Art Fair
A commercial exhibition where galleries rent booths to present artists to collectors, curators, and press.
Read the full definition →Reference · Free
Plain-English definitions of the terms galleries, dealers, collectors, and independent jewellers and watchmakers work with every day — written by the Aurelian team, cross-linked to the guides and tools that put them to use.
Art terms
A commercial exhibition where galleries rent booths to present artists to collectors, curators, and press.
Read the full definition →A structured résumé documenting an artist's exhibitions, education, collections, awards, and press.
Read the full definition →The scholarly assignment of a work to a specific artist, workshop, or period, expressed with a standardized confidence hierarchy.
Read the full definition →A comprehensive, scholarly catalogue of every known work by an artist, considered the authoritative reference for authentication.
Read the full definition →A signed document from the artist, estate, or a recognized authority confirming a work is genuine.
Read the full definition →A written assessment of a work's physical state, describing all damage, restoration, and vulnerabilities.
Read the full definition →An arrangement where an owner places a work with a gallery or dealer for sale, retaining title until it sells.
Read the full definition →A limited run of identical prints, sculptures, photographs, or multiples produced from the same matrix or master.
Read the full definition →A line-item list of insured objects with values, submitted to an underwriter for a scheduled personal-property policy.
Read the full definition →The first sale of a work — directly from the artist or their representing gallery to a collector.
Read the full definition →The documented ownership history of an artwork from creation to the present, used to confirm authenticity, legal title, and value.
Read the full definition →Interventions by a trained conservator to stabilize a work and improve its appearance without falsifying it.
Read the full definition →Any resale of a work after its first sale — through auction houses, dealers, or private sales.
Read the full definition →A one-page PDF summary of a work — image, dimensions, price, and provenance — sent to a collector on request.
Read the full definition →A private, permissioned online presentation of artworks used to preview inventory to specific clients.
Read the full definition →A seller's legal guarantee that the work is genuine, unencumbered by liens, and lawfully theirs to sell.
Read the full definition →Jewelry terms
An accredited body that tests precious-metal items for fineness and applies the hallmark.
Read the full definition →The unit of weight for gemstones, equal to 0.2 grams (200 milligrams). One carat is divided into 100 points.
Read the full definition →A gemological laboratory's independent assessment of a diamond's 4 Cs, measurements, and any treatments.
Read the full definition →The proportion of precious metal in an alloy, expressed in parts per thousand (e.g. 925 silver = 92.5% pure).
Read the full definition →The nonprofit institute that established modern diamond grading and issues the industry-standard grading report.
Read the full definition →An official mark stamped on precious-metal items certifying the metal's purity and, in many jurisdictions, its maker.
Read the full definition →A written valuation of a jewelry item by a qualified appraiser, most often for insurance replacement value.
Read the full definition →A measure of gold purity expressed in 24ths — pure gold is 24 karat, 18k is 75% gold, 14k is 58.3%.
Read the full definition →The traditional retail-pricing convention of doubling the wholesale cost — retail = cost × 2.
Read the full definition →A diamond produced by HPHT or CVD synthesis with the same crystal structure as a mined diamond.
Read the full definition →The trade practice of temporarily transferring possession of a piece to a jeweller or client without transferring ownership.
Read the full definition →Carat weight, colour, clarity, and cut — the four attributes used to grade and price a diamond.
Read the full definition →Watches terms
A stopwatch complication that measures elapsed time, typically with pushers at 2 and 4 o'clock.
Read the full definition →Any watch function beyond simple timekeeping — date, chronograph, moonphase, perpetual calendar, tourbillon.
Read the full definition →A pre-owned watch accompanied by its original box, papers, warranty card, and all accessories as delivered.
Read the full definition →Authorised watches sold through channels other than the manufacturer's authorised dealer network.
Read the full definition →The highest tier of watchmaking, defined by hand-finishing, in-house calibres, and grand complications.
Read the full definition →A calibre designed and manufactured by the watch brand itself, rather than sourced from an ébauche supplier.
Read the full definition →A calendar mechanism that automatically accounts for month lengths and leap years until 2100.
Read the full definition →A manufacturer-assigned code identifying a specific model configuration — case, dial, bezel, and movement.
Read the full definition →A unique per-piece identifier used to date a watch, verify service history, and confirm authenticity.
Read the full definition →The documented record of a watch's factory or independent servicing, including dates and parts replaced.
Read the full definition →A rotating cage housing the escapement, invented to average out gravitational error in pocket watches.
Read the full definition →The process of verifying that a watch is genuine — right case, dial, hands, movement, and paperwork.
Read the full definition →Business terms
A specialised system for cataloguing, searching, and reporting on a body of artworks — with provenance, images, and valuations as first-class data.
Read the full definition →Purpose-built software for running a gallery — artist rosters, consignments, works, viewings, offers, sales, and collector CRM.
Read the full definition →The retail discipline of building lasting individual relationships with high-value clients through personalised outreach and memory.
Read the full definition →The commission percentage a gallery or dealer keeps on a consigned sale — typically 50/50 in the primary art market.
Read the full definition →Revenue minus cost of goods sold, expressed as a percentage of revenue — the primary indicator of pricing health.
Read the full definition →The percentage of inventory sold within a defined period — a core measure of stock health.
Read the full definition →The working platform
Track provenance. Record hallmarks and reference numbers. Manage consignments and viewing rooms. Free forever for one user.
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