Buying Authentic Autographs
The most important aspect of purchasing autographs and memorabilia is trusting the seller. This is a minefield in itself as unless you have stood by the person doing the signing then being 100% sure of authenticity is very difficult. I have listed some key points to look out for when making that purchase, if you are happy that the memorabilia you are buying meets the criteria below then you should be happy that you have done everything you can to purchase an authentic autograph.

Consistency
The most consistent autographs will be those done at a controlled signing for a couple of reasons. Firstly, they are being paid and secondly they are usually sat down at a table and have the time to sign everything slowly. The drawback with this is that the memorabilia is not unique and is normally very expensive. Below are a few examples of the consistency of the autographs in my collection, as they were signed at the ground they will not always be perfect, but because the picture was interesting the player took the time to sign it.

Range
The variation of the range and the size of the range are also good indicators. A seller who stocks not only the famous test players but also the players who have only played a handful of County Championship or Sheffield Shied matches is likely to be interested in the game and not out to fool people and it would also be pretty difficult to forge too many different players autographs.

Price
Obviously price is a good indicator, you can always find a bargain, but as a rule if a collector is selling a sought after autograph for a low price, you could be onto a loser. That’s not to say all cheap autographs are fakes, but you are increasing your chances of purchasing a fake if you are buying at low prices all of the time – especially for famous players.

Certificate of Authenticity
A lot of people will insist that one of the key things to look for when purchasing autographs is a Certificate of Authenticity. This is fine when you are buying from a memorabilia specialist who have got their signatures from controlled signings. However, if you were to stick to this rule then you would never purchase an autographs over 10-15 years old as controlled signings were few and far between prior to then. As a minimum the COA should state all contact details and be as informative about the items purchased as possible. I offer a Certificate of Authenticity as I personally saw every autograph in the collection signed by the player(s) in question. It contains my contact details, logo, holographic label and as much information about the product as possible.