Once, again, I have to warn you naive folks, you new-comers out there, you just can't believe the listings. Those of you who have a little experience with highwaymen art may have laughed out loud when you read this description, but it has included a somewhat disturbing phrase, "guaranteed to be a genuine highwaymen".
here it is: http://cgi.ebay.com/HIGHWAYMEN-PAINTING-SUNSET-UPSON-BOARD-no-res_W0QQitemZ190262167789QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item190262167789&_trkparms=39%3A1%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A13%7C240%3A1318&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14
A guarantee from a seller experienced in selling listed artists looks pretty good.
But as we all know, looks can be deceiving. With thousands of positive feedbacks to reinforce the sellers trustworthiness, the buyer may believe he or she has bought a genuine highwaymen painting.
Oh, and just in case the buyer consults with a knowledgeable highwaymen collector or dealer, after his or her purchase, and feels a little bit misled by the guarantee, the seller added this wrinkle. "These old eyes" couldn't quite read the signature. That is a built-in excuse for the misrepresentation, which I believe was intentional. "By gosh, it sure LOOKED like one of the names on the list of 26 artists in the group."
This kind of stuff just muddies the waters of a wonderful collectibles market, causes confusion in many cases, and may have cost someone a little extra money in the end.
So there you have it, another warning for you, and a new enemy for me.
I will probably leave eBay alone for a while. As I said, I'm getting real tired of this nonsense.
BE CAREFUL OUT THERE.
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