"An auction catalog (US spelling) or auction catalogue (British spelling) is inventory of listing of items to be sold at an auction. It is made available some time before the auction date. Auction catalogs for rare and expensive items, such as art, books, jewelry, postage stamps, furniture, wine, cars, posters, published for sales around the world, can be of interest in themselves--they will can include detailed descriptions of the items, their provenance, historical significance, photographs, and even comparative analyses and descriptive essays by subject experts.
In some cases, auction catalogues are key documentation for rare objects that are in private collections, and make up an important part of the libraries for students of material culture, appraisers, museums, and dealers." - (en.wikipedia.org 02.09.2020)
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