The old common law axiom of 'Caveat Emptor' probably should be printed next to the Ebay logo.  'Caveat Emptor' is most often translated as 'Let the Buyer Beware'.  In practical terms, it means that it is the buyer's responsibility to ascertain both the precise nature and the value of any item he/she seeks to buy. 

Government legislation has intervened in many circumstances to mitigate the harshness of the old common law, providing protection to consumers in cases where it is felt that the principle might lead to injustice, but where antiques and vintage items are concerned, the public, for the most part must protect itself.

Cameos have become popular once again in recent years and because many of the best cameos are antiques, a buyer who is not well educated in the subject can be easily misled.  Sellers, especially on Ebay, can be as ignorant as potential buyers as to the precise nature of the materials used to create a cameo.  To add to the confusion, labels such as 'carnelian', which is the name of a semi-precious stone often is used to describe cameos carved of shell.

When buyers are forced to rely solely on written descriptions and photographs, it sometimes is difficult to judge the quality or even the nature of an item.   Although most sellers probably are honest, even when misinformed, many do use descriptions that while not fraudulent, avoid full disclosure.

The best sellers welcome questions from buyers as well as any information that a well-educated collector can provide about the nature and quality of the cameos they are selling.   Where descriptions lack detail, a buyer MUST ask the right questions in order to protect himself or herself from disappointment.

First and foremost is the question about the materials used to create the cameo, both with respect to the carving and any setting.  The quality of antique jewelry was not regulated to the same extent as contemporary jewelry and although hallmarks, stamps and signatures can be found on some items, they were not used universally by any means.   Gold and silver were unmarked for the most part.  Some sellers test the metal and describe the results.  Others do not do so.

The setting for an antique or vintage cameo often is less significant than the carving.  Here, however, a wealth of variety as well as outright misrepresentation exists.  Many synthetic substances as well as natural shell, gems and semi-precious stones were used to create cameo jewelry.  Very often, even professional antique dealers are unaware of the differences between one material and another.

Jet is one organic material that often is mistakenly attributed to cameos.  There are a number of substances, both organic and synthetic that have been used to imitate true jet.  To make matters worse, there is a type of glass that is known as 'French Jet'.  When any item is described as 'French Jet', a buyer needs to understand that it is made of glass, not proper jet.  Bog oak is a natural organic substance that is less valuable than true jet and which was used extensively in cameos when 'mourning jewelry' was all the rage.

Many cameos that are sold with the implication or direct misrepresentation that they are made of shell are in fact made of pressed glass.  These cameos can be very attractive, but they are NOT carved shell and usually are far less desirable to collectors as they were mass-produced.  Cameos made of pressed glass often are coloured to resemble shell or even jet.

Coral is another substance with a host of counterfeits.  Cameos often described as 'coral' are in fact made of synthetic substances.  Again, to complicate matters, there are methods by which a derivative of coral can be created using crushed coral and shell.  This substance is not true coral and is not as valuable. 

Hematite is another popular organic substance used in cameos.  While it is not terribly expensive, there nonetheless are glass substitutes made to resemble hematite that often are sold as 'hematite'.

If you see a cameo on Ebay that interests you, ask as many questions as possible about its composition.  If the seller declares that he/she really cannot tell you any more about the piece, try to make certain that you can return the item if does not correspond with the description.  There are countless individuals on Ebay who sell items they have inherited or otherwise acquired without ever studying antiques, but they ought to be willing to defer to an expert if their descriptions prove inaccurate. 

There is a market for every item under the sun and costume jewelry made of plastic, acrylic and glass is popular but it should not be mistaken for something different.