Before recent developments of techniques for authenticating figures, most decisions about what was real were based on the what experts had seen. Since archaeologists had excavated few unlooted tombs, the tendency was to declare that only figures whose styles and craftsmanship were typical of those in private and museum collections were genuine. Now it is clear that the range of variation is greater than had been assumed. Some potters or workshops produced masterpieces, but others made only crude figures. Such differences reflect either the status of the consumer or the skill of the maker. It is becoming possible to tell the difference between the very similar figures produced by lineages of potters or workshops and forgers’ recent copies of ancient pieces.

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