Attributed to?!?!  

I sometimes see the most ludicrous things "attributed to" a designer. Which beg the question "Who exactly is making this attribution?"

What is it that qualifies someone to "attribute"?

It seems likely, judging by the quality of some of these so called "attributions", that there no no qualifying factor whatsoever in the design market.

No peer review is ever possible since the "attributor" is never actually cited nor are the qualifying factors that make up the attribution.

Does Aunt Mabel who is 80+ years old, deaf in one ear, legally blind and suffering from senile dementia qualify as an attribution source?

It seems that dealers have been hedging their bets by saying that something is "attributed to" and then listing out a name in association with a piece of design knowing full well that the buying public does not pay full attention.

Too many times I have presented actual factual information to debunk a design "attribution" only to be told "the dealer who sold it to me seemed very knowledgeable"

Buyer beware!

Ask questions, be specific, if something is an attribution then there should be information provided to support that attribution such as published images of similar cataloged pieces from the same group with good information about their own provenance. And for god's sake don't be afraid to get a second opinion.