Art provenance is the history of a painting, its creation and ownership, used to help establish its authenticity. Documents used for provenance include sales receipts, auction and exhibition catalogs, gallery stickers on the painting, letters from the artist, statements from people who knew the artist or circumstances of the painting. These must mention the painting specifically enough for it to be identified, not in vague or broad terms.
A painting with good provenance is worth more than one without, because its history is known and it's less likely to be a fake.
