In this volume, Thierry Lenain charts the changing status of art forgery from the time of its appearance in the Renaissance--when it was initially hailed as a true artistic feat--to its condemnation as the art crime par excellence. Rather than suggesting new methods of detection, it offers a genealogy of faking, along with an examination of the anxious, even neurotic reactions triggered in the modern world by its occurrence.
The symptoms of an obsession -- Before the age of art forgery -- Before the age of the obsession with art forgery -- Art forgery as the connoisseur's nightmare -- Conclusion: Fakes and the end of the world.