Bob Mueller of Minneapolis, Minnesota gives his answers to the questions triggered by Michael Krumme’s questioning an eBay pieces “legitimacy”.

DEAR ALAN, I WILL GET MY FEET WET ON THIS QUESTION FOR THE PERSON ASKING THE QUESTTION OF YOU AND THE GROUP.THE PIECE THAT WAS SHOWN I HAVE DOUBT ABOUT MYSELF. AS I WAS TAUGHT BY MY MOTHER AND HERB AND GRETCHEN RIPLEY, WHO WERE STEUBEN DEALERS, A FEW YEARS AGO THAT IF I REALLY HAD DOUUT ABOUT A PIECE LET IT SLIDE BY. YOU CAN ALWAYS GO HOME AND GO THOUGH ALL THE BOOKS YOU HAVE ON GLASS AND STEUBEN GLASS.

AS A COLLECTOR OF OVER 40 YEARS OF STEUBEN GLASS I DON,T KNOW HOW MANY BOOKS,CATALOGS, PHOTOS, ARTICLES (YES ARTICLES) I’VE READ I KNOW I HAVE NOT SEEN IT ALL YET AND KNOW THERE ARE MORE ITEMS OUT THERE. SO TO THE PERSON WHO HAD THE FIRST QUESTION ON THE PIECE ON THE INTERNET,LET IT GO UNTIL YOU ARE 99% SURE. YOU WILL FEEL A LOT BETTER.

ALAN HERE IS SOMETHING FOR THE SECOND QUESTION ABOUT TRUST. WHEN I FIRST STARTED COLLECTING STEUBEN GLASS 40 YEARS AGO IF I WAS SOLD A PIECE OF CARDER STEUBEN GLASS,I WAS TOLD TO ALWAYS GET A SALES SLIP WITH THAT PERSON STATING IT WAS STEUBEN GLASS AND ASK THAT PERSON IF I CAN RETURN IT IF I FIND IT IS NOT WHAT IT WAS SOLD AS. IN MY EARLY YEARS THIS WAS DONE.

I ALSO FOUND THAT BY BUYING FROM THE DEALERS YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE AN EDGE ON THAT POINT. BUT WITH EBAY AND OTHER INTERNET WAYS OF SELLING YOU REALLY HAVE TO BE CAUTOUS OF WHAT YOU ARE DOING. EVEN IF THERE IS A PIECE AND YOU KNOW THE PIECE IS STEUBEN BUT THE SELLER HAS STATED NOTHING ABOUT RETURN PRIVLEGE, EMAIL THEM AHEAD OF TIME AND ASK THEM IF THEY HAVE A RETURN PRIVLEGE. WITH GLASS, ESPECIALLY AURENE GLASS. IT COULD HAVE A SPYDER CRACK IN IT, AND IF NOT HELD UP TO THE LIGHT ANYBODY CAN MISS IT, EVEN AN HONEST DEALER.

HOPE THIS HELPS OUT THE 2 WITH QUESTIONS BOB—–