patina \PAT-n-uh; puh-TEEN-uh\ (noun) - 1 : The color or incrustation which age gives to works of art; especially, the green rust which covers ancient bronzes, coins, and medals. 2 : The sheen on any surface, produced by ...Read More

provenance \PROV-uh-nuhn(t)s\ (noun) - Origin; source.

"At this point, and assuming that the provenance is very good, I don't see more than seventy-five to a hundred and fifty thousand dollars in the whole lot." -- ...Read More

caveat \KAY-vee-at; KAV-ee-; KAH-vee-aht\ (noun) - 1 : (Law) A notice given by an interested party to some officer not to do a certain act until the opposition has a hearing. 2 : A warning or caution; also, a cautionary ...Read More

nonage \NON-ij; NOH-nij\ (noun) - 1. The time of life before a person becomes legally of age. 2 : A period of youth or immaturity.

"In him there is a hope of government,
Which, in his nonage, council under him,
...Read More

fetid \FET-id; FEE-tid\ (adjective) - Having an offensive smell; stinking.

"When Savigny returned to his fetid sty of a hutch, he found a veritable pandemonium, a huddle of men stringing their hammocks against every ...Read More

meticulous \muh-TIK-yuh-luhs\ (adjective) - Extremely or excessively careful about details.

"Starling was an efficient housekeeper, but not a meticulous one. Her side of the duplex was clean and she could find everything,...Read More