Elena Rossi
Determining the age of a painting can be a challenging task, but there are several methods that can be employed to estimate its century of origin. One approach is to examine the materials used, such as the type of canvas, wooden panels, or copper sheets, as artists utilised specific materials in different historical periods. Signatures, stamps, and labels on the painting or its support structures can also provide valuable clues about its provenance and age. Additionally, the subject matter, artistic style, and motifs depicted in the painting can give hints about the era in which it was created, as art movements and trends tend to evolve over time.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Artist's signature | Artists started signing their works in the 15th century, and while their signatures are most commonly on the front, in more recent times they have often been applied to the reverse. |
| Artist's address | The artist's address may be included on the back of the painting. |
| Canvas | Artists switched from working on wooden panels to canvas in the 15th and 16th centuries. |
| Copper sheets | Painting on copper sheets became fashionable in the 17th century. |
| Relining | Most 17th-century paintings are relined, with a newer canvas attached to the back of the older one for preservation. |
| Colour of the canvas | Generally, an unlined 18th-century canvas will have darkened due to the effects of time. |
| Rudimentary stretcher bars | The stretcher bars of 18th-century canvases tend to be quite rudimentary. |
| Reline | Many canvases from the 19th century have been relined. |
| Lighter canvas | A lighter canvas may indicate preservation under backing paper, which was more common in the 19th century. |
| Stamps | Suppliers of canvas and other materials often stamped their products, and these stamps can be used to ascertain the age of a painting. |
| Style and subject matter | The style and subject matter of a painting can provide clues about its era, e.g. Neoclassicism in the late 18th century, Expressionism between World War I and World War II. |
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What You'll Learn
Artists' signatures
When trying to identify the century of a painting based on its signature, there are a few steps you can take. Firstly, you can consult artist signature dictionaries, such as the ones edited by John Castagno, Peter Hastings Falk, and Radway Jackson. These dictionaries include information on artists' signatures and monograms and can help you match the signature on your painting to a specific artist. Additionally, online databases like ArtistsSignatures.com and ArtistSignatureLibrary.com offer search engines that allow you to enter vague details like one or two letters from the signature and return all possible matches.
Examining the placement of the signature on the painting can also provide clues about the century. Typically, an unsigned canvas indicates that the work was not considered finished. However, some artists in the 1950s to 1980s who taught abstract painting believed that a signature may deface a clean work, so they chose not to sign their pieces. Analyzing the style and handwriting of the signature can also help. For example, if the signature includes a date, you can estimate the time period of the painting.
It is important to note that signatures can sometimes be misleading. In some cases, a painting may have a forged or added signature to imitate an artist's work or increase its value. To address this, you can use UV light to examine the painting. If the signature was added later, the difference in pigment will show up by flaring. Additionally, comparing the signature to other known signatures by the same artist can help authenticate the work.
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The surface of the painting
Examining the surface of a painting can provide valuable insights into its age and provenance. Here are some key considerations:
Paint Texture
The texture of the paint surface can offer clues about the painting's age. Older oil paintings often exhibit raised paint, creating a textured surface when viewed from the side. However, it's not uncommon for oil paintings to have a completely flat paint layer, especially if they have been relined or restored. Relining involves attaching a new canvas to the back of the original to preserve it, which can result in the flattening of raised paint.
Craquelure
Craquelure refers to the fine network of cracks that form on the surface of an oil painting as the paint ages and dries over time. The presence of craquelure is a good indicator of the painting's age and can help distinguish an original antique from a reproduction.
Canvas Colour
The colour of the canvas can also provide hints about its age. Older canvases tend to darken with age, although this is not always a definitive indicator as the canvas's original colour can vary. Additionally, relining was a common practice in the 19th century, where a newer canvas is attached to an older one for preservation. This can make a painting appear newer than it actually is.
Canvas Condition
Examining the condition of the canvas can provide insights into its age. Look for signs of ageing or deterioration, such as fraying edges or discolouration. The presence of hand-wrought nails, hand-cut stretcher bars, or handmade features can also suggest an older canvas.
Stamps and Markings
Canvases may bear stamps or markings that can help identify their supplier or origin. Over time, suppliers updated their stamps, so identifying the stamp's timeframe can assist in dating the canvas. The National Portrait Gallery maintains a database of how stamps have changed over the years, aiding in the process of ascertaining a painting's age.
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Stamps and labels
Canvas-Maker Stamps
Canvas-makers often stamped their canvases in large black ink, and these stamps can provide geographical clues about where the artist was working. For example, Alexander Katlan's American Artist's Materials Suppliers Directory provides dates for almost every stamp used in the country from around 1820 to 1900.
Supplier Stamps
Stamps from suppliers of materials such as wooden panels, canvas, and copper sheets may contain the names and addresses of their businesses. Reference lists can be used to track down these suppliers and help establish when and where a work was made.
Collector Stamps
Collectors often marked artworks with stamps to certify their authenticity and increase their value. For example, Paul Durand-Ruel was a notable collector who acquired over 5,000 works and meticulously catalogued and labelled them. Artworks bearing his label are highly sought-after today.
Gallery and Museum Labels
Gallery and museum labels typically include the name, title, date, inventory number, and address of the venue where the painting was displayed. These labels can help trace the exhibition history of the painting and determine whether it has been sold at an auction house. Auction records are an important resource for researching the provenance of paintings.
Shipping Labels
Shipping labels can provide hints about the origin of the painting and its previous owners.
Private Collector Labels
Private collectors throughout history have added their names or initials to the back of artworks they owned. For example, King Charles I of England (1600-1649) branded his initials "CR" topped with a crown onto the reverse of works in his royal collection.
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Art movements
Art historians employ various methods to classify artworks into distinct movements. These movements are characterised by artworks that share a set of qualities, such as formal, stylistic, iconographic, or thematic elements. Typically, art movements are associated with a specific period, ranging from a few months or years to several decades.
The evolution of art movements can be observed from the Renaissance to the present. During the Renaissance, Western art was predominantly focused on creating an illusion of visible reality through the use of perspective. However, by the end of the 19th century, artists sought to embrace the advancements in technology, science, and philosophy, leading to the emergence of abstract art.
The concept of modernism plays a significant role in understanding art movements. Modernism in art is generally associated with the period from the 1860s onwards. It is characterised by successive avant-garde movements, each introducing new philosophies and styles. Notable art movements within modernism include:
- Romanticism (c. 1750s-1890s)
- Neo-Classicism (c. 1780s-1900s)
- Realism (c. 1850s-1900s)
- Post-Impressionism (c. 1880s-1900s)
- Surrealism (c. 1920s-1960s)
- Abstract Expressionism
Postmodernism in visual art emerges as a parallel movement to late modernism and marks the transition to contemporary art. While some theorists suggest that postmodernism ended in the 21st century, others question the existence of a distinct postmodern era.
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The subject matter
The turn of the 20th century saw a shift away from representational, religious, and classical motifs, with more purely abstract and conceptual approaches gaining favour. This period also saw the emergence of Expressionism and Symbolism, with artists like Marc Chagall, Gustav Klimt, and Edvard Munch exploring personal and eccentric themes.
By examining the subject matter, style, and underlying themes of a painting, art historians and experts can often narrow down the likely period in which it was created. Additionally, the materials used can provide valuable clues. For instance, artists began switching from wooden panels to canvas in the 15th and 16th centuries, and canvas suppliers' stamps and labels can sometimes be found on the backs of paintings.
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Frequently asked questions
There are several ways to determine the age of a painting. Firstly, the material the painting is on can be a good indicator. For example, artists began switching from wooden panels to canvas in the 15th and 16th centuries, and paintings from the 17th century onwards are often relined with a newer canvas attached to the back of the original. Secondly, the back of a painting can reveal a lot about its history, including stamps and labels from suppliers, auction house markings, and even the artist's address. Lastly, the signature of the artist can be useful, as artists began signing their works in the 15th century, and the evolution of a signature over time can help narrow down the date of a work.
If a painting is on canvas, the appearance of the verso (the back) can provide useful information. For example, 17th-century canvases are often relined with a newer canvas, while 18th-century canvases tend to have darkened over time. Additionally, many canvases from the 19th century have been relined, and some may have a stamp to identify the supplier, which can help ascertain its age.
The 20th century saw the rise of various artistic movements, including Expressionism, Symbolism, and Fauvism, which dominated much of the avant-garde art in Europe. Expressionist works were largely painted between World War I and World War II and can be recognised by their eccentric and personal style. Additionally, the 20th century marked a shift towards more purely abstract and conceptual approaches in art, departing from traditional representational, religious, and classical motifs.
The 19th century saw the rise of the commercial art gallery, which continued to provide patronage into the 20th century. Paintings from this period may bear the marks of art galleries or auction houses, including inventory numbers or stickers with barcodes. Additionally, the stretcher bars used for canvases in the 19th century tend to be quite rudimentary, and hand-cut, often containing original hand-wrought nails.
If a painting has no identifiable artist, markings, or other distinguishing features, it can be challenging to determine its century of origin. In such cases, it is essential to examine the painting's style, subject matter, and technique. Consulting art historians or experts in antique appraisal can also provide valuable insights into the potential age and origin of the painting.
