Authenticity is Everything
Does this Salman Rushdie signature look authentic?
Tags: Salman Rushdie, Satanic Verses
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by crazyrabbits23
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I thought Rushdie signed most, if not all, copies of TSV on the inside of the front board, under the dust jacket, because it was a reference to him still being in hiding over the years?
Maybe I'm wrong - looked on AbeBooks, and saw a wild spread of variations of his signature. Some signed on title page, some signed on the half title page, and a lot of spread on the various signature types.
This definitely isn't a later signature - from the copies I've owned (Joseph Anton/Knife era), his signature is much more simple and streamlined.
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Permalink Reply by michelle
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I havent seen a sig like that before, it looks very convoluted as well.As Rabbit says his sig is very simple and streamlined in a kind of elegant way
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Permalink Reply by PFCollector
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Post it on one of the FB groups maybe theyd know. Or get quick opinion if theyre still doing them from some of the authentication companies
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Permalink Reply by Harry Hood
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By no means am I an expert, but when comparing the signature to the Salman signed books I’ve owned, the S- in his signature has always appeared to me like a backwards or mirrored number 2, and this doesn’t quite look like that.
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Permalink Reply by Timur
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Thank you, I really appreciate your opinion and I do agree. Also the "a" seems a little different to me compared to other examples.
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I have a significant number of Rushdie signed books and I don't have any that look similar to your example so I would personally question it. The only scenario where i can see this being authentic would be if it was done in a rush at a signing event but in that case i would expect to have a provenance or photo evidence.
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I do agree. Someone in another group also mentioned that it's a bit atypical in terms of spacing and some of the letter formations (the R of Rushdie for example). The "a" also seems a little different to me compared with other examples I’ve seen.
So I’m honestly not sure whether I’m just being overly cautious and it’s actually genuine, or whether it’s simply a very good forgery. The price feels almost too good to be true. I’d really love to own a signed copy of SV, but I’d also hate to end up with a fake one, haha.
Part of me thinks I should just wait for a signing event someday and get my own unsigned copy signed in person. But of course it would be a pity if this one actually is real and I let it slip away 😅
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Unfortunately this is not an authentic example, i.m.o.
He is a careful and considerate signer and would not normally attempt to squeeze an autograph in to this confined space. That is my experience, anyway.
More importantly, it does not match!
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I just discovered another signed edition, and I’m not sure the placement of the signature alone is enough to rule it out.
That said, I do agree that most signed copies of The Satanic Verses I’ve come across seem to have been signed either on a different page or on the inside front board / underneath the title page area, rather than directly in this confined space on the title page.
Still, I have seen at least one other authenticated/seller-described example of The Satanic Verses signed on the title page in a similarly confined space, rather than in a large open area.
The description for that copy was:
"Signed and dated on the title page at Indiana University, March 29, 2018. Included is the ticket to the event at the IU Auditorium, and the handout titled Honorary Degree Conferral and Lecture, 5:00 PM. Photos also included."
So at least based on that example, he clearly did sometimes sign The Satanic Verses on the title page itself, even with limited space.
https://www.abebooks.com/signed-first-edition/Satanic-Verses-Rushdi...
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