subhastation

noun

1. A public sale or auction required by law, especially one in Germany or neighbouring territories.

   countable, obsolete, uncountable

   One of the best parts of their Law is the way of Selling Estates, which is likewise practised in Switzerland, and is called Subhastation, from the Roman Custom of selling Sub hasta.

Where it comes from

Borrowed from German Subhastation or French subhastation, from Latin subhastātiō, from sub hastā (literally “under the spear”). Compare Spanish subasta (“auction”).

Adapted from the Wiktionary entry subhastation (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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