What is a cut bid?
June 2, 2026
Bidding was an art. It has since been forgotten, now that computers and their myriad online portals have turned bidding into a purely mechanical process. Things were different just a few decades ago. Back then, there was the “book”—that’s what they called the list where all the written bids were recorded. Then there was the auction hall where the bidders sat. Every now and then, a bid placed by phone would add to the action.
Back then, every experienced bidder had their own method, hoping to discourage their opponents. It wasn’t always successful. The infamous anecdote tells of the incredible price the director of a public institution paid for a Greek coin when he wanted to teach his young (and rather pretty) intern how to bid at an auction.
Others were more cunning, such as a bidder who always responded to his opponent’s bid with a counterbid as fast as a bullet. “Give up, I have more money than you anyway”—that was the message this style of bidding was meant to convey. Occasionally, one also hears the story of the wealthy Norwegian collector who stood up while bidding and fixed his opponent with an angry glare. Many were actually unsettled by this.
From Coin Weekly