Bonhams and Butterfield was a large American

auction house An auction house is a business establishment that facilitates the buying and selling of assets, such as works of art and collectibles. Overview The auction house is the physical facility where the objects are catalogued, displayed, and presented ...

, founded in 1865 by William Butterfield in

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. It was purchased in 1999 from Bernard Osher by online auctioneer

eBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

for $260 million."EBay Poised To Sell Butterfields Auction Division". ''E-Commerce News'', August 1 2002.
/ref> In 2002, it was acquired from

by British auctioneer Bonhams and operated under the name Bonhams & Butterfields for about ten years. It now just goes by Bonhams.

References

External links

* EBay American auction houses American companies established in 1865 Retail companies established in 1865 1999 mergers and acquisitions 2002 mergers and acquisitions {{US-company-stub EBay acquisitions