Buying Ancient Jewelry

[PrettySquareGal]

I love the look of ancient Roman, Byzantine, Medieval, etc jewelry I see on ebay, but I don't know how to determine if they are real. Also, how would the seller really know if they are paying people to dig them up?

I'd love some feedback if you have experience in this arena!

 

[lupo]

I love the look of ancient Roman, Byzantine, Medieval, etc jewelry I see on ebay, but I don't know how to determine if they are real. Also, how would the seller really know if they are paying people to dig them up?

I'd love some feedback if you have experience in this arena!

I've bought a bit of this stuff. The best thing you can do is only go with reputable dealers. 100% satisfaction rate, thousands served. Don't buy from Bulgaria (one of their dictators payed a troupe of people to learn how to make authentic Roman looking intaglios and cameos; my dad does business with one of these fellows, but only for the artistry) or any of the other Eastern European nations, even if they have good ratings.

The numismatic community also does a lot of diligence on these guys: they have both the knowledge and technology to do real checks on the stuff, and it's a big community. If you google on the name of the (remember: they must be highly rated and sold many items of the same nature) dealer, and you hear any complaints from coin collectors, the item is likely a fake. There are also lists of known "reputable Roman/Greek coin dealers" who will also occasionally sell jewelry, which is likely to be legit.

Personally, I only buy small and inexpensive items. There's lots of cool coins and simple jewelry and bronze/silver misc. junk which make nice jewelry. You really shouldn't wear authentic ancient jewels, as your body will destroy them pretty quickly. Bits of bronze rubbush or coins are as evocative without being irreplaceable treasures.

IMO, Ebay isn't the best place to buy very high quality ancient jewelry. Specialists, and jewelers who don't know what they have are a better idea.

FWIIW, people's reactions are predictable: "that's fake!" Even with simple stuff like bronze mounts (I wear one on a neck thong, for luck) or coins ... somehow they can't believe it. This despite the fact that there are millions upon millions of such things all over Europe. Maybe in 2000 years, some kid will wear aluminum beer pull tabs and have the same experience!

 

[Maj.Nick Danger]

Good question. While antiquities are intriguing, and the thought of wearing something that's 2,000 + years old is compelling. How do ya know they are real? I used to get catalogs from this outfit,....http://www.sadighgallery.com/egyptian.html....which seems reputable. As lupo wrote, common everyday items are probably real as they were made for perhaps 100s of years and used in every household. Things like clay oil lamps for example, much like modern light bulbs, everyone had them.
But I think things like the bead necklaces are suspect. While they are invariably reconstructions due to the fact that the cords that held them together would have long since rotted away to dust. But, it is easy for any crafty person to reproduce an "ancient" necklace from stone, glass, and/or ceramic beads. I would stick to the common every day stuff, as it's most likely genuine.
Another thing to consider is the legality of the items. Most countries with any appreciable amount of valuable antiquities has made it illegal for the average Joe to just dig them up and sell them. So I have to wonder how this stuff was obtained.

 

[LoveMyHats2]

Good question. While antiquities are intriguing, and the thought of wearing something that's 2,000 + years old is compelling. How do ya know they are real? I used to get catalogs from this outfit,....http://www.sadighgallery.com/egyptian.html....which seems reputable. As lupo wrote, common everyday items are probably real as they were made for perhaps 100s of years and used in every household. Things like clay oil lamps for example, much like modern light bulbs, everyone had them.
But I think things like the bead necklaces are suspect. While they are invariably reconstructions due to the fact that the cords that held them together would have long since rotted away to dust. But, it is easy for any crafty person to reproduce an "ancient" necklace from stone, glass, and/or ceramic beads. I would stick to the common every day stuff, as it's most likely genuine.
Another thing to consider is the legality of the items. Most countries with any appreciable amount of valuable antiquities has made it illegal for the average Joe to just dig them up and sell them. So I have to wonder how this stuff was obtained.

So true. Some times you read even about someone that "finds" a shipwreck with coins and such on it. The legal battles are amazing over who will own what!

I have seen some real coins from rome with Ceasar stamped on the coin, on a show one time, I think it was the antique roadshow, the person that was the expert made the comment that although the coins were old, that there were many of them floating around, and the value was not worth a great deal of money. I think it was valued at about $100.00 per coin is all! Sort of shocked me as you would think an old coin like that would have a higher value.

 

[PrettySquareGal]

I've bought a bit of this stuff. The best thing you can do is only go with reputable dealers. 100% satisfaction rate, thousands served. Don't buy from Bulgaria (one of their dictators payed a troupe of people to learn how to make authentic Roman looking intaglios and cameos; my dad does business with one of these fellows, but only for the artistry) or any of the other Eastern European nations, even if they have good ratings.

The numismatic community also does a lot of diligence on these guys: they have both the knowledge and technology to do real checks on the stuff, and it's a big community. If you google on the name of the (remember: they must be highly rated and sold many items of the same nature) dealer, and you hear any complaints from coin collectors, the item is likely a fake. There are also lists of known "reputable Roman/Greek coin dealers" who will also occasionally sell jewelry, which is likely to be legit.

Personally, I only buy small and inexpensive items. There's lots of cool coins and simple jewelry and bronze/silver misc. junk which make nice jewelry. You really shouldn't wear authentic ancient jewels, as your body will destroy them pretty quickly. Bits of bronze rubbush or coins are as evocative without being irreplaceable treasures.

IMO, Ebay isn't the best place to buy very high quality ancient jewelry. Specialists, and jewelers who don't know what they have are a better idea.

FWIIW, people's reactions are predictable: "that's fake!" Even with simple stuff like bronze mounts (I wear one on a neck thong, for luck) or coins ... somehow they can't believe it. This despite the fact that there are millions upon millions of such things all over Europe. Maybe in 2000 years, some kid will wear aluminum beer pull tabs and have the same experience!

Great info! Thanks!

 

[PrettySquareGal]

Good question. While antiquities are intriguing, and the thought of wearing something that's 2,000 + years old is compelling. How do ya know they are real? I used to get catalogs from this outfit,....http://www.sadighgallery.com/egyptian.html....which seems reputable. As lupo wrote, common everyday items are probably real as they were made for perhaps 100s of years and used in every household. Things like clay oil lamps for example, much like modern light bulbs, everyone had them.
But I think things like the bead necklaces are suspect. While they are invariably reconstructions due to the fact that the cords that held them together would have long since rotted away to dust. But, it is easy for any crafty person to reproduce an "ancient" necklace from stone, glass, and/or ceramic beads. I would stick to the common every day stuff, as it's most likely genuine.
Another thing to consider is the legality of the items. Most countries with any appreciable amount of valuable antiquities has made it illegal for the average Joe to just dig them up and sell them. So I have to wonder how this stuff was obtained.

But I can't wear a clay oil lamp.

 

[lupo]

So true. Some times you read even about someone that "finds" a shipwreck with coins and such on it. The legal battles are amazing over who will own what!

I have seen some real coins from rome with Ceasar stamped on the coin, on a show one time, I think it was the antique roadshow, the person that was the expert made the comment that although the coins were old, that there were many of them floating around, and the value was not worth a great deal of money. I think it was valued at about $100.00 per coin is all! Sort of shocked me as you would think an old coin like that would have a higher value.

First bronze coin I bought cost me $10. Search on "roman silver" or "roman bronze" in the antiquities section. If you don't want to see coins use -coins in the search term.

Like this:
http://www.ebay.com/sch/Antiques-/20081/i.html?_nkw=roman+silver&_catref=1

FWIIW, I don't trust the oil lamps on ebay. Much too easy to fake. Metal stuff is more difficult.