QUESTION OF THE WEEK: April 7, 2021.
This was a new and occasional (maybe even weekly!) blog started last year where I would answer questions submitted by the random people of the World Wide Web Obviously, I didn’t keep up with it like I should. So, LET’S START OVER! If you have a question and want to be featured? E-mail me here and I’ll do my best to answer. Eventually. Be sure to include QUESTION OF THE WEEK as the subject line. Keep in mind, my answers here are mostly general and should not take the place of a more in-depth and precise valuation.
QUESTION: “How important is the provenance of an antique in determining value? Or is only the antique’s place in history important?” -Joy from Niles, Illinois.
Answer:Provenance is a “record of ownership” that may provide authenticity for an antique or artwork Provenance can help determine value or age but I’ve found it’s often lacking for the vast majority of my clients through no fault of their own
Most say “it’s been in my family for years,” or “we bought it at an antique store in Rome in the 1980s,” or the dreaded “I think my grandfather said he paid $20,000 in 1947” etc. That is somewhat helpful but I’ve learned memories get very fuzzy after awhile. Sometimes the provenance only goes back so far, a client might know where they got an antique but don’t know where the previous owner got it.
Occasionally a client will have some stronger details on a piece – maybe a previous will or divorce settlement, receipts or a previous appraisal. Some have museum brochures or even letters from the maker or artist. This is very helpful and certainly adds value to the piece.
However, it’s also rather unique – maybe 10 percent of my clients have truly useful provenance for their items. The vast majority can only tell me “it’s been in our family forever.”
Provenance can improve value in two ways: Giving potential buyers piece of mind that an antique has a paper trail leading back to its creation. A chair designed by Frank Lloyd Wright will go up in value if you can show it went from Owner A to Owner B and from Owner B to Frank Lloyd Wright himself.
Another way provenance can improve value is if it was previously owned by a notable person. A recent client had a set of men’s pajamas from the 1960s. No big deal right? Except it was owned by John Lennon and included photos of him wearing the pajamas and a letter from the musician’s estate. These were no ordinary pajamas.
Have more questions? E-mail me at grantmiller@grantmillerappraisals.com. In Illinois and looking for an antiques appraisal? Call me at 813-240-4586 (Chicago and elsewhere).