Fake? German Schmidt-Felling Bronze

Fid and All,

Thanks again for the guidance.

I received it today.

If it is a fake, it is a very nice one. The detail is very high.

I wish there existed a way to know for sure if it is "real" or not!

 

from the first view after the first coffee (6 am here) it looks like a cheap massproduced but official old copy from around 1920. most probably post-war when the bronzes had not the purity for an even surface - too much brass and other stuff mixed by.

 

Fid, what you are saying somehow agrees with and disagrees with another expert's opinion.

Before I made the post on this board, I reached out to a highly reputable auction house in Europe.

Yesterday I finally got a response.

The gentleman there thinks it is 100% original and from Schmidt-Felling, but put the date in the 1920s, as did you. When I found the piece in a list of Schmidt-Felling pieces, it stated that 1905 is the date of this piece.

I curiously asked if I had him list it what the process would be, and he told me due to shipping charges to Europe, auction fees, etc. i should not attempt that, so, he wasn't encouraging me.

The metal looks off to me, as well (again, I am no expert). So, I am inclined to think it is an original replica. Better than a fake!

Thanks so much for your guidance, Fid.

Side note: I was going to attempt pulling my German out of the back of my brain (3 years in college), but I realized it would be klunky and I also realize you may not be German; I did assume that you were in Europe immediately however (maybe you are in Mongolia, though...).

Be well.

Barry
Some of the correspondence from the Gentleman at the auctionhouse:
"Dear Barry,

thank you very much for your request. To me it looks like an original from the 1920s by Julius Paul Schmidt-Felling (1835-1920). ...

--------------------

Hi Barry,

to be honest, I would recommend keeping the beautiful piece. ..."

 

I'm not. Swiss origin of the Northern parts where they write German but speak Alemannic. now since over 30 years on the French side in Alsace where they speak ---- Alemannic as well, but it gets lost because France didn't sign the treaty for protecting minority languages. not really a problem though after 8 years of French in school.

P.S. the first most probably rather small edition was issued in 1905 according several sources.
in all honesty - I wouldn't have bought it due poor material and surface.

 

Understood on all, Fid.

Be well and thanks for being on this forum!

 

It doesn't have to mean anything, but the nut holding the brass in place is modern (hexagonal).

 

Hello, Fern77,

I questioned the hardware as well, including the square plate that protects the base from the hexnut.

I do want to know if it is original or not for various reasons--including if I ever sell it; I don't want to misrepresent it.

Another antiques expert in the US gave me his opinion; he thinks it probably is a copy, which matches what Fid said.

Thanks, Fern77!

 

Thing is, they are all copies, really. You're safe if you say it's seemingly "a late" one, which covers both the twenties and the fifties (which is what I think it is). It is not a fake if it is not pretending to be something it is not.

I don't think value would be much different. The surface is not all you'd expect, as has been so bluntly put, and the fact that it's been polished make it a no-no for the serious, big bucks collector, so the buyer is someone like you who just likes it.

 

That's definitely reassuring, Fern77.

I have no plans on seeking any recourse from the individual that I had bought it from, but he stated that it is bronze and also charged me a relatively high price for it because he felt it was original.

Do you think, from the pictures, that if I ever decide to part with it, that stating that is a bronze statue with a marble(?) base is accurate or at least not deceptive?

Thanks again for the additional insight!

Barry

 

It certainly is a bronze statuette with a marble base--that is quite straight forward. Now, the devil is in the rest of any possible description. And as for the price, it takes two to tango, and it seems you like it more than you liked keeping the money

 

I definitely was hoping that it was an original when I paid the price for it that I did, but I 100% knew I was taking a risk.

Thanks once more for all of the help, Fern77! (and All)

Be well!