In all areas of collecting, from movie memorabilia to oil
paintings, something is authentic if its true identity is described
accurately and sincerely.
If you pay good money for an “original 1930 Greta Garbo
photograph by the famous Hollywood photographer George Hurrell,”
you expect to receive an original 1930 Greta Garbo photo by George
Hurrell. You don’t expect a 1970 reprint or a photo by an
unknown photographer.
An item does not have to be rare or expensive or old to be
authentic. It just has to be accurately and sincerely described.
A cheapo 2003 reprint can be authentic if described as a cheapo
2003 reprint.
Errors in the description of an item are considered significant
when they significantly affect the financial value or reasonable
non-financial expectations of the buyer. An example of the reasonable
non-financial expectations would involve a collector who specializes
in real photo post cards of her home state of Iowa and makes
it crystal clear to the seller that she only wants postcards
depicting Iowa. Even if there is no financial issue, she would
have reason to be disappointed if the purchased postcard turned
out to show Oklahoma or Minnesota.
Many errors in description are minor and have little to no
material effect. If that 1930 Greta Garbo photo turns out to
be from 1934, it may not effect the financial value or desirability
to the purchaser.
Common terms:
Counterfeit: a reprint or reproduction that is made
to order fool others into believing it is original.
Forgery: an item that was made to fool others into
believing it is something it is not. This includes counterfeits,
but also made up items, like a ‘newly discovered’ Rembrandt
painting.
Fake: an item that is seriously misidentified. This
includes forgeries and counterfeits. It also includes items that
are innocently misidentified by collectors or sellers who are
uninformed.
When in doubt about seller or maker’s intent, it’s
best to call a bad sale or auction item a fake instead of a forgery
or counterfeit. All three words mean an item is not genuine,
but forgery and counterfeit implies intentional illegality.
It’s about making judgments
This guide isn’t about becoming omniscient or gaining
superhero powers of authentication. It’s about forming sound
opinions based on your knowledge, experience, tools, resources
and common sense.
With many prints you will be confident to certain they are
genuine.
With many prints you will be confident to certain they are
fakes or otherwise have significant errors in description.
A percentage of prints you won’t be able to make a definitive
opinion. Perhaps the print is outside your area of specialty.
Perhaps the print has something strange about it, but not strange
enough to prove it fake.
There’s nothing wrong with being unsure. Even the experts
at Christies sometimes scratch their heads and seek outside opinions.
Judging authenticity is rarely done in a vacuum
For the collector, making judgments is usually done within
a context. Usually the context is deciding whether or not to
purchase and how much to pay.
A knowledgeable collector might take a wild chance on a foreign
print if the price is $30 and it will look sharp on the wall,
but pass if the price is $500. A collector might purchase an
unfamiliar print if he knows the seller to be knowledgeable,
but wouldn’t give it a second glace if the seller had a
reputation for selling fakes.
You never have to buy a work of art or piece of memorabilia.
If you are uncomfortable with the looks of the item, the price
or the reliability of the seller, you can choose not to bid or
buy.
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