FAKES AND FORGERIES

A problem facing every collector is that of fakes and forgeries. This is no new industry, but has been practiced for centuries. We find references to it in ancient classical writings. Fakes and forgeries have been a part of every form of art including paintings, engravings, sculptures, enamels, and ceramics. It may be said that no expert, no collector, no museum, has escaped this problem. However, forgeries of importance are more rare among ivories than amongst most other art areas.

Fakers were passing false walrus ivory in China six hundred years ago. And, in the 17th century Europe, many carvers made a living creating “genuine” antiques of ivory. They knew how to make ivory crack by subjecting it to quick temperature changes, and to imitate patina using tannin, moist hay, and tobacco. While these fakes are valued antiques today, the writers in those days, tried to expose these frauds.

Detecting fakes is very difficult, as ivory cracks naturally, and there is a natural variation of coloring. Color normally changes unevenly, so a clue that something has been stained would be an even color front and back, and even in the cut out areas. It should be emphasized that in the Orient until recently, staining was not intended to deceive, but only to please a culture that was accustomed to reverence of age, and scorned newness. The staining was the final step, the artist's last touch to his creation. Now, however, staining has been done extensively to counterfeit old ivories.

Experience is your only defense. You should buy nothing until you have spent time visiting as many dealers, auctioneers, and collectors as possible. With ivory, as with most forms of applied art, constant handling seems to lead to building a personal database for the purpose of comparing.

Many resin reproductions are flooding the market, especially in the form of netsuke and scrimshaw. They are invariably labeled in a way that suggests, but does not actually state, ivory. The simplest solution is to specifically ask if it’s ivory, and require a written statement.

In the case of forgeries, the first point to remember is that the forger has one overwhelming drawback, he is not an artist. If he were, he could make a better, safer living by producing original works of art. Although the forgers have a technical skill to reproduce, they don't have the same quality or proportion. Many forgers overdo things. If the original is tall and thin, the copy is taller and thinner. If the genuine has large hands, the forgery has frog-flippers. If the original has a dress engraved with flowers, the copy has a veritable garden. It's always easier to master the skill of minute detail than of overall conception.

WARNING SIGNS OF IVORY FAKES: Historically, genuine ivory has been difficult to obtain, highly sought after, an expensive luxury item. While gold and silver have carried purity marks and have been closely regulated by governments for centuries, ivory has never been subjected to similar trade laws as to genuineness or quality. As a result, there are a tremendous number of ivory look-alike objects on the market today. These include present day fakes to 19th century substitutes like celluloid.

Ivory imitations have increased since the mid-1970’s. This is largely due to laws, beginning with the Endangered Species Act of 1973. As additional laws continued to tighten the sale of natural ivory, more and more ivory fakes and substitutes appeared. Most mass produced new ivory look-alike products are honestly sold as imitations at low prices, but some will find their way into the antique market.

Here are some signs to watch for, in identifying ivory substitutes:

1. Jagged edged pits and broken bubbles are typical in the surface of synthetics. These materials are usually some type of resin/plastic and are always almost molded. Trapped air and expanding gas from impurities virtually always cause rounded smooth-backed holes in the finished surface. No similar type pits or holes are found in real ivory.

2. No grain or the presence of a repeating grain pattern are two characteristics of artificial ivory. Plastics and resins have no grain. Nineteenth century cellulose was created specifically to imitate real ivory and usually have some type of grain. Look closely that these lines are of regular even thickness and repeat in a regular pattern.

3. Many, but not all cast resins and plastics show seams or casting lines. They are often concealed in the pattern.

4. Be suspicious of rough or obvious tool marks, such as deep grooves on the bottom of a supposedly carved tusk. This is in fact where the piece was glued to a cast resin base.

Finally, older pieces should show some wear, which if understood, can be a valuable guide to authenticity.

Don't come down to hard on yourself if you discover some of your collection is not what you thought it to be, but do learn from the experience and help others to learn the differences. Portions of several books are devoted to identifying fakes and forgeries.

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