As the side hustle and thrift culture has grown exponentially over the last decade, so has the amount of blatant misinformation available on the Internet, now fueled by social media. With the popularity of Facebook groups, Instagram, and TikTok, the spread of misinformation is astonishing, as social media offers a platform for anyone to present themselves as an expert, leaving the truly learned collectors and researchers frustrated and often outnumbered and overruled by the ignorant masses. Pick any category within the antiques and collectibles field and you will find more bad information online than good. This problem plagues us all. My article serves to call attention to several huge problems found in all collecting areas today, but with a focus on Murano glass, and to offer words of caution for collectors new and tenured.
The “60-Second Googler” is a moniker I coined to describe an individual with little to no knowledge about a subject who is simply doing an Internet search or using Google Lens to “research” something they have and often wish to resell. Research is in quotations because what they are doing cannot be considered true research. These individuals are simply conclusion shopping to support their predetermined thoughts about the piece. The 60-Second Googler generally searches using attribution terms that would yield a best-case scenario. For example, applying the origin of Murano to any art glass vase, looking for sales listings that show a piece loosely similar to theirs to support their unfounded notions, and then calling it “researched.” This process does not generally yield facts or truthful information, and it is not legitimate research. They are simply referencing a dishonest or ignorant seller’s incorrect information to make themselves feel good when they turnaround and misrepresent the item for sale.
Continually, Google Lens is not a proper research tool, as it merely scans the Internet for pieces that look similar, regardless of the validity of the description that accompanies the piece. To be clear, this sort of “research” is where misinformation is bred and serves to underscore my assertion that there is more incorrect information regarding Murano glass on the Internet than correct information. To further exemplify this huge problem, a simple eBay search for “Murano vase” will return tens of thousands of listings, but if you have any true knowledge of glass, you will see that roughly ¾ of the listings are not of Murano origin and a large portion are actually of Chinese or Southeast Asian origin. Individuals see these incorrect listings and there it goes, the cycle of misinformation continues and is worsened.
To double-down on the problem, the 60-Second Googler then often presents themselves on various platforms as subject matter experts because they have, in their mind, done the research but all they are doing is reciting misinformation. This is a very dangerous pattern that has degraded every area of the collectibles field. The gross misrepresentation only serves to bastardize and dilute the genuine articles. I will touch on overt fakes made to deceive in a subsequent article. When on social media, learned collectors who offer their knowledge are most often met with angst and a combative attitude by the 60-Second Googler because their false knowledge base crumbles almost immediately and their world along with it. It is a sad state of affairs when those with knowledge are pushed out in favor of ignorance supported by lies.
Let us take a step back and examine the often-visited buying source of the 60-Second Googler, the thrift store. Thrift stores are comprised of someone else’s unwanted stuff, and very often that stuff is unwanted because it is truly junk or it is damaged. Keep in mind that not everything you find is “something,” or something of value. The amount of low-quality home goods pouring out of China and Southeast Asia today, and for the last twenty years or so, is staggering. I will forever encourage the individual new to glass collecting to learn what makes a quality piece of glass—the raw inputs/chemicals used, colors, décor types, execution, and finishing. Deciphering these attributes will help you to weed out the all-too-plentiful Asian import. Please do not send me your story about finding a Murano glass piece at the thrift store, as that is not what this article is about. Yes, it does happen but finding anything truly rare and valuable is incredibly uncommon, not to mention it probably is damaged and was donated under the guise of being discarded one step up from the trash bin.
My implication so far is that the gross misrepresentation is done out of ignorance, but I think in many cases it is done knowingly and out of malice. Sellers and quick-flippers are trying to get as much as they can for their wares and by any means necessary, so they apply terms to overtly misattribute or to over-attribute. An example of over-attribution is to apply a more desirable description or name to an item that does not relate, such as taking a generic mass-produced Murano glass ashtray and calling it by Carlo Scarpa for Venini. Or, taking a low quality Chinese vase and applying the ever-popular term "Murano-style" to it hoping to take advantage of an unsuspecting buyer. The reason I feel the misrepresentation of wares is often done in malice is because I personally have provided countless sellers with relevant source documentation about their items only to then see they have disregarded truth and listed the items as something they are not. Regardless of the intent, damage is done to the industry.
To all new collectors and dealers, please do not go down the path of laziness and misrepresentation. Research is often difficult and time-consuming, but the effort spent is worth it in the end to know what you have and to represent it as such. The reality of your purchases may not match your hopes, but please do not pass off your items as something they are not. Show respect to your peers, customers, and yourself by dealing in truth and facts. Finally, just because you see the same piece of misinformation ten times does not make it accurate or truthful.