Mexican potters have been producing forgeries based on ancient figures for almost as long as looters have been illicitly opening shaft-tombs in West Mexico. The presence of large numbers of fakes severely restricts the value of most museum collections for understanding the context of authentic figures. The true range of variation in craftsmanship, materials, artistic conventions, and symbolism can be determined only from real figures. Recent scientific advances make it possible to weed out the fakes and use collections, such as the William P. Palmer III Collection, as resources to support legitimate archaeological excavations in learning more about the past in West Mexico.

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