How the Case Is Tested

This dossier tests its claims against a hierarchy of evidence. Primary documentary sources carry the most weight. These are records created at the time of the events they describe: civil registry entries, immigration documents, patent filings, and dated auction records. They are not interpretations. They are administrative or legal documents whose content was set at the moment of their creation.

Below primary documents come secondary sources: auction catalog descriptions, scholarly attributions, and published literature. These are treated as the objects of study rather than as authorities. The dossier does not accept a catalog date as evidence of the date; it treats the catalog as evidence of what has been claimed, and then tests that claim against the primary record.

Comparison images and stylistic analysis are treated as supporting rather than decisive material. Visual comparison can suggest consistency with a period but cannot establish a date on its own. Where the stylistic reading aligns with the documentary argument, it reinforces the conclusion. Where it conflicts, the documentary record takes precedence.

Confidence levels are assigned explicitly throughout the dossier. Claims that rest on direct primary-source evidence are stated as established. Claims that rest on inference from strong circumstantial material are stated as probable. Claims that depend on further verification are stated as provisional. This hierarchy is not a hedge; it is the methodological standard that allows the dossier to be reproduced, contested, and updated as new evidence emerges.