Everything You Need to Know About Authenticating Vintage Furniture

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For anyone new to the world of vintage furniture, it can feel like an intimidating space to explore. So many dealers popped up on the scene during the pandemic as the demand for furniture surged. As this market continues to grow, the education gap will also widen. An overwhelming amount of replicas and dupes have arrived, which adds another layer of stress to the experience of shopping for vintage furniture. Nobody wants to get scammed.

I’m always inclined to support buying originals or reproductions that are authenticated, but it can be difficult when you have a tighter spending budget. The reseller market makes this even more complicated because prices are often still high for replicas. Surely we’ve all seen Cesca-style chairs and fake Togos being resold for absurd prices that are considerably less than the originals but still expensive nonetheless. (“Made in Italy” stickers are the new “Made in China” stamp.) But some dealers aren’t being honest about whether or not a piece is authentic, even though it’s not hard to add descriptors like “frequently attributed to,” “in the style of” or “commonly mistaken for” to a listing.

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