photos by David Halterman

The time-honored tradition of live auction can be traced back to Babylon, 500 B.C., when women were often sold on the condition of marriage. Well, thanks to eBay and womens lib, those days are now gone. But certain types of auctions continue to flourish, drawing crowds of treasure hunters and curious onlookers. Such was the case last weekend at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, where Calvin Story, of Treasure Auction Service, called the shots with his lightning-fast banter as hundereds of people bid on everything from guns to swords, statues to breadboxes, and oh my, even a Hummer.

Bonnie Cabrera debating whether or not to place a higher bid, while her husband Calixto, far left, watches on from the sidelines. This elk head was just one of the many interesting items up for auction over the weekend. James Pulis inspects the film from an old movie reel he had just won on Sunday afternoon. Durango native Gene Folsom holds up his bid card during the final hours of the weekend-long auction held at the La Plata County Fairgrounds.a