Certificate of authenticity
Also known as: COA · Authenticity certificate
A signed document — physical or digital — that records an artwork’s provenance, edition number, and key details, issued by the gallery or artist as a guarantee of authenticity.
A certificate of authenticity, or COA, is the gallery’s written assurance that a print is what it claims to be. The certificate records the key facts: the artwork’s title, the year of printing, the impression number and edition size for limited editions, the artist’s name, the medium and dimensions, and the gallery’s signature or seal.
The purpose is provenance. If you ever sell the print, insure it, or pass it down, the COA is the documentary trail that connects this specific impression back to a known source. Without one, the print is functionally anonymous — beautiful but unverifiable.
Two formats are in common use. A physical paper COA is the traditional format — a printed or hand-written card that travels with the artwork. A digital COA is the modern equivalent: a permanent URL the gallery hosts, with the same information machine-readable and timestamped. Digital certificates are harder to forge (you can’t tamper with the gallery’s records) and harder to lose, but they depend on the gallery staying online.
At Clark & Darcey we issue a digital certificate for every limited edition print. The certificate is published at a permanent URL the day the print is signed and shipped, and records the artwork, the impression number, the edition size, the year, and the original buyer’s name. Future owners can confirm provenance by visiting the URL; we’ll continue to host the records indefinitely.
Open editions don’t carry COAs — they’re not built around the scarcity claim a certificate is designed to authenticate.
Common questions about certificate of authenticity
- Why does a print need a certificate of authenticity?
- The certificate is the documentary trail connecting a specific print to a verified source. Without one, the print is functionally anonymous — beautiful but unverifiable when you come to insure, sell, or pass it on. The COA records the artwork title, impression number, edition size, artist name, year, and gallery details.
- Is a digital certificate of authenticity valid?
- Yes — a digital COA hosted at a permanent URL by the issuing gallery is widely accepted, including for insurance and resale. Digital certificates are harder to forge than paper ones (the gallery's records can't be tampered with retrospectively) and harder to lose. They depend on the gallery remaining accessible, so reputable galleries commit to indefinite hosting.
- Do open editions come with a certificate?
- Typically no. A certificate of authenticity is built around the scarcity claim of a limited edition — the impression number and edition size are the things being authenticated. Open editions have no scarcity to verify, so they're not usually accompanied by a COA.