Ebay seller refuses purchase

Hello,

I am the winner of a pair of chairs on an ebay auction. I am an antique store owner, and the chairs were purchased for inventory. The seller had a starting bid of $2500,and I was the only bid. The chairs are worth considerably more (retail value approx. $12000-$14000/auction value of $6000-$8000). The seller was unhappy about the outcome but seemed committed to honoring the purchase.
Feeling somewhat bad for the seller, I offered to purchase a single chair for $1500, and allow him the opprununity to try to resell the second chair for more. This offer seems to have insulted/upset the seller, who now refuses to completethe sale. I wrote him back and asked that we just complete the sale as specified on ebay, but he refuses all calls and emails. The chairs have not yet been paid for.

Do I have a legal claim? Given the value of the chairs, is it cost feasible to persue? Is this appropriate for small claims? He is located in Seattle and I am in NYC. According to Seattle small claims website, cases there must be for monetary compensation only, and not for property disputes. Can I make a NYC small claims action?

Thanks for any advice you can provide