A painting purchased for just $30 at a Michigan estate sale is now headed to auction with an estimate of $150,000 to $250,000. The story is remarkable, but for homeowners preparing for an estate sale, the most important detail may not be the potential six-figure price. It is this: The painting was signed and dated. According to multiple reports, the buyer noticed the inscription “Abercrombie ’51” in the lower-left corner of the work. That clue eventually led to research ident

Before researching an artist or trying to understand what an artwork may be worth, it helps to answer a more basic question: What is the artwork actually made with? A work that appears to be a painting could be oil, acrylic, watercolor, gouache, pastel, ink, or mixed media. Sometimes what looks painted from across the room is actually a print or reproduction. Identifying the medium can help determine how the work should be researched, handled, photographed, and compared with

An unidentified painting can be one of the hardest items in an estate to evaluate. Sometimes the artist’s signature is easy to read. Often it is not. Some paintings are unsigned. Others have signatures that are faded, partially hidden, difficult to decipher, or added later. And sometimes the most useful information is not on the front of the artwork at all. Before selling an unknown painting, print, drawing, or other work of art, it is worth slowing down long enough to gather