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Bought a supposed Civil War relic online and it cost me $400 in fake memorabilia
I got into collecting Civil War items a few years back, mostly buttons and bullets. Last spring I saw a listing for a Confederate belt buckle from a guy in Georgia, said it was dug up on a private battlefield. Paid $400 for it because the pictures looked good and he had a story about his granddad finding it. When it arrived, the metal was too shiny and the markings were off. I took it to a local museum curator who confirmed it's a modern reproduction, probably made in India. The seller disappeared and the listing was gone within a week. Has anyone else been burned by these online relic dealers who claim items are authentic?
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ivan_murphy804mo ago
Did you try running the buckle under a blacklight? I read somewhere that old relics usually glow a certain way under UV light because of the way the patina sets in over time. It's a shame these scammers are getting so good at faking the dirt and rust.
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kim.nina4mo ago
Yeah, the "getting good at faking the dirt" part hits hard... it's like how everything from vintage furniture to old concert tees is getting this artificially aged look now, just to trick people into paying more.
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