Restored, Enhanced or Just Plain Fakes in the Antiques Market

Photography: Harry Heuts TEFAF 2016

There is a fine line and subjective interpretation of when an art piece is considered restored, enhanced or a forgery, and it has plagued the antique market for centuries. The sheer number of materials, techniques and places of origin has made a precise classification of decorative objects largely subjective. Art forgery, as we know it, started during the Roman period when a large number of Greek sculptures were copied. For the most part, these copies were not considered fakes, since it was presumed that those buying them knew their real origin. These statues were intended as tributes rather than as authentic art for the purpose of collecting. Unfortunately, many of these copies were subsequently catalogued as original masterpieces.