The Master Forger and Goldsmith Who Sold His Renaissance Fantasy to 19th Century Europe

Victorian era Europe saw an increasing interest in the glory days of the Renaissance, and a burgeoning middle class had the money to spend on historical works of art. Goldsmith Reinhold Vasters was just the man to meet the demand, turning out dozens, if not hundreds, of pieces meant to be taken as true Renaissance originals. They were, too, until a chance discovery in the 1970s uncovered the truth.