Are French Autographs integrated in the Global Art Market? Estimation of Hedonic Prices 1960-2005
Résumé
The market for autographs has become more open to international buyers since 1990. A data set is introduced featuring a sample of store and auction sales for selected authors every five years from 1960 to 2005. The estimation of a hedonic price function shows that the page number, the type of author, the date and the type of the document explain more than one half of the price differences. Authors who are more often sold in auctions (hence more likely to attract international demand) carry a 33% premium, both in stores and in auctions. The autographs (real) price increases by 222 % during the period, while the hedonic price increases by 80 %. The French market is becoming more integrated in the global market, as supply seems to be responsive to market trends.