Re: [MOPO] A good fake is always worth making

[Robert D. Brooks]

Remember the James (brother of Jesus) ossuary?  The one that fooled archaeologists and experts at the major middle eastern museums, the ROM, the Discovery Channel among many others?  Well after studying it for a year, it was recently announced that it was a fake.  And, it wasn't that good of one.  The box was real, but the inscription was carved THROUGH the patina.  Then, the forgers just mixed chalk with hot water and 'painted' the patina back on.  The patina was the very first thing they should have checked around the inscription!  Sometimes the experts at museums don't even know as much as other collectors.   Try checking out Drawn to Trouble, a book by expert art forger Eric Hebborn.  It's a fascinating read!  And, once finished, you will have nothing but contempt for Sotheby's, et al...  He would forge drawings by all the old masters (using old paper torn from blank manuscripts and inks that he made himself using the old methods) - many of which are still in museums today.  But, he was an honest forger, he would never claim his drawings were original.  He'd just take them into an auction house and tell them "I've got something interesting to show you".  They were ALWAYS authenticated by the auction houses.  Being somewhat honest, he never signed any of his drawings - but, quite often, by the time they made it to auction, a signature of the old Master would 'mysteriously' appear...   Night, Bob ----- Original Message ----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] To: MoPo-L@LISTSERV.AMERICAN.EDU Sent: Thursday, January 06, 2005 11:13 PM Subject: Re: [MOPO] A good fake is always worth making To further comment on this, many people aren't duplicating 60+ year old paper but instead are duping Clint Eastwood, Godfather, things like that, even impossible titles like Halloween.   How much do you need to age a 30 year old heavy card stock glossy lobby card to fool most people? None at all.   If someone were to duplicate a Caddyshack lobby card, and place a few strategic edge stresses, it wouldn't shout out that it hadn't aged for decades, but would look like it should, considering slight handling wear.   Now, to duplicate a card that was 60+ years old and effectively age it, considering the feel of that older paper and the scrutiny at which many collectors view it, that would probably require the type of talent and skill that one would wonder, why doesn't this person put that to use and get a real job?   Then again, forgers don't usually make their dough off of informed knowledgable collectors, it's a lot easier to fool the casual collectors who think Scarface, Untouchables, and Goodfellas constitute a well rounded collection.   Peace,   Jarrod   Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content. No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Anti-Virus. Version: 7.0.298 / Virus Database: 265.6.8 - Release Date: 03/01/2005 Visit the MoPo Mailing List Web Site at www.filmfan.com ___________________________________________________________________ How to UNSUBSCRIBE from the MoPo Mailing List Send a message addressed to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] In the BODY of your message type: SIGNOFF MOPO-L The author of this message is solely responsible for its content.

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