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There are thousands of Van Gogh paintings as digital images on the web. The original is the one with value.

Yeah but the real one is tangible and not copyable in the same way. Digital copies are exactly the same as each other. The "rarity" is completely artificial and pointless. Everyone has the same desktop picture, but oh boy, I own the digital signature!

Q: In what sense does the "real" Van Gogh painting differ from a good forgery?

A: Otherwise pointless authenticity.

Q: So why do people spend so much effort identifying forgeries?

A: Because people, for some terrifying reason, value otherwise pointless authenticity.

Why assign value to anything other than food and shelter? It's enjoyable, people like it. If that terrifies you the world must be a scary place.

I still don't understand how this creates digital scarcity or rarity. I'm not messing, I really want to understand exactly how 1 copy of a bunch of bits could be worth more than 0.

There are a scarce number of digitally/cryptographically signed copies on the blockchain. The art itself is still infinitely replicable, owning the signed "authentic edition" is not. That does not mean something to everyone but means a lot to collectors and passionate fans.

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