A Question About Authentic Antique JewelryIs it possible to safeguard our Antique Jewelry from sabotage? Investigations into authentic, reproduction and fake Antique Jewelry have always come up throughout Jewelry in Art History. The question then arises, how can one invest money safely, in Antique Jewelry if there are so many fakes out there? Objects of suspicious provenance or actual "fakes" are even occasionally and unknowingly exhibited in museums and galleries presented to the world as genuine jewels of undisputed orign. The question arises, if curators in museums have a hard time in differentiating between genuine and fake ancient and antique jewelry then what about the rest of us? Inclusion of the bogus into that which is accepted as the standard or primary reference is subversive. Can it be prevented? ProvenanceProvenance is the history of ownership of the property. It establishes the chain of ownership back to the time the piece was made (if possible) and can be an important part of the authentication process. By not knowing the provenance of jewelry means it source is unknown and its historical and cultural importance remains hidden. The question of authenticity results.Antique Jewelry investing and Antique Jewelry investigating seem to be two sides of the same coin. Does the Antique Jewelry in your handcrafted jewelry box have a genuine place in the location from which it appears to emerge? Or is it from another period? Dating an Antique jewel is clearly a primary consideration. Many times a piece of Antique Jewelry has been enhanced or components added to of different eras, in an effort to save the life of the jewelry. Does a "marriage" of this kind, no matter how well meaning, reduce the jewels status as being genuine? At what point does the enhanced jewel become a fake? Although there may be scrupulous scholarship and attribution undertaken, the absence of a guarantee remains. And then there are the questions about guarantees, valuations and appraisals in Antique Jewelry that need confronting. Just because you have what appears to be a qualified antique appraisal document, does that mean its correct? "No antique appraisal is definitive". (Sotheby's, 2008) Since an antique appraisal is made by comparing the jewelry at hand with a similar one that has recently sold, if the appraiser does not know the antique jewelry market well, what is the worth of the appraisal? Does inclusion of the bogus into that which is accepted as the standard or as conforming to a primary jewel become subversion? Is it acceptable, if it is just a goldsmith at play? If you have found this article interesting and would like to write your own article about 'authenticity' in relation to Antique Jewerly that would be published on this site, submit your article HERE. Have You Seen the Jewel-of-the-Month Yet? 
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