The standards of the house.

Every accepted lot receives a catalog record before it is scheduled: title and maker attribution, era, specifications, a written condition report, originality disclosure, materials disclosure, provenance as documented, and a complete image set. The record is written by the house, approved by the consignor for factual accuracy, and published with the lot. What the house cannot verify, the record says it cannot verify.

Every lot carries a numeric condition score, assigned by the house independently of originality. The scale:

Condition reports are written plainly and against raking light. Example: “Finish shows light handling marks visible under raking light. Wrap appears original. Shafts show normal play wear. No visible lift at points or windows. See image set for butt sleeve and joint detail.”

Originality is disclosed separately from condition. For every lot the record states, where determinable: wrap original or replaced; shafts original or replaced; ferrules original or replaced; tip original or current; joint pin original or altered; finish original or refinished; points original or repointed; case original or replacement; and any other modification.

A cue can be a high-condition restoration or a lower-condition all-original example. Both collectors exist. The house does not conflate them, and the record never will.

Materials common in vintage cues — elephant ivory, mammoth and walrus ivory, tortoise shell, certain woods — are subject to federal and state regulation. Consignors must disclose these materials at intake; the house publishes them on the lot record and ships only within the law. See the Materials Policy for the restrictions that apply. Undisclosed regulated material is grounds for cancellation of the sale.

Every lot is documented with a minimum of forty photographs on a neutral ground, covering: full butt and full shaft(s); joint detail, both halves; pin close-up; points, veneers, and inlays; wrap from multiple angles including the seam; ferrule and tip per shaft; butt cap and weight-bolt area; maker’s mark or signature; every disclosed flaw, close up; weight on a scale with the reading visible; length measurement; and case interior and exterior where included. Captions identify what each detail shows. The image set is evidence, not decoration.

Consignors confirm legal ownership and the right to sell at intake. Documented history — original receipts, maker correspondence, certificates, prior sale records, publication in books or registries — is recorded and published with the lot. Undocumented history is reported as such: the record distinguishes what is documented from what is recounted.

Bidding requires an approved account with a verified payment method on file. Identity verification through a government ID raises bidding limits; lots above the published thresholds require it. Consignors may not bid on their own lots. Bidding patterns are monitored, and shill bidding is treated as fraud on the house.

The winning bidder’s funds are collected at the close of the sale and held by High Run through delivery review. The consignor is paid only after delivery is confirmed and the dispute window closes with no claim. High Run is not a bank or licensed escrow service; settlement is administered by the house under the Terms of Sale.

Buyers have three business days from confirmed delivery to file a materially-not-as-described or authenticity claim. Claims are reviewed against the catalog record and image set. Cosmetic disagreement with a disclosed condition is not grounds for return. An upheld authenticity claim results in a full refund to the buyer and suspension of the consignor pending review.

Every sale result is published to the archive and remains there permanently — sold and passed lots alike. Published results stay searchable by maker, era, configuration, sale date, and hammer price. Reserve amounts are never disclosed, before or after the sale. The archive is the product of every standard above it; the house does not edit its own record.