So bought this at auction now I am wondering if fake

[Dustinc24]

I bought this bird stone at auction I'm wondering if it's a fake

 

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[CreekSide]

Hard to say from a picture. It’s nice though

 

[Dustinc24]

Hard to say from a picture. It’s nice though

I'll upload more

 

[Dustinc24]

I'll upload more

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Welcome to TreasureNet. When posting pictures of suspected indian artifacts please post pictures of all sides, also important the pictures are in focus so members can blow them up for examination. Once you take pictures blow them up to be sure they are still in focus.

Thanks...

 

[Dustinc24]

 

[CreekSide]

I’m not an expert on these it will take someone who has these in their collection to be able to say. I don’t have any or have I ever held one before. Good luck

 

[ToddsPoint]

The first red flag I see is the material. That’s granite. Seldom used by Indians. Very high silica content and difficult to work.

 

[Relicgrubber]

Bottom line here is if it were authentic (which would make it very valuable) it would have at least one Legit COA from a well respected Authenticator.

Authenticity: Fake

 

[Older The Better]

My two cents, I have no experience with birdstones but the fact an authenticating expert id’d it simply as “hard stone” seems odd… but maybe they were just lazy

 

[Bucket Lister]

The first red flag I see is the material. That’s granite. Seldom used by Indians. Very high silica content and difficult to work.

The features that give me pause are the holes. Are they in the right places and in the right numbers? I thought there were supposed to be holes at each end(?), but ICBW.

A common feature is the presence of bi-conically drilled holes, one at either end of the birdstone’s base.

Birdstones

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At least one looks... off-center. IDK if this is common in these artifacts.

Are these 2 holes (below) connected? Are they supposed to be? They don't appear to line up very well; would this have affected its utility?

 

[dognose]

In my opinion, I think this is a questionable relic, leaning more towards a reproduction.
My view is that is virtually impossible to be absolutely sure when determining a reproduction or authentic relic from a photo.
But the holes, as indicated above, also to me look questionable.

I have not heard of Lakeview artifacts or Thomas Mathews. That in itself does not mean the COA is bad, but after being a collector in many circles for over 50 years, I would think I would have heard is name a few times. No contact info on the COA also makes it questionable.

A google search of both Lakeview artifacts or Thomas Mathews results in nothing worthwhile to determine if this COA is even authentic.

Older The Better indicated the material and I second that. Most hardstone would be a porphyry, not the material we see here. The material we see here almost looks like a granite countertop seen in kitchens.

 

[Bucket Lister]

I have not heard of Lakeview artifacts or Thomas Mathews. That in itself does not mean the COA is bad, but after being a collector in many circles for over 50 years, I would think I would have heard is name a few times. No contact info on the COA also makes it questionable.

A google search of both Lakeview artifacts or Thomas Mathews results in nothing worthwhile to determine if this COA is even authentic.

+1. Yet they've come up here before...

Advice on Authenticity

I need some advice on authenticating some artifacts I recently received from a deceased relative. He was an avid collector from Richmond, Ohio and had an extensive collection. I know that he personally found many of his pieces, but he also purchased many at auction. Unfortunately, he mixed them...

www.treasurenet.com

FWIW, I find several other bird stones authenticated by the same person, some of which are made of this same granite-like material.

IMO, lack of anything on "Lakeview Artifacts" and/or "Thomas Matthews" seems more disconcerting than the artifacts themselves. The address given is just a single family home. YMMV

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Pictures are out of focus when blown up, so we can't really blow all pictures up to examine to look for signs of workmanship, and the wrong kind of material as well.

I can't remember ever seeing one from granite, not that they don't exist, I just haven't seen one, almost every one I have seen in person were from banded slate.

I use to go to artifact shows in Missouri and Illinois and would see them there and the ones I saw were authentic.

Best advice I can give would be take it to an artifact show, you can get opinions from multiple experienced collectors, see if any make an offer.

 

[newnan man]

I agree that the hole in it looks very suspect. It looks to have been drilled by a masonry bit.
Anyone can be an authenticator. There are no laws, schools, permits, etc needed. That is not saying this person is not legit, but it can raise doubts. Again, it's very difficult to ascertain it's legitimate from a picture but these are one of the most faked artifacts.

 

[dognose]

Was this birdstone purchased through invaluable.com on a Mike Nichols Auction?

 

[unclemac]

that kind of granite is all over Ontario and that part of NA, so the source could be legit. But how many high polished ANYTHING in granite have any of use seen, held or found?

 

[Treasure_Hunter]

Was this birdstone purchased through invaluable.com on a Mike Nichols Auction?

If it helps I found the auction, I removed the sale price for privacy.

 

[dirstscratcher]

The holes look like they're modern with no patina, too perfect. By no means do I know what I'm talking about though, just my opinion. Secondly, a red flag for me is if it's too good to be true, It probably isn't real I don't buy artifacts of that quality just because I don't trust any authenticator to be 100% sure.

 

[Tesorodeoro]

That auction site sure has a lot of “Native American Art”.

Here is an example…does the one pictured in the bottom look like the one in the upper photo? I don’t think so. Clearly not the same object.