under the hammer

Idioms  

1. For sale, as in These paintings and Oriental rugs must come under the hammer if we're to pay the mortgage. This expression alludes to the auctioneer's hammer, which is rapped to indicate a completed transaction. [Mid-1800s]

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Example Sentences

Broadstairs Memorial Hall is set to go under the hammer on Thursday, with bids for the property opening on Wednesday.

From BBC

Items from a range of films and TV series have been going under the hammer in an auction in London which lasts until Sunday.

From BBC

It is going under the hammer for the first time in more than two decades on Tuesday.

From Barron's

The existence of a second golden toilet was later revealed, and went under the hammer at Sotheby's in New York City on Tuesday.

From BBC

Sotheby's revealed that Cattelan created three toilets in 2016, with the second version on display in a bathroom at New York's Breuer Building until it went under the hammer.

From BBC