Bidding FAQ's:
How does bidding work?
How do I bid on Live Auctions?
How do  I bid on Online Auctions?
What is AutoBid? How does it work?
I placed a higher bid, but I was not the winner, what happened?
Why won't my bid show up on the web site?
Can I reduce or cancel my bid once it has been placed?
How will I know when I am the winning bidder?
Can I change my shipping information?
Can I rely on getting an email notification that my bid is no longer a potentially winning bid?
What happens after I've bid on an item?
Is  my bid confidential?
Can I have my bid executed by a 3rd party?
How do I contact someone at PBA Galleries for help?

Consigning FAQ's: 
How do I consign items to PBA Galleries?

Auction FAQ's:
What are the PBA Conditions of the live auction?
What are the PBA Conditions of the online auction?
What is online Category Watch?
How do I register to participate in online auctions?
Where can I get a bid sheet for a live auction?
How do I place an Absentee Bid for a live auction?
How do I pay for what I've won?

Subscription FAQ's:
What types of subscriptions do you offer?
Can I get email notifications on PBA events?
How do I get a subscription to the Live Auction catalog?
Where are the downloadable newsletters?

What is PBA Galleries?    (top)
PBA Galleries is one of the largest and most successful specialty auction houses world-over. Devoted to works on paper and related arts, PBA conducts approximately twenty-five gallery auctions in a calendar year and continuous live auctions of rare books, manuscripts, autographs, maps, atlases, prints and photographs. It is PBA Galleries' primary goal to maintain our high level of standards in the fine arts field and provide the best service to all who are interested in buying and selling at PBA Galleries.

What is a screen name?    (top)
A screen name is a sort of codename for a PBA Galleries customer. Using your screen name allows you to see how you are placed in an auction, whether you are in the lead or the runner-up, and so on. The screen name, along with your password, will allow you access to the auction site.

How do I become a member to bid on an auction?    (top)
First, go to PBA Galleries at www.pbagalleries.com. Next, click on the "Your Account" tab, then Register Here, or select Register Here wherever you see it on the site. Registration is free, and we will never give out your personal information to any other company or person. (Please review our Privacy Policy for more information) If you register, and forget your screen name or password, you can have it emailed to you by choosing the "Password Help" button in the "Your Account" area, anywhere you see "Password" on the site.

Will personal information I provide to PBA Galleries be kept private?    (top)
At PBA Galleries, we respect the privacy of our customers and participants. Information submitted to us by bidders will be subject to PBA Galleries' Privacy Policy.

Will I have to register for each Auction?    (top)
No. Once you have received your approval notice and selected your password, you may use them for any auction in PBA Galleries, on any day.

Who is eligible to participate in the auctions?    (top)
Only individuals who are capable of forming legally binding contracts are eligible to register and participate in the auctions.

How do I search for an online listing?    (top)
The easiest way to find an online item is by using our search engine. After entering a keyword and clicking on "Search" in the Search section at the top right of your Online Auction screen, a results page will be displayed, and you can scroll through the results. There is also an "Advanced Search" option, on the same page, which will perform a more advanced search based on your entries. Tips on how to search our Online Auction items can be found here.

When are auctions held, and what time does each auction begin and end?    (top)
Our Live Auctions are held bi-monthly usually on Thursdays. To check on upcoming auctions and dates, select "Calendar"  wherever you see it on the web site. New items in our continuous Online Auctions are uploaded every Friday at 5pm PST, the auction duration is 10 days, and items close on Mondays at approximately 7pm PST (please check the item detail for exact closing times!)

What if I lose my ID or Password?    (top)
You can have them emailed to you by simply going to the "Your Account" section, and choosing the "Forgot Password" button, or select the Password link.

Is the site secure?    (top)
Secure Socket Layers or SSL employs the very latest encryption technology to ensure that any information you transmit is safe. If you are using a SSL enabled browser such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer (3.0 or higher) you are protected by encryption technology.

What time zone is reflected in the starting and ending times?    (top)
Pacific Standard Time

I have a question that is not answered here, what should I do?    (top)
Contact Us is available in the left (gold) area on the website. You can contact us via email or phone.

What is Auto Bid? How does it work?    (top)
The AutoBid feature is an optional feature which allows you to place a blanket bid on an item. This way you do not have to be present to raise your bid to the next acceptable bid level should someone else outbid you. If someone outbids you, the AutoBid acts as your agent and raises your bid to the next acceptable winning bid. This will continue until your AutoBid limit is reached. In the event of ties, the AutoBid is the losing bid.

I placed a higher bid, but I was not the winner, what happened?    (top)
Refresh the item detail page before placing your bid to be sure that you have recent information for the item. Also, if another bidder is using Maximum Bid, their bid may immediately be raised to match yours and they will still be the winner.

Why won't my bid show up on the web site?    (top)
It is possible you are looking at a version of the page your computer got earlier, and you aren't seeing the latest Internet copy of PBA Galleries. Try these three things: Press the "Reload" or "Refresh" button at the top of your browser screen. Clear your cache (found in the preferences menu item for your browser). Restart your browser and come to PBA Galleries again.

Can I reduce or cancel my bid once it has been placed?    (top)
No. As stated in our Online Agreement, bids cannot be canceled.

How will I know when I am the winning bidder?    (top)
We will send an email message to the address you provided during registration. The message will contain your winning bid, a description of the item, quantity and contact information for the seller, if applicable.

Can I change my shipping information?    (top)
Use Update Account to make changes to your account information. PBA Galleries cannot accept change of address requests through its website interface after an order has been placed. If it is necessary to correct an address after the placement of an order, please call Customer Service 415- 989-2665.

Can I rely on getting an email notification that my bid is no longer a potentially winning bid?    (top)
While it is our intention to send an email notice to a bidder whose bid is no longer a potentially winning bid, it is possible that a bidder may not receive the email message or may not receive it before the close of the auction. As a result, bidders should not rely on getting an email notice of this type and should instead monitor the auction that they are participating in to determine whether their bid or bids remain at or below the current highest bid. The current highest winning bid will always be available in real-time on the bidding floor, if you have placed a bid during an auction. 

What happens after I've bid on an item?    (top)
Once you have bid on an online item, and you are the winning bidder, your name will appear under the "Winner list" on the page describing the item you have bid on. If you are using the AutoBid feature, the system will automatically bid up to your maximum amount for you. You will receive an email bid confirmation, and if you are outbid, you will also receive an email notice stating your bid is no longer a winning bid.

How do I contact someone at PBA Galleries for help?    (top)
Simply give us a call at 415 989-2665 or email pba@pbagalleries.com and we will be happy to help you.

How do I consign items to PBA Galleries?    (top)
Please refer to our "How to Consign" section for more information.

What are the PBA conditions of auctions?    (top)
Live Auction Conditions 
Online Auction Conditions 

What is Category Watch?    (top)
Log into your  Category Watch to select categories and search criteria for online items you are interested in. The system will email you daily any new items which match.

How do I register to participate in online auctions?   (top)
Registering with PBA Galleries is fast, easy, and free. Simply fill out the online form and submit it to us. We keep your personal information private, and will not disclose your information to any one else. To register with the site, simply go to the "Your Account" section and click on "Register Here".

What type of subscriptions do you offer?    (top)
PBA has several subscription services. You can subscribe to our Catalogues, our Newsletter, or our PBA News Emails.

How do I get a subscription to the Live Auction catalog?   (top)
You can subscribe to our Catalogues and have them sent to the address you provide. Subscriptions to our Catalogues require payment, and we offer several different Catalogue subscription options. Please check under our "Subscribe" category for more information on rates. Our catalogues are an important resource for collecting information about rare books and other material, and for keeping up-to-date on the latest Live Auctions here at PBA Galleries.

Where are the downloadable newsletters?   (top)
Our Newsletters are also a great way to keep current to what is happening here, we inform you of exciting new developments, news, past auctions held with us, & future sale dates, and best thing of all, its free! You can have our Newsletters sent to your address, or download a PDF directly from the web site.

Can I get email notifications on PBA events?   (top)
Our PBA News Email is another subscription service we provide that will inform you of important dates for your calendar, what's new & news here at PBA Galleries, and is also a free service we provide.

I've lost my password.   (top)
Help, I've lost my password and I would like to bid. Click here to go to Password Help, or select any "Password" link you see on the site.

How to Bid:    (top)
At PBA you can place bids in a number of ways and be assured that your bids will be used competitively against other absentee bids and the floor bidders. The final selling price may well be (and usually is) less than the upper limit of a winning absentee bid. Detailed descriptions in our catalogues mean that items do not have to be examined to be able to bid on them with confidence. Approximately 70% of the books sold at Pacific Book Auction go to buyers who do not see the books until they open the box in which they arrive.

How to bid for Live Auctions:   (top)
Absentee bids may be placed in person, by mail, phone, fax, e-mail, or on-line. Absentee forms are found in our bidding section. If bidding in person, mail, fax, email, or on-line, simply fill out the form, giving the lot number, first word of the entry, and your top bid for each item you wish to bid on. If desired, indicate that you want to increase your bid by one increment in case you are tied with another bidder. Fill out the personal information required (name, address, etc.). If you are bidding from California and are buying for resale, indicate such and give your resale number in the space provided, in order to avoid being charged for sales tax. In addition, you must have a resale permit card on file with PBA.

How to bid for Online Auctions:   (top)
To bid on an auction item, enter your Password and ID# into the bid window below.

The Bidding Form Example

The amount of the next winning bid will be displayed in the Bid Amount text box. You may keep track of multiple bids using our Auction Watch feature. This feature is handy for keeping track of winning and losing bids you have placed, or if you just want to watch the activity on a particular item.

If you elected to receive outbid notices via email, you will be notified when you are outbid, or when you win an item on Pacific Book Auction Galleries. If you're not sure if you selected this feature, you can check by updating your registration info. *The AutoBid feature allows you to place a maximum bid on an item and will automatically adjust your bid to the next winning bid amount when you have been outbid by another member. The amount of your maximum bid will be kept secret from all other members.

What is Auto Bid?    (top)
The AutoBid feature allows you to set the maximum amount you are willing to bid on an auction, and will place bids for you-sort of like an auction autopilot. This way you don't have to be online every hour to stay competitive in an auction. At the same time, you can set AutoBid to "top out" at a certain amount, giving you total control of the minimum or maximum you are willing to pay for a vehicle. In short, AutoBid can: Set a maximum bid amount and Raise your bid automatically during the auction up to your pre-set maximum dollar amount

Bid Sheets:    (top)
Bid sheets are used to list items that you would like to bid on from our Live Auction gallery. These are used in the actual live auction to place your bids for you when you are unable to attend in person. We accept bid sheets that have been faxed to us, sent in the mail, or submitted through our secure web site. Go to our "Bidding" section of the site to find the bid sheet form, or simply click here to go to Bid Sheets.

Absentee Bids:    (top)
At PBA you can place bids in a number of ways and be assured that your bids will be used competitively against other absentee bids and the floor bidders. The final selling price may well be (and usually is) less than the upper limit of a winning absentee bid. Detailed descriptions in our catalogues mean that items do not have to be examined to be able to bid on them with confidence. Approximately 70% of the books sold at PBA Galleries go to buyers who do not see the books until they open the box in which they arrive.

Absentee bids  may be placed in person, by mail, phone, fax, e-mail, or on-line.  Absentee forms are also located in out Bidding section.  If bidding in person, mail, fax, email, or on-line, simply fill out the form, giving the lot number, first word of the entry, and your top bid for each item you wish to bid on. If desired, indicate that you want to increase your bid by one increment in case you are tied with another bidder. Fill out the personal information required (name, address, etc.). If you are bidding from California and are buying for resale, indicate such and give your resale number in the space provided, in order to avoid being charged for sales tax. In addition, you must have a resale permit card on file with PBA.

When bidding by telephone, have all the information required at hand before calling. When calling, state that you wish to place absentee bids, and give the sale number. You can then give us your name, address and bids. Please try to place your bids at least one hour before the auction begins (more, if possible).

For significant items, generally those estimated at $300.00 and up, arrangements can be made to bid by telephone during the auction. The arrangements must be made several days in advance, since our phone lines are limited.

How do I pay for what I've won?   (top)
Sales invoices to successful bidders are sent out the day following the auction. You may call the day after the auction, and be given the information over the phone. If you call the day of the auction, we will attempt to be courteous, but may not be able to provide you with the information you desire.

If there is an item in the catalogue you wish to bid on, but are unsure about the condition description or have other questions about it, the staff at PBA staff at PBA is always happy to describe it to you in detail over the telephone or through email.

Is my bid confidential?   (top)
PBA Galleries treats all bids and bidders confidentially. We will not tell you what our top absentee bid is, nor will we reveal your bid to others.

Can I have my bid executed by a 3rd party?   (top)
Some bidders, either because they have a set limit of funds available and wish to bid on several different items, or for some other reason, may desire to have their bid executed by a third party. There are many reputable book dealers in the San Francisco area who can do this. These dealers can also examine the items for you, and even give you an opinion of value. A good place to start when searching for such a dealer is the membership directory of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America. PBA can also recommend to you a dealer specializing in the area of your interest.