Fake Gustav Stickley Shopmark Surfaces Online

It was bound to happen.

Someone has reproduced the Craftsman Workshops metal stamp that was used to impress Gustav Stickley's joiners compass into his hammered copper metalware.

The bogus mark has most recently turned up on a rather crude letter opener and a large oval copper tray. While the mark is a close approximation of the original, the metalware is a far cry from the quality of material and workmanship bearing the true Gustav Stickley mark.

When compared side-by-side to an authentic Gustav Stickley mark, the subtle differences between the fake (top photo) and the original (bottom photo) are apparent. (Use your cursor to enlarge the photographs.) Unfortunately, when in the field, most people cannot access a photograph of an authentic mark. As any expert will attest, the only way collectors can protect themselves from buying a fraudulent piece is to know the forms, the hammering patterns, the construction details and the weight of the makers you collect.

As David Rudd (Daltons.com) observed, "These forms would not have come from the Craftsman Workshops. They are not in any of the Craftsman Workshops catalogs, which I have found quite comprehensive. Over the years I have seen some low production and unique pieces of Mr. Stickley's work and they had a level of sophistication far beyond what is shown in the tray and letter knife."

David Rago (RagoArts.com) added, "Unfortunately, I've seen quite a few of these. Fortunately the person doing this is too stupid to consider what the pieces they stamp say beyond the mark. Like most fakes, the first few get through because the radar's not up. I think the people that did this understand it's fraud and, once they figured out we figured it out, they stopped doing it. I think what you're seeing now are retreads from when it first started happening."

"We have seen a couple of questionable marked pieces," noted Don Treadway (TreadwayGallery.com). "The marks looked good, but the pieces were what I thought looked wrong."

As Jerry Cohen added, "In this case, the Gustav Stickley mark was just an approximation of the real mark. The technology does exist, however, to duplicate the mark accurately, so the safest defense against buying a fake is to be well educated about what you are buying, or to buy from a trusted source that stands behind what they sell. Gustav Stickley workmanship on copper is not always consistent, so to a large extent you have to depend on your familiarity with Stickley forms and patinas. I advise people to walk away from something they are not sure of unless they are willing to lose their investment."

To see the fake mark beside an authentic Gustav Stickley mark, plus pictures of the suspect pieces, click on this link to our Show and Tell feature, then scroll down.

http://www.Artsandcraftscollector.com/show_and_tell

- Bruce