Provenance Research

Stories about provenance research at Getty

Latest

  1. What Is the Egyptian Book of the Dead?

    Detail from fragmentary papyrus shows markings and symbols

    Taking a deeper look at a little-known part of Getty's collections

    Oct 19, 2023

  2. What Is Provenance?

    A closeup of the wizened carved face of a statue of St John the Baptist

    Who owned this artwork before a museum, and why it matters

    Oct 6, 2022

  3. What You Can Find on the Back of a Painting

    Two images lay side by side. On the left, a painting of a nude Diana with a white dog at her hand. On the right, the back of the canvas with several labels for identification and provenance

    The front is only half the story

    Nov 18, 2021

  4. How Fixing a Spelling Error Clarified a Clock’s History

    Golden clock on a foundation of two box plateaus, with female figures sitting on either side

    A clue in a sales catalog helped expand the object’s record

    Aug 4, 2020

  5. Provenance Research Reaches across Getty in the Digital Age

    Left: index card for Van Gogh's Iris [sic], $80,000, 4-30-47. Right: Irises

    Explore some of our projects on International Day of Provenance Research

    Apr 8, 2020

  6. The Odyssey of an Egyptian Cat Sculpture

    Statue of upright seated cat, wearing a necklace

    Analysis of a bronze cat reveals clues about its ancient past

    Mar 24, 2020

  7. From Ancient Scotland to Online Auctions: A Tale of Roman Nails

    When a colleague asked, “What is the weirdest thing you’ve worked on in storage?” I instantly replied, “A group of Roman iron nails!”

    Jan 15, 2020

  8. A View of J. Paul Getty

    What we learned after researching portraits of the collector and businessman

    Dec 13, 2019

  9. Research to Shed Light on 20th-Century Trade in Mexican Antiquities

    Illustration of two rows of pre-Hispanic ceramic figurines in human shapes with headdresses

    The Pre-Hispanic Art Provenance Initiative will explore the modern market for pre-Columbian art

    Nov 14, 2019

  10. Research Uncovers New Clues to the Histories of 250-Year-Old Decorative Objects

    Inside a museum gallery with green wallpaper and decorative art objects such as oval portrait paintings, candelabras, and bureaus, with people milling about.

    A curatorial researcher finds offbeat personalities and events linked to four French decorative arts objects

    Oct 22, 2019