Overview
- The sellers, Janine and Florian, brought the plaque that Janine’s father found in an attic decades ago and passed to her this year.
- Expert Annika Raßbach identified the object not as advertising but as a Provinzial insurance certificate dating to around 1900.
- The sign served as visible proof of coverage and could signal premiums or rewards tied to firefighting efforts.
- A tense back‑and‑forth between dealers Walter Lehnertz of Krekel and Daniel Meyer of Münster drove rapid bids, with Meyer admitting, “I have no idea what I’m doing.”
- Lehnertz won the piece for €510, far above the sellers’ €80 hope and the expert’s €100 top estimate.