Jean-Baptiste Greuze.

[Atheist]

I bought an oil painting in Secours Populaire, Montmorillon, which is a copy (I presume) of a typical Greuze work showing a young girl (possibly a boy) looking wistful and holding an apple. It's a lovely piece (although very sentimental). It's clearly an oil painting, on an old canvas, but no gallery marks - just a hand-written note on the stretcher that it is Greuze and the size in centimetres. It's a very accomplished copy (I suppose that art students in those days were excellent copyists, as they had to learn their trade).
My google research finds the painting, and the resemblance to my copy is very close. But I think Greuze churned them out for people who liked that sort of thing (pretty wistful kids holding a symbolic apple).
Any ideas about finding its provenance?
I know, I should contact an expert auction house. Still, someone here might have some useful advice.

[Atheist]

https://images.fineartamerica.com/images-medium-large-5/a-child-with-an-apple-jean-baptiste-greuze.jpg

[Buenchico]

Copies are still being churned out today
https://www.topofart.com/artists/Greuze/art-reproduction/7410/A-Child-with-an-Apple.php
so it could be very difficult (or probably impossible) to find out anything specific about the version that you've got. Sorry!

[lankeela]

Here's the thing - if you like the picture does it matter who painted it or copied it and why are paintings worth so much money? Don't people buy pictures because they like what they see?

[Atheist]

Thanks for your replies. I bought it for 10 Euros because I liked it, more for the technique of the copyist than the subject.

[Buenchico]

€10 is a bit cheaper than my link, Atheist!

;-)