It’s that season again. We have the United States to thank for the modern image of Father Christmas, or Santa Claus, as they call him. That’s also true of greetings cards, which became popular, initially in the United States in the 1880s, thanks to the development of offset lithography, a form of printing.

Britain picked up on the trend early. Hallmark, one of the biggest names in greetings cards, has been around since almost the start, when savvy British makers saw what was happening in the US and started exporting cheaper folded versions there not long before the First World War.

The first Christmas cards were hand-coloured for Sir Henry Cole, founder of the Victoria & Albert Museum, who ordered 1000 in 1843. They depicted a family raising their charged glasses in a toast above a draped banner carrying the words A Merry Christmas. He used half himself and sold the rest for a shilling apiece.

It’s thought around nine or ten survive, and each is valued at around £10,000 today.

Some of the most sought-after Christmas cards today are those designed by well-known artists of the late Victorian and early 20th century periods. Kate Greenaway, who illustrated many of the most popular children’s books of the 1880s and ’90s is a favourite, as is her great rival at the time, Walter Crane.

Perhaps the most desirable cards, though are the early Hold-to-Light cards depicting Father Christmas, or Santa Claus. These were generally die-cut and got their name because if you held them up to the light, the die-cut parts lit up, creating a glowing Christmas scene.

When first produced in the US, in postcard form, these were the preserve of the wealthy as each could cost as much as a day’s wages for a working man. Nowadays while religious or other scenes can be had for as little as around £20, the pick of the Santa cards can cost £400.

Collectors tend to specialize in subject matter, such as comic cards, or anniversary type, such as birthday or Christmas cards. Condition can matter a great deal. If they are unused and have not been stuck in albums with the accompanying sticky tape. And particular printers, such as De La Rue, also tempt collectors.

You’ll be pleased to know that there are several ways to catch the auctioneer’s attention without having to sit in front of them. The first is leaving what is called a commission or absentee bid. You can pick up the relevant form at the viewing for the sale, fill it in with the maximum you are prepared to pay and register it with the auction house. The auctioneer will then bid on your behalf against other bidders up to the maximum. However, if other bidders give up earlier, you may well get the item for less. For slightly more valuable lots, you may be able to bid over the phone. Again, you need to register before the sale – usually at least 24 hours in advance – and can then bid live on the phone via a member of staff. Make sure you answer the phone when they call you to bid.

Finally, you can bid via the internet, either directly with the auction house or, more usually, via one of the live bidding platforms. Check them out early to understand the process.

I’d still advise visiting the saleroom if you can. A recent buyer at one of our jewellery sales was a first-time bidder who had enjoyed the experience so much that he has now started coming to other sales at Fernhurst.

He is one of those people who likes to come prepared, so he had checked our website for everything from buying conditions, including any fees, to bidding methods. With all this in mind he said that although he had been slightly nervous to start with when it came to bidding, his confidence rose as he had set himself a limit and knew he would not go beyond it. Best of all, he said, was the thrill of securing the lot against competition from other bidders, one of whom was in the room, while others were on the internet.

His experience reinforces two key lessons for auctioneers: have a clear and informative website and make sure you give a warm welcome and excellent service if you want them to keep coming back.

Until the end of October, numerous events celebrate the biggest festival of Asian art in the UK. Centred on the three-week Asian Art in London programme of auctions, gallery exhibitions and museum shows, the focus is on Contemporary and traditional art from China, Japan, India, Cambodia, Vietnam and Korea.

I can’t think of a better opportunity to acquaint yourself with the marvels of this rich Far Eastern heritage, a significant proportion of it pre-dating even the Roman period.

We celebrate these historic traditions in our monthly auctions of Oriental and Islamic works of art, whose catalogues present a microcosm of the art and craftsmanship of the many cultures who come under this banner.

Often, we think of ancient cultures in places such as Egypt, but China was just as developed at the time. Think about the Han (Warring States, c.475-221BC) or Tang dynasties (618-907) with their extraordinary creations in pottery and bronze, a surprising number of which survive today in fine condition.

India and its rich tradition are also part of this mix. I was reminded of this when admiring one of the highlights of our October 17 sale: a fine, possibly 12th century north Indian carved yellow stone torso of a female deity, whose torso is well decorated with beads and jewellery.

Equally impressive was a marvellous piece of Hu porcelain in our timed online auction that ended on October 2: a blue, white and underglaze red porcelain twin-handle vase, decorated with a dragon and the flaming pearl of wisdom. It was a reminder that many of these ancient treasures can be had for reasonable sums. The estimate in this case was just £500-700.

For me, what brings these pieces alive is not just the highly accomplished work that went into creating them, but the thought of the people behind them. Where and how did they live? How did they acquire their skills? What were they like as people? Did they have families and what were the things they dreamed of and worried about? Think of these questions next time your eyes settle on a striking piece of ancient art.

Students have headed back to college, pupils to schools, but there are also a lot of new graduates and school leavers looking to their careers now. Should they consider becoming auctioneers?

Having started at the bottom and worked my up, I have no regrets. I still think the best way in is the traditional one: starting as a porter at one of the larger auction houses, graduating to cataloguing and developing specialist knowledge in your chosen field while studying for a fine arts valuation qualification. There aren’t many courses left around the country, but they are worth doing if this game is for you.

I have also been impressed with the focus and determination of many in their teens and early twenties who have already harnessed the internet to create micro businesses involving buying, selling and collecting. The internet has created new opportunities, such a drop-sales, which simply did not exist before because there was no way of conducting them. Generation Z may be concerned with disciplines that have not played a part in our collecting tradition up till now – trainers, video games and the like – but they still follow the same patterns and rules as art and antique disciplines: rarity, condition etc.

Best of all, this younger generation has not sat in a classroom to be taught this, but has explored this world for itself and understandably has become enthusiastic about it, both because it can be profitable and because it affords the professional a large degree of autonomy.

A lot of the auction business has already gone online and I have no doubt that more will in future. However, I also believe that there will always be brick-and-mortar salerooms for people to visit, view and handle the goods first, particularly at the top end of the market where prices run into the millions. We sell via both channels.

Auctioneering as a career still holds a lot of promise and the chances of setting up your own business and working for yourself in the long term are greater than in most other industries. It’s something you might want to have a think about.