Proof that this one piece is genuine.
Every specimen artwork carries a Certificate of Authenticity (COA) and a unique serial. Whose hand, which day, which specimen — the framework that upholds authenticity, explained quietly.
Four signals uphold each work.
01What is a Certificate of Authenticity?
A COA is a written guarantee that a work was genuinely created by HERCULES LABO. It records the artist, the title, the series, the serial, the date of issue and the material & specimen data, closed with a wax seal bearing our hallmark. It is issued by HERCULES LABO Co., Ltd. Work and certificate are always delivered together; reissuance is not offered as a rule.
The Certificate of Authenticity accompanies our specimen art. A bare specimen — kept as it is, with no art applied — carries its own serial only; no Certificate of Authenticity is issued for it.
02The Serial — a verification code unique to each piece
A serial for verification is given to every specimen artwork and to every bare specimen, such as HL-MST-A7K2Q9 — a series abbreviation followed by characters that cannot be guessed. We never use a running number, because consecutive figures would let anyone infer how many pieces we have sold. On a specimen artwork the serial is engraved on the work itself and matches across the COA and our internal ledger. The serial of a bare specimen is held on our internal ledger.
03The Wax Seal — two closures, certificate and case
Our logo mark is struck into the wax — the hallmark. It is applied in two places: on the Certificate of Authenticity, and on the opening of the specimen case. The case is made to be displayed exactly as it arrives, so the piece is meant to stay unopened. Once broken, a wax seal cannot be restored. That the seal remains intact is itself the proof that nothing has been touched since the work left the atelier.
04Verification — confirming authenticity from a serial
The serial on your COA carries a verification URL. Opening it displays that work’s public record — title, series, artist name, date of issue and COA status — read-only. When acquiring on the secondary market or receiving a work as a gift, you can quietly confirm that the piece is on our record. Buyer and owner information is never displayed, under any circumstances.
Verification today is read-only display from the URL printed on the COA. Entering an arbitrary serial to receive an authenticity decision will arrive in a future version. In future, we are also exploring NFT-based authenticity records — on-chain proof of provenance and ownership.
05The elements behind our trust
- Artist name — every specimen artwork is created and signed under a stated attribution.
- Internal ledger — serials, dates of issue and specimen data are kept on record by the atelier.
- Seal & hallmark — wax seals on both certificate and case show the piece is unopened.
- Material provenance — the certificate for a specimen artwork records the source beetle’s origin (captive-bred, wild-origin or unknown) and how it came to be used (it died in our care; it died in transit and was returned to us; it had already died when it reached us; or we acquired it as a specimen). We never kill for art.
Measured dimensions, the date of making and the date of issue of the certificate are all fixed when the piece is finished. None of them are published before then. We do not fill the gap with estimates or reference figures.
For any question about the COA or a serial, please contact us.
See the proof, with your own eyes.