I am constantly astounded when I see the prices people are paying for CHINESE REPRODUCTIONS ......... Items that they are buying as ANTIQUE - sold by unscrupulous dealers who feign ignorance - or claim that the item is a "consignment" and that the consigner says it is a genuine antique!  When the dealer refuses to take responsibility for the item - BEWARE!

Especially prevalent in the marketplace is so called JAPANESE IMARI, MANDARIN and ROSE MEDALLION, TOBACCO LEAF ............ and a host of Chinese Export type wares - as well as every conceivable style of  domestic Chinese porcelain.

Some of these items are frighteningly good ........... so much so that I have seen some of these pieces in the collections of seasoned and knowledgeable "experts"!  The Chinese make these items in different grades - ie. Grade A, B, C, and so on.  You get what you pay for - the more expensive pieces are lavishly decorated and detailed - with the appropriate wear on the gilding, etc..

If you are not dealing with a trusted ESTABLISHED dealer - use some common sense; check the marketplace and price guides to establish a value.  If it seems too good to be true - it usually is!

Japanese Imari fish shaped plates from the 19th century DO NOT sell for 50 to 200 dollars; genuine examples start at around 750.00 - and go up from there. Eighteen inch chargers do not sell for 200.00 - they sell at 700 to 3500 dollars each - depending upon the decoration, maker, and rarity.  Items with "Black Ship" decoration are extremely rare - and most of the forms offered on eBay were never made during the 19th century.

Questionable items have several telltale characteristics:  First of all - many of these items were not made for the Chinese market - so why would Chinese dealers - who lived in a closed society until recently - have all of these Japanese pieces? ......... Duuuhhh - hello! The Chinese Export items were just that ........... EXPORTED! Let's use a little common sense!  Look at the gilding .......... this is a dead giveaway!!! The new gilding is painted on - and usually has a flat, non-lustrous look; sometimes it has a bright finish - and when you look closely - you can see that it was rubbed with a hard object - usually a stone or a coin - to "burnish" it.  This results in a "scratched" looking finish to the gilding.  Go to a fine antiques shop - or a show - and check the gilding on genuine old pieces. There is absolutely NO comparison!  Look at the bottom.  Most of the new items have been stained to look like they have been around forever.  Genuine old porcelain does not turn brown; if it is dirty from age - a little Fantastic or other spray cleaner will remedy that - and whiten it right up.  Chinese Export pieces in the Tobacco Leaf pattern are rare and very valuable; dinner plates typically sell for 900.00 AND UP! You aren't going to buy a genuine Tobacco Leaf platter for 199.00.  If you think you can - I have a bridge I'd like to sell you!  Check the piece for APPROPRIATE wear.  Genuine wear is soft - and has a soft look and feel - from years of moving the item on relatively smooth surfaces.  Artificial wear usually is sharp, raw looking - and often has a "grain" ........... that is - a pattern resulting from rubbing the item back & forth - or in circles, etc..

I have no problem with beautiful reproductions - as long as they are sold as being just that.  Once again - use your judgement ...... don't get caught in "bargain fever".  We have all made mistakes - but we don't have to perpetuate them!  I hope this helps someone the next time they are eyeing that special piece!