Art Provenance

Before you shell out for a piece of art you should know about its provenance, or ownership history. The owner of a painting by van Dyck found this out the hard way when they consigned it to auction. The Art Loss Register - which tracks stolen work - identified the picture as one confiscated by Goering from dealer Jacques Goudstikker shortly after he fled the Netherlands in 1940. While he escaped with only his personal effects, Goudstikker did manage to hold onto his "little black book," which listed the 1400 works in his collection, including pictures by Rembrandt and Vermeer. The auction consignor eventually worked out a deal to restitute the painting. For the full story - click the title Irish Art