Henry Moore was a Yorkshire artist most popularly known for sculpting and drawing abstract figures, and you can find vast treasure troves of his work on eBay and other online auction sites. One might be astounded at the sheer prodigousness of this old fellow’s output these days, considering he’d be 112… if he’d not died in 1986. One might be less astounded at the news that Internet auction houses aren’t required by law to confirm the authenticity of such items appearing for sale on their sites. It seems that a lot of people aren’t aware of this fact, and they get duped into buying bogus merchandise all the live-long day — much to the delight of heartless virtuosos of another variety: the scam artists.

Photo by heatheronhertravels

So if the law doesn’t seem to want to shield the would-be art consumer from counterfeit crapola, what will? Statisticians from the Royal Statistical Society and the American Statistical Association believe that science will! In today’s Significance, these scientists detail a study in which three separate experts evaluated, over a period of 18 months (a year and a half for those of us not living in hoity toity scientistifical time), so-called Henry Moore art being offered as genuine on online auction sites. Their method was adapted from a statistical system used for medicine and social science. “This method should be useful in assessing the reliability of descriptions of works by other artists, as well as some luxury goods,” said Professor of Statistics and Economics, Joseph L. Gastwirth, of George Washington University. “It may also prove useful in the application of statistics in legal cases concerning infringement, as it can be used as a first step in determining the percentage of goods of a certain type that are counterfeit.”

So how did the study pan out? Over 80% of the “Henry Moore” sculptures and drawings were phonier than a pegasus rodeo, while over 90% of prints that were actually signed by the artist were… actually signed by the artist. So while this may encourage some and enrage others, I might suggest doing your fine arts shopping at a bona fide art gallery or through a certified agent of an artist’s estate. eBay may have its uses when you’re trying to pick up a spare Wii controller or an out of print paperback, but you probably want to avoid online auction sites for those higher ticketed items.