How Do I Know If They Are Real Or Not? (Ebay)

[neonplanet40]

Hey guys,

Im looking into buying signed copys of all the harry potter books. But how do i know if they are real or not?

I would not want to buy them (which would cost alot) and then them being fake

Anyone got any tips or ideas?

Neon

[Vini]

Write to the author for a signing?

[Whiternoise]

Buy em from somewhere else, check seller reliability.. depends how much more you are willing to pay for authenticity

[Spud1]

To be honest, you can't ever be sure it's a genuine signiture unless you actually see the person signing it yourself - forgeries are SO easy to make if you have something to work from. Ebay would be the last place I would go, a rare book shop would be a better bet imho - somewhere like 'http://www.bookstellyouwhy.com' maybe?

[Mike Fishcake]

I believe (though I'm not 100% sure) that there are 'trusted' organisations that verify whether signatures are real or not. I'm not sure how they do that, whether they confirm with the person signing or what though...

[Vini]

how about asking at http://www.crockattpowell.com/

[neonplanet40]

if i wrote and asked her to sign them it would never be done. As i am sure there is millions that ask her. He said he got it signed outside bloomsbury (her publishers) HQ.

I cant find signed books anywhere else only ebay...... grrr lol

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.d...MEWA%3AIT&rd=1

thats one of them

[DavidM]

I'd never trust ebay autographs...

[Steve B]

Also, i cant understand why anyone would want a signed copy anyway. Its so easy to forge signatures, and so hard to verify if the author has indeed signed the copy himself/herself. What you want to get is a set of First Editions, they'll set you back alot more, but will be worth alot more in the long term

[neonplanet40]

but on ebay there is laods of different first editions. But how can they all be first editions? :S

[neonplanet40]

plus it says on my book 6 that its a first edition :S however i dont know how to validate it

[FatalSaviour]

It's a good job you put (ebay) in your title.

The thoughts that were running through my mind when I browsed the new posts...

I'd also like to know about these first editions...with some of these, there seem to be a vast multitude of these first edition Harry Potter books....what then makes them so valuable?

[neonplanet40]

I dunno i mean some of my hard backs are first editions but i got this on the bloomsbury site

"UK first edition copies of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix and Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince only (hardback and special edition versions but not large print) have the words First Edition printed in place of the numbers.

All the hardback first editions except for the first edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone have dust jackets."

According to what i read. I have 2 first edtions of both the order of the phoenix and the half blooded prince.

So i dont know lol. There seems to be alot of the first edtions. :S

[neonplanet40]

well i sent the seller some questions twice and he never replied. So dont think he is worth the risk at all.

Neon

[XA04]

You could ask to pay and pick them up in person - then you can inspect them yourself? If the seller says no (and if they are genuine they should be happy to) then you know something dodgy is going on.

[neonplanet40]

im not bothering with the seller. he doesnt even answer questions i asked him. which to me looks dodgy as he didnt know the answers.