I have a canvas that seems to a very good reproduction. I cant tell if it is an oil hand painted reproduction or a silk screen or something. Can anyone tell from the photo I have scanned of it ?

It can not be an original oil painting mainly because the textured brushstrokes are flat against the canvas instead of raised. Real brushstrokes have depth. So it is a reproduction.

It is not a silkscreen.

Most reproductions of paintings are simply prints that are printed on canvas to make them look more like an original painting. By printing directly to a canvas instead of on paper you get the 'grainy, pebbled' look of a canvas painting.

But it is a nice copy of a very good painting, one that many people would love to hang in their houses.

Many (but not all) oil paintings have a definite texture - the surface is not smooth. If it has a rough texture it is probably an oil painting.

Yes... it's oil painting reproductions as the original by Edward Potthast is part of The Art Institute of Chicago; Friends of American Art Collection. It looks like a direct print on canvas as there don't appear to be brushstrokes as one might expect in a painting, reproduction or not. It is still a beautiful image

The texture should tell you. It could be a repro using acrylics (or alkyds, similar to oil paint) in which case it's not VERY old, but if it's oil paint, first you should be able to smell linseed oil close up to the canvas. And there will be little cracks in the texture, although that's also possible with acrylics, which have very little flexiblility (a characteristic that true oil paint does have). If a silk-screen, the paint would not be thick, or varying in thickness (impasto), and it isn't apparent if there are brushstrokes? To further complicate the question, oil paintings should be coated with a protective varnish.

Well, the points you have arranged to come to the conclusion that this is a direct print on canvas, seems feasible. After reading the points I am also having the same feeling.