Auction glossary
Provenance
Also known as · Ownership history · Pedigree
- Definition
- The documented history of an object's ownership, from its creation or discovery to the present. A sound provenance supports authenticity and legal title, and can add to the object's value.
Provenance is established from invoices, earlier auction catalogues, exhibition records, collectors' stamps or labels and correspondence. Gaps must be stated honestly: an unknown provenance stays unknown. For some categories, such as antiquities and cultural property, due diligence on provenance is a legal obligation in many countries.
In Selloff, provenance can be recorded in the lot's description or additional fields, and earlier sales of the same lot are visible in its history.
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