Disclaimer. Collectalia is not a legal, tax or insurance advice site. The information on this page is general and based on French legislation in force as of 09/11/2026: it may change, does not necessarily apply outside France and does not take your situation into account. Always have it checked by a notary, a lawyer, an accountant or your insurer before acting on it.
The essentials
- A good painting valuation depends as much on the file you bring as on the expert’s eye.
- Photograph the whole work, the signature, the back, the frame and the labels, and gather invoices and old documents.
- Sale estimate, insurance value and estate value are not the same thing: say from the outset what the valuation is for.
Painting valuation: what the expert looks at
Whether you are looking for a free online painting valuation or a full expert appraisal, the person answering you always asks the same questions. The better you answer them in advance, the quicker and more precise the valuation will be.
| Criterion | What the expert wants to know |
|---|---|
| Artist | Who the author is, and their place in the market. |
| Attribution | Is the work by their hand, from their studio, from their circle, or “in the style of”? The difference weighs heavily. |
| Subject | Some subjects are more sought-after than others for the same painter. |
| Dimensions | Size matters, but value does not simply follow surface area. |
| Technique and support | Oil on canvas, on panel, gouache, drawing, print: the price hierarchy is different. |
| Condition | Restorations, overpaint, tears, yellowed varnish. |
| Provenance | The known successive owners, especially if documented. |
| Exhibitions and bibliography | Has the work been exhibited, reproduced, cited in a catalogue raisonné? |
| Market | The prices recently obtained by comparable works, which make up the painter’s rating. |
How to have a painting valued: the photos to take
To have an item valued from a photo, the quality of the images does half the work. Photograph in daylight, without flash, the work straight on, and send the files in good resolution.
- Overall view with the frame, then without the frame if you can remove it without risk.
- The signature in close-up, with what surrounds it, as well as any date or inscription on the front.
- The whole back: canvas, stretcher or panel, with its keys, crossbars and marks.
- Labels, seals and stamps: colourman, framer, gallery, exhibition, customs, chalk numbers. Each can help trace the history of the work.
- The frame, if it looks old or elaborate: it sometimes has value of its own.
- Details of the brushwork, the face, the main motif.
- Flaws: losses, tears, visible restorations. Hiding them serves no purpose, the expert will see them.
Add the exact dimensions (height × width, excluding the frame) and the technique if you know it. Our guide to the condition report explains how to describe and photograph alterations.
Useful documents
- Purchase invoices, auction sale slips, gallery receipts.
- Certificates of authenticity, letters from the artist or their successors in title.
- Earlier valuations or estimates, even old ones.
- Sale or exhibition catalogues in which the work appears.
- Family photographs showing the painting hanging, letters, inventories, estate returns that mention it.
Even incomplete, these documents make up the provenance. Filed with the work’s record, they serve for each new valuation, for insurance and for transmission.
Who to ask to value a painting?
- An auction house, an auctioneer (commissaire-priseur): an estimate with a view to a sale is often free, from photos or at valuation days.
- An expert specialised in the period or the artist: their opinion counts, in particular for a delicate attribution. Art experts and advisers also produce written reports.
- A gallery that represents the artist, for a contemporary work.
A verbal or quick estimate, given in the hope of selling the work, is often free. A detailed written valuation, intended for insurance, an estate or a division between heirs, is a service that is paid for: ask the price beforehand.
Sale estimate, insurance value, estate value
The same painting can receive several figures, all correct, because they do not answer the same question:
- The sale estimate indicates the price that can be hoped for at public sale, often as a range.
- Insurance value corresponds to what would have to be paid to buy back a comparable work; it is often higher than the sale estimate. See agreed value or declared value.
- Estate value follows its own tax rules; see the 5% flat-rate allowance for furniture in an estate and speak to your notary.
Always tell the expert what the valuation is for: the method, and sometimes the figure, depend on it.
With Collectalia
Each painting has its own record: high-definition photos of the front, the back and the labels, taken from your phone, invoices, certificates and earlier valuations, provenance and exhibitions. Successive valuations are kept there with their date and source, and the record can be opened to the expert read-only, or given to them as a PDF report.
Disclaimer. Collectalia is not a legal, tax or insurance advice site. The information on this page is general and based on French legislation in force as of 09/11/2026: it may change, does not necessarily apply outside France and does not take your situation into account. Always have it checked by a notary, a lawyer, an accountant or your insurer before acting on it.