How Research Bounties works

1. 1

   Post the artist and pledge

   Create the artist's page (or add your request to an existing one), describe the work you own and what you want to learn, and pledge toward the pot. Your card is saved but not charged.

2. 2

   Researchers coordinate in the open

   Every artist page has a public discussion thread. Historians and archivists share leads, split the archival legwork, and can team up on one submission with declared payout shares.

3. 3

   Review the research before paying

   Submissions must cite sources. When one arrives, your pledge is held and you get 5 days to read the full text and approve, request a revision, or dispute.

4. 4

   Approved research gets published

   Captured pledges pay the researchers 80/20, and the biography goes live on the artist's page — permanent provenance for every owner of the artist's work.

Common questions

When am I charged?

Never at pledge time. When a researcher submits findings, your card gets a temporary hold and you have 5 days to review the full research. Approve (or let the timer run out) and the charge completes; request a revision and the hold is released until the researcher resubmits; dispute and a moderator decides.

What if I'm not satisfied?

Request one revision with specifics, or open a dispute. Moderators read the research, your reasons, and the researcher's response, then rule: pay in full, pay partially, or release the hold entirely. Nobody can win by stalling — unresolved disputes are held in escrow, not forfeited.

Why is silence treated as approval?

Card holds expire after 7 days, and researchers deserve certainty that finished work gets paid. You get reminder emails on days 2 and 4, and a 7-day post-capture grievance window if you were genuinely away.

How do pools work?

One page per artist. Every requester's pledge joins the same pot, so five collectors pledging $50 each makes a $250 bounty — enough to interest a serious researcher. Each pledger still reviews and pays independently.

What does it cost?

Nothing to use. When research is accepted, researchers receive a flat 80% of the captured pot; the site keeps a 20% success fee that also covers card-processing costs. Minimum pledge is $10.

Who owns the research?

Paid research is published on the artist's page with the researcher credited — that public record is the point, and it compounds the value of everyone's works. Unpaid submissions remain the researcher's property; only their teaser is ever visible.