COULD YOUR ARTWORK BE BY JAN VAN EYCK?

Previously unknown works by important artists continue to emerge from private collections, estates, inheritances, and long-held family possessions. While authentic works by Jan van Eyck are exceptionally rare, every work deserves to be evaluated on its own merits rather than dismissed simply because it is unfamiliar or undocumented.

If you believe your painting, portrait, devotional panel, drawing, or other work may be by Jan van Eyck, obtaining an independent professional opinion is the appropriate first step. Van Eyck was one of the defining artists of early Netherlandish painting and transformed European art through extraordinary observation, luminous color, meticulous surface description, and sophisticated use of oil paint in translucent layers. Only around twenty autograph paintings survive today, making any credible new attribution potentially important but also demanding exceptionally rigorous investigation.

We have specialized in the authentication of works attributed to Jan van Eyck since 2002. We issue Certificates of Authenticity (COAs), Authentication Reports, appraisals, valuations, provenance reports, and provide buying, selling, brokerage, and investment advisory services for collectors, attorneys, insurers, financial institutions, estates, museums, and private clients worldwide.

Getting started is straightforward. Simply send us photographs of the work together with its dimensions and any information you have regarding its history or ownership. After reviewing the material, we will recommend the most appropriate course of action.

AUTHENTICATION

Is this a Jan van Eyck?

From a single photograph of ordinary quality, we can often determine whether a work appears broadly consistent with Van Eyck’s period and practice or whether it clearly does not. Final attribution, however, requires considerably more. His securely accepted paintings are exceptionally few, and many fifteenth-century Netherlandish works have historically been attributed to Van Eyck, his workshop, followers, or related artists. Materials, construction, technique, provenance, chronology, underdrawing, inscriptions, and comparison with securely documented works must therefore be considered together.

What services do you provide?

We provide authentication, certification, Certificates of Authenticity (COAs), Authentication Reports, appraisals and valuations, provenance research, scholarly and catalogue research, private sales and brokerage, investment advice, and analytical art market research.

Is it possible to discover a previously unknown Jan van Eyck today?

Potentially, yes, although any such claim requires exceptional caution. Paintings can remain unidentified or misattributed in historic collections, but Van Eyck’s surviving oeuvre is extraordinarily small and has been scrutinized intensively for generations. The National Gallery currently describes approximately twenty surviving autograph pictures, including only nine known painted portraits. A previously unknown work would therefore require compelling technical, documentary, provenance, and comparative evidence.

Do I need to get my Jan van Eyck authenticated?

Yes. Authentication is essential if you wish to establish the work’s authorship and potential market significance. It is also important for insurance, estate planning, charitable donations, financing, scholarly publication, and many legal purposes.

Is it complicated to get a Jan van Eyck authenticated?

Not for you. Send us photographs of the front and reverse, detailed close-ups of the painted surface, frame, inscriptions, labels, seals, panel construction, edges, joins, cradle or other structural alterations, and any accompanying documentation. Dimensions should be provided precisely. The investigation itself is our responsibility.

How long does it take to authenticate a Jan van Eyck?

It depends on how much is already known about the work. A preliminary assessment may sometimes be possible relatively quickly, but a serious attribution to Van Eyck may require provenance reconstruction, comparison with surviving paintings, specialist consultation, infrared reflectography, dendrochronology, pigment analysis, X-radiography, and extensive archival research.

How much does it cost to authenticate a Jan van Eyck?

From the low hundreds to the high thousands. It depends on the existing documentation, complexity of the attribution problem, location of comparative material and archives, and whether travel, specialist consultation, or scientific analysis is required.

Can a signature alone prove that a Jan van Eyck is authentic?

No. A signature, date, motto, or inscription cannot establish authorship by itself. Van Eyck did sign and date several paintings, but any inscription must be evaluated in relation to the panel, paint layers, lettering, materials, provenance, and technical construction of the work. The National Gallery records nine paintings bearing Van Eyck’s signature, including the Arnolfini Portrait and the probable self-portrait dated 1433.

Did Jan van Eyck sign his paintings?

Yes, some of them. Several surviving paintings bear signatures, dates, inscriptions, or his personal motto, “Als Ich Can.” His probable self-portrait in the National Gallery is dated 21 October 1433 and bears the motto on its original frame. However, many works associated with him are unsigned, and some original frames bearing inscriptions may have been lost.

Can an unsigned Jan van Eyck still be authentic?

Potentially, yes. The absence of a signature does not automatically establish that a work is inauthentic. Some securely attributed paintings are unsigned, while other works may originally have carried inscriptions on frames that no longer survive. Technique, materials, provenance, panel construction, underdrawing, chronology, and comparison with accepted works remain central.

What documents help authenticate a Jan van Eyck work?

Any document that mentions, describes, illustrates, commissions, owns, sells, or otherwise records the work may assist authentication. Historic inventories, old collection catalogues, estate records, correspondence, photographs, dealer records, auction catalogues, conservation reports, insurance documents, labels, seals, and family papers can all contribute valuable evidence.

Can a Jan van Eyck painting be authenticated from photographs?

Photographs are extremely useful for a first-stage assessment, but a serious final attribution to Van Eyck would ordinarily require physical and technical evidence. High-resolution photography can reveal composition, surface condition, inscriptions, framing, panel construction, paint handling, and provenance labels, but it cannot substitute for all forms of material analysis.

What scientific techniques can help investigate a Jan van Eyck painting?

Depending on the object, useful techniques may include infrared reflectography, X-radiography, ultraviolet examination, microscopy, pigment analysis, binder analysis, dendrochronology, and examination of ground and preparation layers. Infrared reflectography is particularly valuable in early Netherlandish painting because it can reveal underdrawing and compositional changes beneath the visible paint surface.

What if my Jan van Eyck has no provenance?

Incomplete provenance does not automatically make a work inauthentic. Fifteenth-century paintings can have substantial gaps in their ownership histories. However, because Van Eyck’s surviving oeuvre is so small and extensively studied, an undocumented attribution requires especially compelling technical and comparative evidence. Old labels, frames, seals, inventories, collection marks, and archival references should all be investigated carefully.

What subjects did Jan van Eyck paint?

Van Eyck painted religious subjects, portraits, donor images, and secular works. His patrons included the Burgundian court, clergy, merchants, professionals, and foreign residents of Bruges. His surviving paintings include devotional images, portraits, the Ghent Altarpiece, and the celebrated Arnolfini Portrait.

Was Jan van Eyck a court painter?

Yes. He worked for John of Bavaria by 1422 and entered the service of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1425. He became Philip’s painter and varlet de chambre and also undertook diplomatic and other journeys on the duke’s behalf. In 1428–29 he traveled to Portugal and painted Isabella of Portugal, Philip’s future wife.

Why is Jan van Eyck important in the history of portraiture?

Van Eyck brought unprecedented immediacy and realism to individual portraiture. His portraits record skin, hair, clothing, jewelry, facial structure, and expressions with extraordinary precision while giving sitters remarkable psychological presence. The National Gallery describes his surviving portraits as transformational for the development of European portraiture.

Did Jan van Eyck make drawings?

Very few drawings can be securely connected with Van Eyck, and drawing attribution remains much more difficult than painting attribution. The National Gallery’s scholarly catalogue notes one portrait drawing in Dresden that is unanimously attributed to him. Any purported drawing therefore requires exceptional scrutiny of paper, technique, provenance, chronology, and relationship to accepted material.

Why is the date important when authenticating a Jan van Eyck?

Very little is securely known about Van Eyck’s work before the 1430s. His documented career begins in 1422, while surviving signed paintings date principally from 1432 onward. A purported work must therefore be evaluated within the narrow chronology established by surviving works and documentary evidence.

Do you issue Certificates of Authenticity for Jan van Eyck works?

Yes. Upon completion of our authentication process, when the evidence supports attribution, we issue a Certificate of Authenticity (COA) together with a detailed and fully referenced Authentication Report.

APPRAISALS & VALUATIONS

How much is my Jan van Eyck worth?

We will appraise your work and determine its value. Precise attribution, date, subject, medium, dimensions, quality, condition, provenance, scholarly history, exhibition history, literature, technical evidence, rarity, and current market demand are important valuation factors. An autograph Jan van Eyck, a workshop work, a painting by a follower, an early copy, and a later imitation occupy fundamentally different market categories.

SELLING

Can you sell my Jan van Eyck for me?

Yes. We specialize in private sales but use every appropriate selling method to obtain the highest possible net price. We manage the process professionally, confidentially, and on your behalf.

Do I need an appraisal before selling my Jan van Eyck?

Yes. Your work should be priced according to its precise attribution, historical importance, condition, documentation, market, and method of sale. An independent appraisal helps prevent both underpricing and overpricing.

Do I need authentication before selling my Jan van Eyck?

Yes. Precise attribution would be decisive. An autograph Van Eyck would occupy a fundamentally different scholarly and market position from a work described as workshop of, circle of, follower of, after, or in the manner of Jan van Eyck.

Can you help me maximize the selling price of my Jan van Eyck?

Yes. Authentication, provenance reconstruction, scholarly research, technical examination, conservation assessment, publication history, institutional consultation, valuation, timing, presentation, and the chosen sales strategy can all influence the final result.

Should I restore my Jan van Eyck before selling it?

Usually not. A fifteenth-century painting may preserve crucial evidence in its paint layers, varnishes, panel construction, frame, inscriptions, labels, and earlier restorations. Cleaning, panel alteration, cradle removal, varnish removal, retouching, or other treatment should generally follow rather than precede an authentication assessment.

How long does it take to sell a Jan van Eyck?

A potentially important Van Eyck attribution would normally require substantial preparation. Authentication, provenance reconstruction, technical imaging, scientific analysis, scholarly consultation, condition assessment, and valuation should ordinarily be completed before a major sale is attempted.

BUYING & ADVISORY

Should I buy a Jan van Eyck?

If you appreciate Van Eyck’s work, certainly, but any proposed purchase attributed to him demands unusually rigorous due diligence because autograph paintings are exceptionally scarce. If your objective is investment, we can evaluate the proposed acquisition and alternative opportunities.

Can you review a Jan van Eyck before I buy it?

Yes. We provide independent pre-purchase research and analysis for collectors and investors. We also prepare predictive art market forecasts and Buy-Hold-Sell recommendations.

What should I check before buying a Jan van Eyck?

Three fundamental questions should always be answered: Is it authentic? What is its condition? Is the price reasonable? For Van Eyck, you should also examine the precise attribution, proposed date, panel and construction, provenance, inscriptions, original or later frame, technical imaging, pigment and material evidence, restoration history, scholarly literature, exhibition history, and relationship to the approximately twenty surviving autograph paintings.

How can I avoid buying a fake Jan van Eyck?

Call us before you buy. Do not rely solely on an old attribution, Gothic subject, meticulous detail, jewel-like color, Latin inscription, antique panel, signature, or apparent resemblance to the Arnolfini Portrait or Ghent Altarpiece. Van Eyck’s visual language was influential almost immediately and has been copied for centuries. Independent examination of materials, panel construction, underdrawing, provenance, inscriptions, technical imaging, scientific evidence, and comparison with securely documented works can substantially reduce the risk of acquiring a forgery, later copy, workshop-related work incorrectly sold as autograph, or other misattributed painting.

Can you advise me on building a collection?

Yes. We advise collectors on the financial aspects of acquisition, ownership, collection management, and eventual sale.

REQUEST A JAN VAN EYCK AUTHENTICATION OR APPRAISAL

Whether you require authentication, a Certificate of Authenticity, an appraisal, valuation, provenance research, scholarly research, scientific examination, buying advice, selling assistance, brokerage, or investment guidance regarding a work attributed to Jan van Eyck, our specialists are available to assist.

Complete the contact form below or call us at +1 (212) 658-0466 to discuss your work with one of our experts.