coin for scale, and whatever you know about where it came from. Phone pictures are fine.
  2. Howard reviews them. Usually within two business days. If it is something we can use, he will tell you what it is and what we can offer.
  3. Buy or consign. For outright purchase we make a written offer. For consignment we agree a price and a commission, and the piece goes on this site, in the gallery and to our collector list. Larger collections and estates we visit in person in the New York area, and farther when it is warranted.
  4. Collection and payment. We arrange packing and shipping or pick up ourselves. Payment on purchase is by check or bank transfer.

Estates and inherited collections

Much of what we buy comes from families settling an estate or clearing a house. We can look at a whole collection, identify what is ancient and what is not, and either buy it, sell it for you, or write a USPAP-compliant appraisal for estate, insurance or donation purposes. See Appraisals.

For attorneys, guardians and receivers: Howard Nowes is on the New York State Unified Court System's Part 36 list of fiduciaries eligible for court appointment, as a property appraiser and as an auctioneer.

What we cannot buy

Objects that left their country of origin recently or whose history cannot be accounted for, human remains, and material that is restricted under current law. If you are unsure, ask; it costs nothing.

Contact

Howard Nowes
Art for Eternity, 303 East 81st Street, New York, NY 10028
917-733-4165 | hnowes@gmail.com | Contact form

All inquiries are confidential.