NOT UP TO SNUFF: Aman claimsa Midtown dealer sold this fake as a “Fabergé” snuff box with inset egg.
NOT UP TO SNUFF: A man claims a Midtown dealer sold this fake as a “Fabergé” snuff box with inset egg. (
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All that glitters isn’t gold.
An Ohio man says he was bamboozled by an alleged Fabergé fraudster at a ritzy Central Park South gallery, according to a new $1.2 million lawsuit.
The buyer forked over $165,000 for five fakes at an “authentic Russian antique” bazaar in the Essex House Gallery in August 2002, say the court papers, filed in Manhattan Supreme Court yesterday.
A New Jersey dealer, Ronald Safdieh, boasting expertise in Russian antiques, allegedly marketed the fantasy objects for a company called Joseph Fine Arts, the papers say.
At the time, David Butt, 59, of Dayton, was dazzled by the items, which included a “jeweled, tri-color” snuff box “encrusted with a silver double eagle” and a “gem-set Fabergé egg” with “wreaths of round rose-cut diamonds.”
Butt discovered he’d allegedly been duped only when he traveled to an “Antiques Roadshow” auction in Cincinnati in the summer of 2012. There, an antiques specialist from a Big Apple gallery specializing in Fabergés deemed the pieces forgeries.
Reps from top auction houses Sotheby’s and Christie’s confirmed the items were “reproductions” last fall.
Butt admits that he never received a “Certificate of Authenticity” for the intricate objects, but claims he “specifically inquired as to the authenticity of the items marked ‘Fabergé.’ ”
A sales receipt describes the pieces but does not use the word “Fabergé.”
Safdieh, whose shop in The Essex House hotel closed in 2009 with the slumping economy, denied the allegations.
“I’m a very upstanding person with a crystal-clear reputation,” he told The Post.
He sold genuine antiques and newer pieces alike, but never made misrepresentations, he said, adding, “People believe what they want to believe.”
Butt accuses Safdieh of “false and fraudulent marketing” of “originals” that turned out to be mere “modern, cheap imitations.”
He wants to be reimbursed for the fakes and $1 million for punitive damages.
Russian jewelry house Fabergé crafted precious creations in the late 1800s through the 20th century.
It’s best known for its jeweled miniature eggs, which were popular Easter gifts, as well as larger renditions made especially for czars.