Numerous paintings do not have a signature. One must then attribute them to an artist, assign them an authorship. If this is impossible, one speaks of an anonymous artist and specifies the age and school (eg: Flemish school, XVIth century). However, it is often possible to establish a bond with an artist. One time this band is fixed and then they say that the work is 'from' or 'by' Rubens. The other time this band is less certain. If a slight doubt persists, it is said that the work is 'attributed' to Rubens. If one judges that the work is not of the master, but of one of his pupils, one speaks of 'the workshop of' Rubens. If one thinks that the band is less strict, that is to say that the painting dates from the master's period and was inspired by him, but is not his or his studio, then one speaks of the 'entourage of' Rubens or from a follower of Rubens. Finally, when the work dates from a period after Rubens (and sometimes with a difference of several centuries), one speaks of a painting 'in the style of' or 'in the manner of', or 'to'.
An expertise consists of two steps that can not be confused with each other.
The expert begins by describing the artwork. In doing so, he must answer the question whether he can explain it for real and in some cases also the question to whom it should be attributed. Only when he has checked all this, can he proceed to the second step, the estimate.
For the first step you must be familiar with art history, for the second with the art market. An expert must thoroughly understand the mechanisms of the market and analyze the data on the internet. The information that is readily available there, even if you have to pay for it, take it by foot is the best way to estimate too low and thus to lose the sales, or to estimate too high, which is the same, because then the risk that it will not come to a transaction.
In addition, an expert must remain modest. In principle, he is better placed than his client for estimating a work, if he thinks he is expert in all areas, you can be sure that he is inexpert in every area. You can not at the same time know everything about such diverse things as old paintings, silverware, carpets and old furniture? At least, we think about expertise ...
Estimating a work of art is not an exact science. The truth does not exist here.
The word 'treasure' says well what matters: the value that the expert puts forward is based on a number of uncertainties and assumptions. Because each work of art is unique, the expert goes in search of works that share as many characteristics as possible and have recently sold publicly or privately (insofar as he can verify the latter). Only on the basis of his experience can he correctly interpret the data on databases on the internet.
Each artwork has two values. Just as a financial product has a sales price and a purchase price, a work of art has a sales value and a purchase value. The difference between the price that is asked for a work and the amount that this same work would give you if you sold it for any reason is the difference between its 'purchase price' and its 'sales price' or in other words the profit which is made when trading.
In short, if you want to estimate a work in the context of an inheritance or a distribution, because you want to have it insured or because you are faced with an important purchase, recourse to an expert is the only way to obtain information that trust, remain confidential and focus on your situation.
