In the words of Cole Porter, “Is it the good turtle soup or merely the mock?”

“Art Fraud: 50 Fakes That Fooled the Art World,” the new book by Susie Hodge, will leave you wondering whether any work of art is the real McCoy.

“Art fraud is rife,” Hodge begins. “Many experts believe that as much as 50 per cent of all art on the market today is forgery.”

If the 50% statistic sounds phony, you don’t know the half of it.

“Art Fraud” casts a gimlet eye on the most famous forgery cases to reveal the truth behind the art world’s worst-kept secret.

From the greatest experts on down to the most naïve online bidders, just about anyone can, and will at some point, be duped by the mock. 7

Of course, artists have always traced out the styles and techniques of others.

The ancient Romans made s

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