But this particular market is now a very different place to what it was 10 years ago, when Jack Vettriano (fl.1988-) was allocated a 15-word entry describing him simply as a "painter of figurative subjects".
In response to these changing times, McEwan has now issued a new revised and enlarged edition of his magnum opus. Scholars and cataloguers will be pleased to hear that all the quoted sources can now be traced back to a comprehensive bibliography.
The overall number of entries has also risen from 11,000 to 12,000, with hundreds of new contributions on contemporary artists and architects of major buildings.
Jack Vettriano is now the subject of a nicely balanced 500-word mini-essay that sagely concludes: "The place of Vettriano in the pantheon of Scottish artists is far from being resolved - time will be the final arbiter."
The Dictionary of Scottish Art and Architecture is published by the Glengarden Press, Ballater, Aberdeenshire AB35 5UB (tel: 013397 55429), priced £59.50. Copies can be ordered online at www.dictionaryofscottishart.com
