• Please review our updated Terms and Rules here
  • From now on we will require that a prefix is set for any items in the sales area. We have created regions and locations for this. We also require that you select a delivery option before posting your listing. This will hopefully help us streamline the things that get listed for sales here and help local people better advertise their items, especially for local only sales. New sales rules are also coming, so stay tuned.

Pacific Northwest Seattle’s Living Computers Museum - auction Sept 2024

Covers: Oregon and Washington
1

1980s_john

Experienced Member
Joined
Apr 29, 2005
Messages
379
Location
UK
Delivery Options
International Shipping or Local Pickup
Hi,
Came across this news story:

www.geekwire.com

Seattle’s Living Computers Museum logs off for good as Paul Allen estate will auction vintage items

Living Computers Museum + Labs on First Avenue South in Seattle. The nonprofit closed in 2020 just before the pandemic and never reopened. (GeekWire Photo
www.geekwire.com www.geekwire.com

The main item of interest to VCF readers would be a DEC PDP-10 (estimate $30k to $50k) and possibly an Apple I. Maybe someone connected to the museum can say what other items are on offer. All money raised will be for charity which is great!

Regards,
John
 
1980s_john said:
All money raised will be for charity
Click to expand...
Zero chance anything will go to anything ccmp related.
This has been discussed in other places a LOT and the
whole LCM-L dismemberment situation sucks.
Paul Allen's computer collection, which were on LOAN to the museum is chump change.
One of Paul Allen's paintings sold for 100 MILLION dollars as part of the highest value auction in Christie's history
 
I wonder if there is a way to find out what is happening to any of the small 'cheap' stuff the museum is getting rid of? I know the museum had several large, important pieces. But didn't they also have a classroom full of apple 2 computers, and a room set up with Atari 2600, etc? Those small systems can't possibly be part of the Christies auction, can they? Just wondering if there was anyone local with any information. It seems that they would be 'scrapping' or parting with a great deal of small items that wouldn't warrant being included in the main auction.
 
Lot previews are now up. The prices are all over the place.

Firsts: The History of Computing from the Paul G. Allen Collection

Firsts: The History of Computing from the Paul G. Allen Collection presents important milestones in the history of computing, some of which have been preserved in working order. Initially focused on recovering software for the DEC PDP-10, Paul Allen's collection expanded to include hardware for...
onlineonly.christies.com onlineonly.christies.com

Relative to the size of the collection there is a LOT of notable items missing.
 
Hi,
Dave of Dave's Garage has released a new video showing some the LCM Christie lots and estimates:


He talks about donator's remorse....

Regards,
John
 
I have a feeling some of the "missing" stuff will start trickling out through eBay. The rest could have just been skimmed by those "in the know" before it ever reached Christie's. Hopefully anything especially rare makes it back into the public eye some day.
 
slewlimit said:
I have a feeling some of the "missing" stuff will start trickling out through eBay. The rest could have just been skimmed by those "in the know" before it ever reached Christie's. Hopefully anything especially rare makes it back into the public eye some day.
Click to expand...
IIRC they had the very first- serial number 1 -Data General Nova. Also, there was a very nice pdp-8 setup. I was expecting those items to be at the auction, but they seem to be missing. Maybe some items were merely on loan to the museum or something similar.
 
Plummer seems to be a suspicious individual. Other people I know and have followed him over the years (or know him personally) and I find it peculiar he's decided to clumsily step into the VC ring and also point out he has a somewhat shady past.
Also he's been seeding that video around like candy. If his PDP-11 video says much, he's a crowdsourcing tool.
 
NeXT said:
Lot previews are now up. The prices are all over the place.

Firsts: The History of Computing from the Paul G. Allen Collection

Firsts: The History of Computing from the Paul G. Allen Collection presents important milestones in the history of computing, some of which have been preserved in working order. Initially focused on recovering software for the DEC PDP-10, Paul Allen's collection expanded to include hardware for...
onlineonly.christies.com onlineonly.christies.com

Relative to the size of the collection there is a LOT of notable items missing.
Click to expand...
I see bidding is underway on the 58 lots. Seems like some items (such as the Kenbak) are attracting interest, and some of the large DEC minis not so much. I have one of these items (Microsoft green-eyed mouse), I can't see this reaching the $1000 estimate!

Still no word then on the many other computers left in the museum? Hopefully some have been reclaimed by their owners if on loan.

Regard,
John
 
The one I'm 43% curious about is Paul's personal Compaq, where we shall see if the Cult of Steve extends to the Cult of Paul.
The question being that if it is "valued" at what they suggest, why hasn't the Allen family just kept it themselves as a memento of Paul?
 
Last edited:
1944GPW said:
The one I'm 43% curious about is Paul's personal Compaq, where we shall see if the Cult of Steve extends to the Cult of Paul.
The question being that if it is "valued" at what they suggest, why hasn't the Allen family just kept it themselves as a memento of Paul?
Click to expand...
I can't really imagine Paul's Compaq being worth that much to anyone. The cost estimate has to be an incredible stretch. I'd be astonished if it reached 5k, let alone 30k. I just don't see it personally. The apple 1 / apple 2 prototype that was lifted off of Steve's desk is on a completely different level I think for most collectors.

The Micral-n computer has a lot of interest - 45 bids (which might be the most bids so far). You just don't see those very often (or ever I guess). That's a good one to watch because I bet it is going to smash estimates.
 
Last edited:
Interesting battle going on for the mercury delay line memory! Estimated max was 1900 and it is already at 32,000 with 8 days left. I'd imagine if you can spend 32k for a delay line, you could spend 50k? I honestly don't even understand how you might budget for this one.

Strange the two DEC PDP-10 computers are both still under 1000, while a lot of the other items have taken off. You'd have to think people are waiting until the last minute. It will be interesting to see what they go for 1 -vs- the other.
 
Last edited:
I would expect it is quite a commitment to buy a PDP-10 (eg space, shipping, WAF etc.). Hence a lot of the old big iron was sold for scrap back in the day or you had to pay people to take it away. On the other hand everyone would have room for an Apple I :)

Regards,
John
 
I didn't realize this museum has been closed since 2020. Sad to see it go. Went twice in the two thousand teens and took lots of photos. I've traveled across the U.S. many times by car and this was my favorite computer museum by far due to its interactive displays. Sat at a PCjr playing King's Quest and the fairly rare Demon Attack PCjr cart for quite awhile without anyone pressuring me to move along. The working vintage data center in back was also just amazing. Good memories.
 
So I was partially in a call while the public show as going down and things got nutty.

-The Alto sold for over $250 000. I think the last one I heard that sold was to a friend for less than $20 000. There was somewhat of an expectation between several people I know that it wouldn't go over $8000.
-The Cray-1 went for $850 000. I think after the commission it went over $1million
-There was a Pac-Man cabinet that hit shy of $10 000. Even in the Arcade circles that's more than twice the going rate for a very clean and original Pac-Man. o_O
-The Illuminated glass Macintosh sign sold for over $35 000. Mind you it's a modified sign but last I looked, they typically sold between $700 - $1500.
-(one of) Paul's model 33 teletypes as going to go for $10 000 (Edited: it closed at $23 000)
-$5500 for two IBM selectrics

There's a considerable amount of confusion as to why many of the items went for so much more money than they were worth. Some items were not particularly rare. Some items aren't even listed as items Paul personally owned. Just stuff from the museum. It's all going for unreasonably high amounts.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top