If you collect, or even casually bid on, vintage costume jewelry, you need to be aware of the new floodtide of fakes on ebay. And you should be OUTRAGED. These are often very attractive, attractively listed, but the listing typically WILL NOT DISCLOSE THAT THESE ARE NOT GENUINE VINTAGE DESIGNER pieces. Why? As I learned all too painfully myself, because the sellers rely on their category listing alone as sufficient disclosure. Ebay recently created a subcategory for New/Reproduction Jewelry. Unfortunately, that subsection is housed under the Vintage/Antique Category, so it is easy for a bidder to search for designer costume jewelry such as Weiss, and land upon these seller鈥檚 auctions. Since nothing in the auction listing itself discloses the reality of the item, it is up to the bidder to notice that the category they are viewing is not vintage. I think this is hugely deceptive of such sellers, and wrong of Ebay to do this. But this is the way it currently is. Recently, as I have beefed up my policing of this particular seller's listings she emailed me and said that her pieces were available in Dillards and Penney's. This is NOT true, as I have checked. She also said that they MUST be real, or ebay would not permit them to remain on the site! That's genuine chutzpah of the same mold as the fellow who kills his parents and throws himself at the mercy of the court because he is now an orphan! The whole scene is pretty frustrating, so I guess we just need to watch the Tiffany's lawsuit due to go to trial this year and pray they prevail and force changes on ebay. There is an excellent recent article about this in the New York Times available on the internet if you search "Counterfeit Weiss."
What is the difference between a new reproduction and a fake? Intention. Otherwise referred to as "knockoffs," or "counterfeits" fakes are created with unauthorized signatures. There are vintage makers (or their successors) still manufacturing certain lines, and buyers must learn which ones. However, fakes carry unauthorized marks identical to or very similar to the old ones and the intention is to deceive.
Ebay鈥檚 listing policy clearly states: "If the product you are selling bears the name or logo of a company, but it wasn't made or endorsed by that company, don't list it on eBay."It is a duty of ebayers to report such instances. By filing such complaints, the seller鈥檚 listings will be yanked and the seller may even be suspended. So I urge you to do this with the worst offenders. Please don鈥檛 use this device to harass the small individual schlub who doesn鈥檛 know a Weiss from their elbow. I鈥檓 talking about the professional fraudsters who are perpetrating this fraud over and over and over again. So, if you would like to file such a complaint, all you need are the offending auction listing numbers (up to 10 per report).
There are good resources on the internet for checking vintage jewelry marks. But, as I mentioned earlier, the counterfeit marks are pretty close to or identical to the originals. A good clue is to study the inventory, current and closed, of such sellers to see if you spot multiples. All hunters of genuine vintage designer jools know how hard it is to find ONE genuinely minty piece 鈥?the likelihood of a seller having an identical or many different but similar pieces, is pretty low. That is how I discovered that I had just been defrauded. A brooch identical to the dazzler I had bought was again being sold. The seller acknowledged that she sells fakes (REPRODUCTIONS WITHOUT COPYRIGHT PERMISSION ARE FAKES), but refused to take a return. Though the price was not outrageous (it would have been a good buy if it had been genuine - but far too high for a reproduction- even a good one) the reality is that I would never have bid on a reproduction to begin with. Miriam Haskell, Weiss, Lisner and other popular vintage designers are having the prices of genuine collector pieces deflated because of these practices as more and more collectors grow wary of purchasing such items on ebay. The whole market, thus, becomes problematic, hurting ebay, consumers, and legitimate sellers alike.
Many of these pieces are being bought wholesale from Canada and China. The newer fakes are pretty good 鈥?dazzling even in the photographs 鈥?and come complete with signatures that replicate original vintage hallmarks. Even the best comparison will not always reveal this, since the fakers who produce this stuff are constantly changing their methods and styles in response to reproduction alerts. So how can you protect yourself? Here are a few pointers:
- Check the subcategory to be sure you are not accidentally viewing a "new/reproduction" listing.
- Ask the seller if the item is a vintage genuine piece. If you do not get a positive reply - DO NOT BID.
- Check the seller鈥檚 inventory for duplicates or many similar items 鈥?a sure clue
- Ask the seller to display the reverse side and closeup of the mark. They will usually not be willing to do this. Counterfeits have rough backs and glued in stones.
You can REPORT COUNTERFEITS here. All you need are the offending listing number (up to 10 per report).
Please also COMPLAIN TO EBAY about the placement of the 鈥榥ew/reproduction鈥檚ubsection within the antique/vintage category. If enough of us report and complain routinely, we will drive these bad sellers off ebay for good and protect the wonderful vintage costume jewelry marketplace we know and love 鈥?Ebay!
MORE EXAMPLES OF FAKE WEISS, LISNER, KRAMER, EISENBERG and other cheap COUNTERFEITS currently being sold on Ebay include CHRISTMAS TREE PINS, CANDY CANE PINS, CROWNS, LEAF PINS, STARFISH PINS, BUTTERFLY PINS, MALTESE CROSSES, DOGS, CLOVERS, NAVETTE SPRAYS BROOCHES. You will even find SETS. You will never seen photos of the backs of these pieces nor of the marks. These COUNTERFEITS are so obviously CHEAP, POORLY CONSTRUCTED, AND OF LITTLE VALUE! They are also an insult to the good name of Weiss who produced beautiful designs until 1971 and other sought after designers. If you see or buy any of these pieces, please REPORT THE SELLER TO EBAY!
Orignal From: WEISS FAKES FLOODING EBAY - EBAY UNRESPONSIVE
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