Research Guides: How to Research Works of Art on Paper: Provenance

Recent Sales: Online Documentation

Collected Records of Sales & Auctions

artprice.com (Smith subscription)
ArtValue.com
AskART
artnet.com

Individual Auction Houses
Online catalogs with full descriptions of objects to be auctioned, results including hammer prices for past auctions.

Historical Sales Information for Works on Paper

Smith's Auction Catalogs Collection

Smith's collection of auction catalogs is housed in the libraries' West Street Storage Facility. Records for the publications are not included inthe Five College Library Catalog, but Hillyer staff will page specific catalogs on request.

1920s-present; most dating from 1980s-2011

10,000+ items
Sotheby's, U.S., Britain, international sales. Christie's, New York only
Modern and Contemporary, Old Masters, Photographs, Latin American, American Art, Antiquities and Islamic Art, 19th-century European/Impressionist, Old Master Drawings, Prints

Indexes to Sales & Sales Catalogs

SCMA Records Room
ADEC: International Art Price Annual.
Covers: 1993-2004, annual updates; international sales of painting, drawing, prints, sculpture, and photography
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Contact Kelly Holbert, SCMA Exhibitions Coordinator, to make an appointment to use these sources.
SCMA Records Room
International Auction Records.
Covers: 1969-1992, annual updates; covers sales of engravings, drawings, watercolors, painting, and sculpture
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Contact Kelly Holbert, SCMA Exhibitions Coordinator, to make an appointment to use these sources.
Art Reference Oversize N8650 .L8
Mireur, Hippolyte. Dictionnaire des ventes d'art faites en France et à l'étranger pendant les XVIIIme & XIXme siècles. Rpt. ed. 4 vols. Saint-Romain-au-Mont-d'Or : Artprice.com, 2001.
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Good source for 18th- and 19th-century sales in France. Includes works on paper as well as paintings. Arranged by artist, provides standard info with sale price.
Art Reference Oversize N8650 .L8
Lugt, Frits. Répertoire des catalogues de ventes publiques: intéressant l'art ou la curiosité, tableaux, dessins, estampes, miniatures, sculptures, bronzes, émaux, vitraux, tapisseries, céramiques, objets d'art, meubles, antiquités, monnaies médailles, camées, intailles, armes, instruments, curiosités naturelles, etc. 4 vols. La Haye: M. Nijhoff, 1938-1987.
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Union list of sales catalogs giving location (many in US libraries). Chronological list by sale date, index to collectors of sold works. Numbering system is used by other publications.

Provenance Research Guide

SC Art Reference N3999 .Y45 2001
Nancy H. Yeide, Konstantin Akinsha, and Amy L. Walsh. The AAM Guide to Provenance Research. Washington, DC: American Association of Museums, 2001.
Provenance
Research guide prepared by Heather Gendron at University of North Carolina.

Collecting & Provenance Research Tools

Collection & Provenance Research, Getty Research Institute provides links to a variety of tools including:

Getty Provenance Index Databases
Archival inventories, sales catalogs, stock books, payments to artists, and public collections
Collectors Files
Sales Catalog Files
Covering Belgium, Britain, France, Germany, and the Netherlands in from the mid-17th to early 19th centuries
German Sales Catalogs
Covering 1930-1945 (PDF format)

Provenance Guide: International Foundation for Art Research
International Research Portal for Records Related to Nazi-Era Cultural Property
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"The Portal links researchers to archival materials consisting of descriptions of records and, in many cases, digital images of the records that relate to cultural property that was stolen, looted, seized, forcibly sold, or otherwise lost during the Nazi era. These records, which are in many different languages, include Nazi documentation, governmental records from 1933 onwards, inventories of recovered artworks, post-war claims records and auction house and art dealer records. Cultural property documented in these records covers a broad range from artworks to books and libraries, religious objects, antiquities, archival documents, carvings, silver and more."
Archives Directory for the History of Collecting in America
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A tool to help researchers "locate primary source material about American art collectors, dealers, agents and advisors, and the repositories that hold these records. The database is a work in progress that is regularly updated with information contributed by both institutions and individuals. "

Collectors' Marks

Frits Lugt, Les Marques de Collections de Dessins & d’Estampes (online database)
Fondation Custodia, Musée du Louvre 2011.
Art Reference Oversize N8380 .L8
Lugt, Frits. Les marques de collections de dessins & d'estampes. 2 vols. La Haye: M. Nijhoff, 1921 & 1956.
Sachs example.
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Title continued: marques estampillées et écrites de collections particulières et publiques. Marques de marchands, de monteurs et d'imprimeurs. Cachets de vente d'artistes décédés. Marques de graveurs apposées après le tirage des planches. Timbres d'édition. Etc. Avec des notices historiques sur les collectionneurs, les collections, les ventes, les marchands et éditeurs, etc.,

More Collecting & Provenance

Use these subject headings to find more in the Five College Library Catalog and other library catalogs:

Art -- Provenance
Collectors and collecting
Collectors' marks
[museum name] -- Catalogs
[collector's name] --Art collection

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How to Research Works of Art on Paper: Provenance