How to spot a fake

Outright forgeries of rare books are less common than in other categories but do exist, particularly for the most valuable items. Thomas J. Wise, a major Victorian collector, forged dozens of nineteenth-century pamphlets and sold them to leading collections before the fraud was exposed in 1934. The more common problem is misidentification: later printings represented as first editions, facsimile reprint editions sold as originals, or condition misrepresented in catalogue descriptions

Learning the edition points for the authors and periods you collect is the primary protection. The edition points are the bibliographic details that distinguish first printings from later ones: specific typographical errors, advertisement pages, binding variants. The ABAA and ABA maintain resources and the specialist bibliographies for most collected authors document these points in detail.

CollectorGrade take

Edition points are the authentication system of the rare book world. Learning the specific points for the authors you collect seriously is not optional. The investment in bibliographic knowledge pays for itself in the first significant purchase it protects.