Violin fraud : deception, forgery, theft, and the law / Brian W. Harvey.
| Author/creator | Harvey, Brian W. |
| Format | Book |
| Publication Info | Oxford : Clarendon Press ; New York : Oxford University Press, 1992. |
| Description | viii, 126 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm |
| Subjects |
| Contents | Case study in supply and demand: the violin scene -- History of violin frauds -- Liability for misdescriptions: civil and criminal law -- Business or pleasure: legal traps -- Misdescriptions and false labels -- Fakes and forgeries: the problem of attribution -- Stolen violins -- Improving violin trading and repairing standards -- Appendix: A summary of practical guide-lines for everyone involved in the violin trade. |
| Abstract | Instruments of the violin family are well known to be exceptionally valuable if they are the work of an Italian master such as Stradivari or Guarneri. Unfortunately, in common with many other antique articles of value, the forger, the defrauder, and the thief operate in the world of the violin in a very conspicuous way. With varying degrees of skill labels are altered, certificates of origin are spuriously created, instruments are even made from new but disguised to look old and reproduce the features of an old master. Buyers, dealers, and even auction houses can easily make distressing and very expensive mistakes. Many people who own instruments, or who are interested in buying them, want to know more about the dangers, the pitfalls, and the case histories of previous disasters. The law itself is widely misunderstood and its wide ambit not appreciated. Those who contravene the law risk actions for civil damages as well as criminal prosecution, primarily by the ever more vigilant Trading Standards Departments of local authorities. It is the intention of this book to detect the background to this fraudulent activity and to explain how the law applies to it. Much of what is said applies to the antiques world generally, but there are specific and pressing problems relating to string instruments which have not been analysed in detail before and with which this book is particularly concerned. |
| Bibliography note | Includes bibliographical references (pages 119) and index. |
| LCCN | 92020973 |
| ISBN | 0198163088 |
| ISBN | 9780198163084 |
Availability
| Library | Location | Call Number | Status | Item Actions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Music | Closed Stacks - Ask at Circulation Desk | KD8000 .H37 1992 | ✔ Available | Place Hold |