Important Facts About Authenticity, Provenance and Attributions

Please be aware of the fact that it is IMPOSSIBLE to prove the authenticity of anything. Therefore, guarantees of authenticity are worthless, as anyone challenging a statement of authenticity will find when it comes time to find an "authenticator" who will put his statements in writing preparatory to litigation.

It is important for the buyer to understand that the current provenance campaign by major auction houses and others, as well as the attribution of objects to tribal "artists" by academics and others, are con games intended to increase sales. The fact that Napoleon was known to have owned a particular kind of object does not guarantee that a specific object in existence today is the one Napoleon owned.

There are NO scientific tests, not a single one, or combination, that can determine with certainty(or even closely) the age of any kind of object, much less its origin. This applies to carbon dating, chemical and metallurgical analyses, thermoluminescence and the latest newcomers.

Buyers must be aware of current (and past) controversies; such as the current one raging over specific paintings attributed to Rembrandt and Michelangelo and false reporting by members of the media.

If you derive your pleasure in collecting from association with prestigious nouns, you have a lot to worry about.