> For physical objects, scarcity is an unescapable fact. But when we’re talking about very expensive paintings, the physical scarcity of the raw materials play

> For physical objects, scarcity is an unescapable fact. But when we’re talking about very expensive paintings, the physical scarcity of the raw materials plays essentially no role in the valuation. Provenance is everything. Sure, the canvas and paint is scarce, but the cost of canvas and paint is vanishingly small. Make no mistake, provenance is the reason people pay lots of money for original paintings.