Woman in a white dress examining a large Old Master painting close up in a museum gallery

People typically buy Old Master paintings through four channels: international art fairs, auctions, dealers’ galleries/dealerships, and private sales. At fairs, dozens of specialist dealers present artworks at once, and a vetting committee reviews the objects at each stand before the fair opens.

Each channel offers distinct advantages and access levels that shape how collectors decide where to buy. The fair's first advantage is that in a single visit, you can weigh condition, quality, and price side by side across the market, and you deal directly with the dealer who owns the picture.

The second is vetting. At the major fairs, specialist committees review what's on the stands before the doors open, a level of scrutiny rarely found elsewhere. This benefits both seasoned and experienced collectors seeking museum-quality pieces and first-time buyers looking for added assurance.

Key points:

● Do your own due diligence. It is worth enquiring early about provenance, condition, and export documentation.

● The Art World runs on a calendar. BRAFA and The Winter Show open in January, followed by TEFAF Maastricht in March; BIAF Florence and Fine Arts Paris follow in September, and Frieze Masters in October closes the year.

● Vetting is the fair's real edge. TEFAF Maastricht puts every object in front of roughly 200 experts across 30 committees before the doors open.

● The auction warranty is narrower than you'd think. At some large auction houses, it covers only the warranty, which covers just the ‘Heading’ of the sale; the capitalized first line of the lot entry. This warranty doesn't apply to objects and paintings being sold as "attributed to," "circle of," or "studio of."

● Old Masters outpaced the wider art market in 2025. The segment grew about 30% to just under $1.2 billion, while global art sales rose 4% to $59.6 billion (Arts Economics, The Art Basel and UBS Art Market Report 2026 ).

Why are Old Master Paintings Bought at Fairs?

Old Master paintings are often bought at fairs because these exhibitions bring together a carefully curated selection of exceptional works, many of which are fresh to the market. When these exceptional paintings resurface whether through rediscovery or from a long-held private collection they tend to be unveiled at a fair. A major painting or rediscovery may appear only once a decade, and it is more likely to be seen at art fairs like TEFAF Maastricht or BIAF in Florence.

The market data points the same way. Per the Art Basel and UBS Global Art Market Report 2026, Old Master sales grew roughly 30% in 2025 to just under $1.2 billion, versus 4% for the market as a whole — and that growth came from high-value transactions rather than more pictures changing hands. Fewer high-quality works are coming to market, so competition is focused on the limited number that do become available. In fact, the finest Old Masters are steadily moving from private collections into permanent museum collections, and they won’t return to the market. Every institutional acquisition shrinks what's left in circulation for good.

The Major Old Master Art Fairs in 2026 and 2027

Fair	Where	Old Master strength
TEFAF Maastricht	MECC, Maastricht	Museum-level quality artworks: the most rigorous vetting on the circuit.
BIAF	Palazzo Corsini, Florence	The most concernated international art fair dedicated: to historic Italian art and antiques.
BRAFA	Brussels Expo	Broad-spectrum of art: an Old Master hangs near a Magritte.
Frieze Masters	The Regent's Park, London	Ancient to late twentieth century; strong buyers, lighter vetting.
The Winter Show	Park Avenue Armoury, NY	America's oldest and longest-running but international art fairs.
Salon du Dessin	Palais Brongniart, Paris	Drawings only: and the best entry point in the field.
Fine Arts Paris	Grand Palais, Paris	Around 100 dealers: some twenty specialities.
The Treasure House Fair	Royal Hospital Chelsea	Masterpiece's successor: broader price range.
TEFAF New York	Park Avenue Armoury	Modern, Contemporary, design, jewellery and antiquities — not primarily Old Masters.

TEFAF Maastricht

Held every March, TEFAF brought 277 dealers from 24 countriesunder one roof in 2026, running from antiquities through to a substantial modern and contemporary section. Its vetting is the most rigorous: since 2018 the committees have excluded dealers and auction-house specialists entirely, in favor of art historians, curators and conservators.

Good for: Museum-quality acquisitions, and first-time buyers who want independent eyes on a picture before they ever see it.

Frieze Masters

Runs alongside Frieze London (Contemporary) each October, covering the ancient era through to the late twentieth century. The adjacency is the point. It puts historical material in front of a crowd that came to town for contemporary art, and dealers use their booths to set eras deliberately against each other, a fifteenth-century panel against a twentieth-century canvas.

Good for: Collectors transitioning from contemporary to historical art.

The Treasure House Fair

Masterpiece London's successor, launched in 2023 at the Royal Hospital Chelsea by two of Masterpiece's own co-founders, Thomas Woodham-Smith and Harry van der Hoorn. A summer fixture, and a genuinely broader price range than the Maastricht end of the market.

Good for: Buying antiques, fine art, fine jewelry, and design pieces.

BIAF, The Florence International Antiques Biennial

Every second year at Palazzo Corsini, and the most concentrated offering of Italian Old Masters anywhere. Around 80 vetted dealers, three vetting commissions totaling 65 members, and a Palazzo rather than a convention hall. The 34th edition runs 26 September to 4 October 2026, and Maison d'Art will be exhibiting.

Good for: Italian Old Masters.

How Fair Vetting Works, and What It Doesn't Cover

Art fair’s real advantage lies in its vetting process, which is worth understanding in detail. At TEFAF Maastricht, approximately 200 experts across 30 specialist committees examine every object for authenticity, condition and quality in the days before the doors open.

Since 2018, those committees have excluded dealers and auction-house specialists in favor of academics, curators, conservators and independent scholars, supported by an on-site scientific research team. Every painting and object is checked against the Art Loss Register's database of some 700,000 items, and any object subject to a claim is removed immediately. BRAFA runs a two-day process with more than eighty experts and a scientific laboratory. BIAF's 2026 vetting uses three commissions totaling 65 members, chaired by leading industry figures. Show uses 120 experts.However, TEFAF doesn't present vetting as a guarantee and openly states that buyers remain responsible for their own due diligence.

What the Auction Authenticity Warranty Actually Covers

The auction house’s authenticity warranty is valid for five years and applies solely to the Heading—the capitalized first line of the lot entry—not to the descriptive paragraphs that follow. The conditions of sale also exclude a specific list of Qualified Headings: "attributed to," "studio of," "circle of," "follower of," "manner of," and "after."

If the heading contains anything other than the artist’s name alone, the warranty does not apply. This is common for Old Master lots, which are frequently cataloged with qualifying terms.

Auction houses guarantee against counterfeits, but if a picture is described as “circle of,” it is not considered a counterfeit—the catalog already clarifies that it is not by the named artist. Auction houses also do not cover situations where scholarly opinion changes after the sale. If you make a warranty and the claim is successful, the only remedy is cancellation and a refund of the purchase price. No damages, costs, or increases in value are covered.

How to Read the Catalogue Entry for Old Master Paintings

These terms also represent the pricing hierarchy for the entire category. These definitions explain exactly how Old Master Paintings are catalogued.

Term	What it means
Artist's name alone	The house believes the work is by that artist. The only form the warranty covers
Attributed to…	"probably a work by the artist in whole or in part"
Studio of… / Workshop of…	Executed in the artist's studio, possibly under supervision of the artist
Circle of…	Of the artist's period, showing their influence
Follower of…	In the artist's style, but not necessarily by a pupil
Manner of…	In the artist's style, but of a later date
After…	A copy, of any date

Provenance, Condition, and Getting the Picture Home

You might fall in love with a picture in just ten seconds. However, before making a purchase, carefully consider these three essential questions: Provenance, Condition, and Export Licenses. Taking the time to evaluate each one can help ensure your decision is both informed.

Provenance

Before purchasing an artwork, ask the dealer to explain where the picture was between 1933 and 1945. Always verify this information using independent records rather than taking it at face value.

Two important databases can assist in your research. The first is the Art Loss Register. It is the world’s largest private database of stolen and missing works, with searches starting at £85. The second is the Getty Provenance Index, a free resource that contains sales records reaching back to the seventeenth century. It’s a fantastic database; however, no database of stolen art can ever be fully comprehensive.

Legal frameworks are also evolving. Germany's Court of Arbitration for Nazi-looted Cultural Property opened on 1 December 2025, and now allows claimants to initiate a case unilaterally, without requiring the current owner’s consent for arbitration of Nazi-looted cultural property.

Condition

Always ask for the condition report, then make sure you understand all the terms in the condition report.Relining means a second canvas has been attached behind the original to support one that's weak or torn — routine, and not a fault, though historic methods used heat and glue and could flatten the impasto.

Export Licenses

Make sure the picture comes with the documentation and export licenses it needs to travel wherever you plan to keep it, and confirm the logistics before you buy, not after. At European fairs in particular, cultural property rules can affect both the timing and the cost of getting a painting home; make sure it has all required documentation.

Buying Old Master Paintings: The Bottom Line

Collecting is a passion and a dealer's gallery gives you time, warranty, advice, and expertise. Maison d'Art has dealt in European paintings from the thirteenth to the eighteenth centuries since 1997, placing works with the Louvre, the Metropolitan Museum, the Getty, and the Prado, among others.

We'll be exhibiting at BIAF, Palazzo Corsini, Florence, from 26 September to 4 October 2026.

Get in touch to arrange a private consultation or discuss building your collection.

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Alessia Corsini

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Where to Buy Old Master Paintings: A Collector's Guide to the Major Art Fairs