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Old 24th February 2007, 03:54 PM   #3
Bill M
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Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: USA Georgia
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What Barry said. Probably not old. Could be anywhere from a few months to a few years. Beware of high shipping costs and realize that most of the pieces from China fall in the "replica" category.

He also gives excellent advice in that if you see two or more of the same piece, by different sellers, they are very likely fake.

I have a few of these as do most collectors.

If your goal is building an antique collection, buy from established dealers. If your goal is to have a few wall hangers -- and I don't mean this in a negative sense -- buy from the chinese sellers on eBay. I trust nothing in their descriptions but the dimensions.

Use common sense. Do you really think you are going to buy museum quality pieces at garage sale prices, on eBay? Ming dynasty swords? Chinese general swords? Even Qing dynasty?

There are a few established eBay Chinese sellers that I can recommend, but I know only two, maybe one that I trust. Certainly there are a few more that I don't know, but in general, COME ON!

Hmm, maybe we should post a few pictures? Start a thread on "Ethnographic Replicas?"
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