Auction

Public competitive sale, in which goods are bought by the highest price. A sale by public outcry at a fixed price is not an auction. Auctioneers are required in most jurisdictions to be licensed and to give bonds for the faithful performance of their duties. Each bid is an offer which may be withdrawn before the hammer falls. Puffing or fictitious bidding instigated by the seller and secret agreements to stifle competition are fraudulent practices which will avoid the sale. In the Netherlands the mode of sale is reversed, the auctioneer starting with a high price, which is lowered until a bidder is willing to pay the amount named.