Main Auction picked up a truckload of the contents of a relative's estate (silver, china, artwork, furniture, collectibles, etc.) in April, 2025. They auctioned it off in several sales over the ensuing months, auctioning the last of it November 1, 2025. (The sale July 27, 2025 for example grossed $2,950.) The heirs have received NO accounting of ANY of the sales and not a cent of the proceeds. This is a clear violation of the Ohio Auctioneer law. Justin Karp has said many times he would send an accounting the next day, but has never done so. read more

If you're looking to sell items, do NOT go to Main Auction. I have been trying to collect what they owe me for nearly a year, with no response. Sellers beware. This is a family of crooks. read more

Have purchased several times from this auction house over the years and it's always a great experience. Good selection and very helpful and knowledgeable staff. Highly recommend read more

This place is a downtown institution. Every Monday we walk through the gallery, look at this week's haul, mark what we want, and come back on Tuesday for the live auction. The auction itself lasts from 11A - 2P (I think) although I typically go and eat my lunch there from 1130A - 1P. The items for sale range from cheap trinkets for a couple bucks to art worth tens of thousands, and everything in between. For a guy like me, I'm buying the lower items, but it's fun to watch collectors bid on treasures you usually find in museums (literally, Salvador Dali, Picasso, Andy Warhol, Duveneck, etc etc etc). The auctioneer is just as entertaining as the items themselves. His style is brash and colorful, sometimes not for children's ears, but always hilarious. I highly recommend you getting to know this wonderful establishment and the people who hang out here. truly a gem. read more

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Very nice guys, I like their gruff no nonsense avenues, it keeps the auction from lasting four days! Parking sucks in my experience but it's worth it. This place runs some great items through their auctions! Recommend! read more

Great service, great people. Interesting selection every week of new items. Beautiful location with a variety of wares. read more

Go somewhere else if you want to sell your stuff. They came and packed up a truck load of objects to be auctioned in spring of 2020. The objects still have not gone to auction. Every time we call, they promise it will be in the next auction. It's been 3 years of this. read more

They have been stalling me on payment for months. The reply is always the check is in the mail. Now they are promising to hand deliver the check. Still not been paid. read more

Don't waste your time driving to this auction house. I DROVE OVER AN HOUR to "preview" their auction (oriental rugs in particular) and was told I could not see them. It was a very small building that seemed to be around 1000 square feet, so all the auction items were crammed together and impossible to see unless you wanted to move furniture around. They were unwilling to show me the rugs and rude about it! read more

This is a real 'keeper' for those looking for hard-to-find items. We love their quarterly auctions and have found some great mid-century modern stuff. We also enjoy weekly visits to just look at their merchandise. Jonas and Jay Karp are super fabulous auctioneers, and their staff does a great job! Jonas is the mid-century modern specialist, and he is always able to provide us with information on items being auctioned. He is well-respected in the mid-century modern field. read more

I moved to Cincinnati a little over 5 years ago and was fortunate enough to stumble across this auction house very early on! Forget the uppity pretense of other high quality houses...this is a uniquely accessible place, even for those unaccustomed to auctions. Depending on the week, you can find most anything from very low cost box lots, to high quality 18th century furniture. Focused just on high end things? They have 6 or so auctions per year with great stuff! Looking for a mix of items including quality antiques? Then try their weekly Tuesday auctions. Can't make it to the Tuesday auction to bid? Then stop in on Saturday morning by 11 or so, or any time during the day on Thursday, Friday or Monday, look around, talk to the auctioneer, leave an absentee bid, and stop in another day to pick things up. Have a question about an item on the floor? Just ask and they'll tell you. You're not a number there...in fact you can't get a bidder number even if you ask. They use your name or your initials that you call out to them on the floor. Life is about experiences and this experience is far better than sitting at home bidding on-line. Imagine an entire floor of merchandise being turned over and sold at auction each week, in a historic and somewhat rustic downtown building, by a family that has owned the business for 150 years....that's Main Auction Galleries. In their own very unique way...very cool! read more

We drive a couple hundred miles a few times a year JUST to attend this Tuesday 10:30 auction. Crazy you say? Well maybe, but not as crazy as the piles of weekly selections Mr. Louis Karp and his son Jonas dig up for their weekly auctions. Decent middle range art by listed and unlisted artists (we scored some great deals here!), super deals on furniture, smalls, jewelry, and then there are 'box lots' (with some sleepers always buried). Sort of like they broke into someones nicer residence while they were on a cruise and emptied their home into their Tuesday auction! Lots of shrewd (but nice) dealers amongst the bidders (who can blame them?), but prices are most reasonable even with the 10% premium (this is offset by the free coffee, pop and donuts, your hosts provide) Straight talk-If you are a dealer, you can make a buck. If you're are a collector, prices can be fab! The experience of listening to Mr. Karp work his way through the day's offerings, is not one you will soon forget. Note, not for wallflowers. Check it out f 3-4 hours of auction action that will have coming back for seconds. read more