This is the continuation of my thread "Burmese animal-shaped weights, forgeries against genuine weights". Small weights are copied as well as the attractive large weights for more than 30 years. The fakers prefer attractive forms like Hintha1B (Gear ?Earth to Heaven? Group 4J) and To1D (Gear Group 2E). In general all weights down to 5 Tikal have distinguishing marks typical of their respective form. But from 2 Tikal downwards the barbe/feed are left out or the tail is simplified. These criteria may help identifying fakes and copies. However, sometimes there are exceptions to the rule. In the following I'll give some examples.



Hintha 1A (H1A). 5, 2 and 1 Tikal (74,7; 28,9; 13,9 g).
These very old Hinthas are strongly worn. Down to the 5 Tikal weight there is a feed. The smaller weights are plain.



Hintha 1B (H1B). 10 and 2 Tikal (143,9; 30,4 +lead, adapted to the high standard; (31,6) g).
The 2 Tikal weight in the center is genuine. It has no feed. To the right there is a ?two Tical? weight showing all signs of the 10 (and 5) weight including the feed. Probably it is a fake.


To 1C (T1C). 5 , 2 and 1 Tikal (75,1; 31,5; 15,7 g).
The 5 Tikal weight still has a barbe (trefoil). The smaller weights are plain.



To 1D (T1D).
A recent set from 20, 10, 5, 2, 1 to ½ Tikal. Complete sets of identical old forms don't exist. Sharp grooves and edges are typical of new products for tourists. The image shows that also small weights are copied ? the fakers stop at nothing. Cp. with Braun Nos. 142, 143



To 1D (T1D). 5, 2, 1 and ½ Tikal, to the right an unusual piece ( 81,0; 31,6; 16,0; 8,1; 14,6 g).
Generally the tail is reduced from 2 Tikal downwards, but the necklace is still a caracteristic design. The 9-star mark is located under the base. The 1 tical weight to the right has a complete tail and long ears - it is a fake (see tha mass!). Cp. with Braun Nos. 141 - 144 and Gear Pl. 19.



Chinthe 1 (C1). 5, 2 and 1 Tikal ( 79,8; 31,5; 15,7 g).
The 2 and 1 Tikal weights don't have the barbe typical of the large weights. The 4-star mark is located under the base. Cp. Gear Pl. 19.



Chinthe 2A (C2A). 5, 2 and 1 Tikal ( 75,5; 32,5; 15,1 g).
The 2 and 1 Tikal weights don't have the barbe of the 5 Tikal weight. Besides that they don't have copper inlays. 9st mark.




Chinthe 2B (C2B). 4, 2 and 1 Tikal ( 64,1; 32,7; 15,9 g). 9st mark.
This Chinthe is the latest form having a barbe. It is a remarkable exception to the rule mentioned above, because the barbe has been observed down to the ¼ Tikal weight!

All genuine younger forms do not have any feed/barbe or an extraordinary tail.

Herr Mollat,

Greetings from Singapore!

I want to thank you for sharing your knowledge about real and fake Burmese weights. Such knowledge is vital in developing and sustaining interest in this area. I have only too many new collectors who bought "antiques" only to discover later that they paid so much for fakes. The sad part is that many give up their hobby when they bought fakes. This is the worst thing that swindlers cause, not so much as to cheat collectors but to kill their interest!

I have learnt also many things from you, I just learnt that my two of my Chinthe 2A pieces are in fact 2B 1 tical and 1/2 tikal both having what you described as a "barbe", thank goodness for the exception that your researched came up with. More importantly, your article "A Model Chronology of Animal Weights of Burma (Myanmar) which I obtained through the courtesy of Herr Herrfuth's website gave me the real education on Burmese weights, many thanks for sharing your article with everyone.

James

Hi James,
thanks for your kind comment. I hope you can still find genuine weights in Singapore. The best method to separate originals from fakes is turning round them in hand and check the general proportions and afterwards all the details. A textbook can help but cannot decide!
Good luck!
hartmutmollat

Hi Hartmut Mollat,

Thank you for your tip. I agree with you that one must feel and "play" with real weights to gain experience in telling the genuine weights from the fakes. But what they say "buy the book" before buying the items is so true, not only for Burmese weights but for all collectibles such as coins too. For this, I must thank you and Michael Herrfurth for writing the Opium Weights article in the Arts of Asia (May-June 2013 edition). Please continue your good work, the collector base can only grow when there is a wealth of knowledge and research and not merely speculation and personal opinions.

Yes, the availability of supply at reasonable prices is also key in growing the Burmese weights collector base. Nowadays it is difficult to find Burmese weights in Singapore. In the late eighties and nineties, Burmese weights were sold in Singapore and elsewhere in the world by weight not by individual pieces. In those days, an antique dealer in Singapore, Mr Gan Wee Teck of Sea Eagle Coins and Antiquities constantly receive fresh supplies of Burmese weights from antique runners. Whenever I visit his shop at Peninsula Shopping Centre, I recall seeing him pack Burmese weights for shipments to Germany. Thankfully today, with internet, collectors are able to source globally, Michael Herrfurth Gallery has been a truly wonderful source for me.

James