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Authenticity is Everything
Beware reprinted bookplates
So, I'm browsing eBay for signed bookplates, and I found a seller who's selling inexpensive reprinted autographed bookplates as reprints (with no indication on the item itself for future purchasers/owners), complete with adhesive backing.
frmnprnts1776 if you want to see what I'm talking about.
At least reproduced glossies have a tell... Unless they're low quality, there's not going to be an easy way to distinguish these from the real deal.
I'm starting to think about avoiding the second hand signed book market if reproduced bookplates are a thing now.
(First sentence edited for clarity, as the seller is disclosing they're bookplates, though the item itself bears no such indicator)
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Steve Viola on
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Why do so many dishonest people ruin this hobby? Im sick of seeing stuff like this.
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Permalink Reply by Ian Baldock on
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He does indicate these are reprints(all presidents). Problem is they will be resold as real by the unscrupulous. Its a cesspool out there. With printers. lasers,tracing etc. its gonna get harder telling fakes . The new 100 dollar bills are already being counterfitted.
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Permalink Reply by Mike White on
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Sorry for not being clear; upon rereading, I can see the lack of clarity. I edited it to reflect that.
The seller does indicate that they're reprints.
What I was referring to was that the item itself carries no indication, as he states that the text which says "Reproduction Bookplate" doesn't appear on the actual item. (If it did, I'd probably be less upset about it, as future owners would be warned.)My concern isn't with the people buying these from the seller assuming authenticity--they're adequately informed.
It's the people buying from them that I'm worried about.
And as someone who always kinda figured that collects second hand signed books and always kind of assumed that the danger lied in people forging the autograph on a flat signed book rather than reproducing the bookplate, I found this unsettling, to say the least.
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Permalink Reply by Steve Zarelli on
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Just when you think you've seen the lowest, something stoops lower. It never ends. He is selling reprints of event tickets as well.
While this seller is disclosing they are reprints, he may as well make the auction title, "Toolkit to snooker signed book collectors."
Other than someone who would use these to deceive, who would want this garbage?
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Permalink Reply by James on
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Exactly. Why would any honest person want one of those? So they can stick it in their Ronald Reagan or Bill Clinton book, and say to themselves, "Wow, I've got a really nice faux-signed presidential book!? Now this is how it would look if that were an authentic bookplate!" No, unfortunately, this seller, although giving full-disclosure, is helping the dark-side of the hobby.
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James: +100
No presidential collector is going to want a copy of a signed bookplate.
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As one of the professional authenticators among us, what can buyers do to ensure that, when they purchase a book with an affixed bookplate, they aren't purchasing a reproduction?
The only 2 tests I know of to judge writing on a matte surface is to check for an indent and see if it bled through.
Unfortunately, felt tips don't really leave indents, and, if the bookplate is affixed, it's going to be too thick to see through.
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The first thing that strikes me is the bookplate itself. They are either color copies or high res scans that have been subsequently printed with a laser or inkjet. I am getting a hint from the auction images that they are not that sharp. The bookplate art itself will likely look second generation.... Lines not sharp, slight fuzziness to the edges of the letters, etc.
I'd assume the entire bookplate (art + signature) were scanned or copied, so it might be obvious in hand it is not a live signature. Under a magnifier it would have a flat appearance lacking any flow lines. It may be a little more difficult to discern when it is on a porous surface, but certainly not undetectable. With a magnifier, on a live signature on a porous surface you can usually see micro bleeding where the ink was absorbed and bled slightly into adjoining paper fibers. A signature printed on typically has a harder edge and doesn't have the feathering.
I hope this helps.
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I love how they say, "Reprint - Text will not appear over actual reprinted bookplate." It's like saying to would-be forgers, "Don't worry. We've got your back. Nobody will know a thing!"
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That's what really rubbed me the wrong way on this one.
If they actually left the text there, it wouldn't make any more sense, but it wouldn't be conductive to fraud, other than maybe giving other would be forgers the idea.
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Permalink Reply by terrier8HOF on
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Steve, for that matter, I don't understand why someone would want a "copy" of anything (autograph related)
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