I have a great deal of reading to do before they are available, but I’m grateful for the information provided here, thanks all.

just for interest.
some of these questions can be answered within particular state law,
especially in california. .. but questions of digital reproductions in addition to limited series reproductions….ie. those used for promotions, t-shirst etc. are still grey areas. here is an excerpt from california law pertaining to same.

CIVIL CODE
SECTION 1740-1741

1740. As used in this title:
(a) “Fine art multiple” or “multiple” for the purposes of this
title means any fine print, photograph (positive or negative),
sculpture cast, collage, or similar art object produced in more than
one copy. Pages or sheets taken from books and magazines and offered
for sale or sold as art objects shall be included, but books and
magazines shall be excluded.
(b) “Fine print” or “print” means a multiple produced by, but not
limited to, engraving, etching, woodcutting, lithography, and
serigraphy, and means multiples produced or developed from
photographic negatives, or any combination thereof.
(c) “Master” is used in lieu of and has the same meaning as a
printing plate, stone, block, screen, photographic negative, or mold
or other process as to a sculpture, which contains an image used to
produce fine art objects in multiples.
(d) “Artist” means the person who created the image which is
contained in, or constitutes, the master or conceived of, and
approved the image which is contained in, or constitutes, the master.

(e) Whether a multiple is “signed” or “unsigned” as these terms
are used in this title relating to prints and photographs, depends
upon whether or not the multiple was autographed by the artist’s own
hand, and not by mechanical means, after the multiple was produced,
irrespective of whether it was signed or unsigned in the plate.
(f) “Impression” means each individual fine art multiple made by
printing, stamping, casting, or any other process.
(g) “Art dealer” means a person who is in the business of dealing,
exclusively or nonexclusively, in the fine art multiples to which
this title is applicable, or a person who by his or her occupation
holds himself or herself out as having knowledge or skill peculiar to
these works, or to whom that knowledge or skill may be attributed by
his or her employment of an agent or other intermediary who by his
or her occupation holds himself or herself out as having that
knowledge or skill. The term “art dealer” includes an auctioneer who
sells these works at public auction, but excludes persons, not
otherwise defined or treated as art dealers herein, who are
consignors or principals of auctioneers.
(h) “Limited edition” means fine art multiples produced from a
master, all of which are the same image and bear numbers or other
markings to denote the limited production thereof to a stated maximum
number of multiples, or are otherwise held out as limited to a
maximum number of multiples.
(i) “Proofs” means multiples which are the same as, and which are
produced from the same master as, the multiples in a limited edition,
but which, whether so designated or not, are set aside from and are
in addition to the limited edition to which they relate.
(j) “Certificate of authenticity” means a written or printed
description of the multiple which is to be sold, exchanged, or
consigned by an art dealer. Every certificate shall contain the
following statement:
“This is to certify that all information and the statements
contained herein are true and correct.”
(k) “Person” means an individual, partnership, corporation,
limited liability company, association, or other entity, however
organized.

1741. This title shall apply to any fine art multiple when offered
for sale or sold at wholesale or retail for one hundred dollars
($100) or more, exclusive of any frame.

CIVIL CODE
SECTION 1742-1744.9

1742. (a) An art dealer shall not sell or consign a multiple into
or from this state unless a certificate of authenticity is furnished
to the purchaser or consignee, at his or her request, or in any event
prior to a sale or consignment, which sets forth as to each
multiple, the descriptive information required by Section 1744 for
any period. If a prospective purchaser so requests, the certificate
shall be transmitted to him or her prior to the payment or placing of
an order for a multiple. If payment is made by a purchaser prior to
delivery of such a multiple, this certificate shall be supplied at
the time of or prior to delivery. With respect to auctions, this
information may be furnished in catalogues or other written materials
which are made readily available for consultation and purchase prior
to sale, provided that a bill of sale, receipt, or invoice
describing the transaction is then provided which makes reference to
the catalogue and lot number in which this information is supplied.
Information supplied pursuant to this subdivision shall be clearly,
specifically and distinctly addressed to each of the items listed in
Section 1744 unless the required data is not applicable. This
section is applicable to transactions by and between art dealers and
others considered to be art dealers for the purposes of this title.

(b) An art dealer shall not cause a catalogue, prospectus, flyer,
or other written material or advertisement to be distributed in,
into, or from this state which solicits a direct sale, by inviting
transmittal of payment for a specific multiple, unless it clearly
sets forth, in close physical proximity to the place in such material
where the multiple is described, the descriptive information
required by Section 1744 for any time period. In lieu of this
required information, the written material or advertising may set
forth the material contained in the following quoted passage, or the
passage itself, if the art dealer then supplies the required
information prior to or with delivery of the multiple. The
nonobservance of the terms within the following passage shall
constitute a violation of this title:

“California law provides for disclosure in writing of information
concerning certain fine prints, photographs, and sculptures prior to
effecting a sale of them. This law requires disclosure of such
matters as the identity of the artist, the artist’s signature, the
medium, whether the multiple is a reproduction, the time when the
multiple was produced, use of the plate which produced the multiple,
and the number of multiples in a “limited edition.” If a prospective
purchaser so requests, the information shall be transmitted to him or
her prior to payment, or the placing of an order for a multiple. If
payment is made by a purchaser prior to delivery of the multiple,
this information will be supplied at the time of or prior to
delivery, in which case the purchaser is entitled to a refund if, for
reasons related to matter contained in such information, he or she
returns the multiple in the condition in which received, within 30
days of receiving it. In addition, if after payment and delivery, it
is ascertained that the information provided is incorrect, the
purchaser may be entitled to certain remedies, including refund upon
return of the multiple in the condition in which received.”

This requirement is not applicable to general written material or
advertising which does not constitute an offer to effect a specific
sale.
(c) In each place of business in the state where an art dealer is
regularly engaged in sales of multiples, the art dealer shall post in
a conspicuous place, a sign which, in a legible format, contains the
information included in the following passage:

“California law provides for the disclosure in writing of certain
information concerning prints, photographs, and sculpture casts.
This information is available to you, and you may request to receive
it prior to purchase.”

(d) If an art dealer offering multiples by means of a catalogue,
prospectus, flyer or other written material or advertisement
distributed in, into or from this state disclaims knowledge as to any
relevant detail referred to in Section 1744, he or she shall so
state specifically and categorically with regard to each such detail
to the end that the purchaser shall be enabled to judge the degree of
uniqueness or scarcity of each multiple contained in the edition so
offered. Describing the edition as an edition of “reproductions”
eliminates the need to furnish further informational details unless
the edition was allegedly published in a signed, numbered, or limited
edition, or any combination thereof, in which case all of the
informational details are required to be furnished.
(e) Whenever an artist sells or consigns a multiple of his or her
own creation or conception, the artist shall disclose the
information required by Section 1744, but an artist shall not
otherwise be regarded as an art dealer.

1742.6. Any charitable organization which conducts a sale or
auction of fine art multiples shall be exempt from the disclosure
requirements of this title if it posts in a conspicuous place, at the
site of the sale or auction, a disclaimer of any knowledge of the
information specified in Section 1744, and includes such a disclaimer
in a catalogue, if any, distributed by the organization with respect
to the sale or auction of fine art multiples. If a charitable
organization uses or employs an art dealer to conduct a sale or
auction of fine art multiples, the art dealer shall be subject to all
disclosure requirements otherwise required of an art dealer under
this title.

1744. (a) Except as provided in subdivisions (c), (d), (e), and
otherwise in this title, a certificate of authenticity containing the
following informational details shall be required to be supplied in
all transactions covered by subdivisions (a), (b), and (e) of Section
1742:
(1) The name of the artist.
(2) If the artist’s name appears on the multiple, a statement
whether the multiple was signed by the artist.
If the multiple was not signed by the artist, a statement of the
source of the artist’s name on the multiple, such as whether the
artist placed his signature on the multiple or on the master, whether
his name was stamped or estate stamped on the multiple or on the
master, or was from some other source or in some other manner placed
on the multiple or on the master.
(3) A description of the medium or process, and where pertinent to
photographic processes, the material used in producing the multiple,
such as whether the multiple was produced through the etching,
engraving, lithographic, serigraphic, or a particular method or
material used in photographic developing processes. If an
established term, in accordance with the usage of the trade, cannot
be employed accurately to describe the medium or process, a brief,
clear description shall be made.
(4) If the multiple or the image on or in the master constitutes,
as to prints and photographs, a photomechanical or photographic type
of reproduction, or as to sculptures a surmoulage or other form of
reproduction of sculpture cases, of an image produced in a different
medium, for a purpose other than the creation of the multiple being
described, a statement of this information and the respective
mediums.
(5) If paragraph (4) is applicable, and the multiple is not
signed, a statement whether the artist authorized or approved in
writing the multiple or the edition of which the multiple being
described is one.
(6) If the purported artist was deceased at the time the master
was made which produced the multiple, this shall be stated.
(7) If the multiple is a “posthumous” multiple, that is, if the
master was created during the life of the artist but the multiple was
produced after the artist’s death, this shall be stated.
(8) If the multiple was made from a master which produced a prior
limited edition, or from a master which constitutes or was made from
a reproduction or surmoulage of a prior multiple or the master which
produced the prior limited edition, this shall be stated as shall the
total number of multiples, including proofs, of all other editions
produced from that master.
(9) As to multiples produced after 1949, the year, or approximate
year, the multiple was produced shall be stated. As to multiples
produced prior to 1950, state the year, approximate year or period
when the master was made which produced the multiple and when the
particular multiple being described was produced. The requirements
of this subdivision shall be satisfied when the year stated is
approximately accurate.
(10) Whether the edition is being offered as a limited edition,
and if so: (i) the authorized maximum number of signed or numbered
impressions, or both, in the edition; (ii) the authorized maximum
number of unsigned or unnumbered impressions, or both, in the
edition; (iii) the authorized maximum number of artist’s, publisher’s
or other proofs, if any, outside of the regular edition; and (iv)
the total size of the edition.
(11) Whether or not the master has been destroyed, effaced,
altered, defaced, or canceled after the current edition.
(b) If the multiple is part of a limited edition, and was printed
after January 1, 1983, the statement of the size of the limited
edition, as stated pursuant to paragraph (10) of subdivision (a) of
Section 1744 shall also constitute an express warranty that no
additional multiples of the same image, including proofs, have been
produced in this or in any other limited edition.
(c) If the multiple was produced in the period from 1950 to the
effective date of this section, the information required to be
supplied need not include the information required by paragraphs (5)
and (8) of subdivision (a).
(d) If the multiple was produced in the period from 1900 to 1949,
the information required to be supplied need only consist of the
information required by paragraphs (1), (2), (3), and (9) of
subdivision (a).
(e) If the multiple was produced before the year 1900, the
information to be supplied need only consist of the information
required by paragraphs (1), (3), and (9) of subdivision (a).

1744.7. Whenever an art dealer furnishes the name of the artist
pursuant to Section 1744 for any time period after 1949, and
otherwise furnishes information required by any of the subdivisions
of Section 1744 for any time period, as to transactions including
offers, sales, or consignments made to other than art dealers, and to
other art dealers, such information shall be a part of the basis of
the bargain and shall create express warranties as to the information
provided. Such warranties shall not be negated or limited because
the art dealer in the written instrument did not use formal words
such as “warrant” or “guarantee” or because the art dealer did not
have a specific intention or authorization to make a warranty or
because any required statement is, or purports to be, or is capable
of being merely the seller’s opinion. The existence of a basis in
fact for information warranted by virtue of this subdivision shall
not be a defense in an action to enforce such warranty. However,
with respect to photographs and sculptures produced prior to 1950,
and other multiples produced prior to 1900, as to information
required by paragraphs (3), (4), (5), and (6) of subdivision (a) of
Section 1744, the art dealer shall be deemed to have satisfied this
section if a reasonable basis in fact existed for the information
provided. When information is not supplied as to any subdivision or
paragraph of Section 1744 because not applicable, this shall
constitute the express warranty that the paragraph is not applicable.

Whenever an art dealer disclaims knowledge as to a particular item
about which information is required, such disclaimer shall be
ineffective unless clearly, specifically, and categorically stated as
to the particular item and contained in the physical context of
other language setting forth the required information as to a
specific multiple.

1744.9. (a) An artist or art dealer who consigns a multiple to an
art dealer for the purpose of effecting a sale of the multiple, shall
have no liability to a purchaser under this article if the
consignor, as to the consignee, has complied with the provisions of
this title.
(b) When an art dealer has agreed to sell a multiple on behalf of
a consignor, who is not an art dealer, or an artist has not consigned
a multiple to an art dealer but the art dealer has agreed to act as
the agent for an artist for the purpose of supplying the information
required by this title, the art dealer shall incur the liabilities of
other art dealers prescribed by this title, as to a purchaser.

CIVIL CODE
SECTION 1745-1745.5

1745. (a) An art dealer, including a dealer consignee, who offers
or sells a multiple in, into or from this state without providing the
certificate of authenticity required in Sections 1742 and 1744 of
this title for any time period, or who provides information which is
mistaken, erroneous or untrue, except for harmless errors, such as
typographical errors, shall be liable to the purchaser of the
multiple. The art dealer’s liability shall consist of the
consideration paid by the purchaser for the multiple, with interest
at the legal rate thereon, upon the return of the multiple in the
condition in which received by the purchaser.
(b) In any case in which an art dealer, including a dealer
consignee, willfully offers or sells a multiple in violation of this
title, the person purchasing such multiple may recover from the art
dealer, including a dealer consignee, who offers or sells such
multiple an amount equal to three times the amount required under
subdivision (a).
(c) No action shall be maintained to enforce any liability under
this section unless brought within one year after discovery of the
violation upon which it is based and in no event more than three
years after the multiple was sold.
(d) In any action to enforce any provision of this title, the
court may allow the prevailing purchaser the costs of the action
together with reasonable attorneys’ and expert witnesses’ fees. In
the event, however, the court determines that an action to enforce
was brought in bad faith, it may allow such expenses to the seller
as it deems appropriate.
(e) These remedies shall not bar or be deemed inconsistent with a
claim for damages or with the exercise of additional remedies
otherwise available to the purchaser.
(f) In any proceeding in which an art dealer relies upon a
disclaimer of knowledge as to any relevant information set forth in
Section 1744 for any time period, such disclaimer shall be effective
unless the claimant is able to establish that the art dealer failed
to make reasonable inquiries, according to the custom and usage of
the trade, to ascertain the relevant information or that such
relevant information would have been ascertained as a result of such
reasonable inquiries.

1745.5. (a) Any person performing or proposing to perform an act in
violation of this title within this state may be enjoined in any
court of competent jurisdiction.
(b) Actions for injunction pursuant to this title may be
prosecuted by the following persons:
(1) The Attorney General.
(2) Any district attorney.
(3) Any city attorney.
(4) With the consent of the district attorney, a city prosecutor
in any city or city and county having a full-time city prosecutor in
the name of the people of the State of California upon their own
complaint, or upon the complaint of any board, officer, person,
corporation, or association.
(5) Any person acting in his or her own interests, or in the
interests of the members of a corporation or association, or in the
interests of the general public.
(c) Any person who violates any provision of this title may also
be liable for a civil penalty not to exceed one thousand dollars
($1,000) for each violation, which may be assessed and recovered in a
civil action brought in the name of the people of the State of
California by the Attorney General or by any district attorney or any
city attorney, and, with the consent of the district attorney, by a
city prosecutor in any city or city and county having a full-time
city prosecutor in any court of competent jurisdiction.
If the action is brought by the Attorney General, one-half of the
penalty collected shall be paid to the treasurer of the county in
which the judgment was entered, and one-half to the General Fund. If
brought by a district attorney, the penalty collected shall be paid
to the treasurer of the county in which the judgment was entered. If
brought by a city attorney or city prosecutor, one-half of the
penalty collected shall be paid to the treasurer of the city in which
the judgment was entered, and one-half to the treasurer of the
county in which the judgment was entered.
(d) Any person who violates any provision of this title may also
be liable for a civil penalty surcharge not to exceed one thousand
dollars ($1,000) for each violation which shall be assessed and
recovered in the manner provided in subdivision (c). Any penalty
surcharge collected shall be applied to the costs of enforcing this
title by the prosecuting officer.

http://www.shepherdpics.com/Blog/labels/Limited%20Edition.html

I’m really curious about what Niels presented regarding specific state laws. I was unaware that such existed and will be doing a bit of research to find out. My brother’s a lawyer here in Montana, and though I doubt we’re one of the 14 states with such guidelines, I’ll ask him to see what he knows.

Again, thanks for the great post, Brian, you’ve got some people thinking on this one…