Carlijn Potma introduces Berlin’s auction houses…
Berlin is well known for its flea markets and vintage shops. On Sundays we head out to the Mauerpark, Arkonaplatz or Boxhagener Platz to sniff around their esoteric stalls, while stores brimming with retro curiosities seem to pop up on a regular basis. But there is another place to find rare antiques, collector’s items and other oddities: the auction house.
Historia is one of these distinctive places that lie somewhere between a shop and a market. Located on Kalckreuthstrasse, a charmless street in Schöneberg, the shop’s display windows are filled with colourful ceramics, porcelain figurines, a wide range of silverware, small bronze sculptures and vintage crockery.
The Historia Auktionshaus was first established in Ganderkesee, a small town close to Bremen. The current owners, Christian Gründel and Vincent ten Vergert incorporated the company in 2006 and moved to Berlin.
Taking over an older auction house called Auktionshaus Altus, ten Vergert and Gründel changed the name and started to arrange their first Berlin-based art and antique sales. The items they offer vary as much as the prices: from 30 euros for a Russian porcelain tea box to 3,000 euros for an Old Master painting or a pair of diamond earrings.
Every two months their building turns into something that resembles an over-packed antique shop: walls covered with paintings, display cases filled …