The luxury art market is increasingly a laboratory. Museums use infrared reflectography to reveal underdrawings. Forensic cases hinge on detecting anachronistic pigments with Raman/XRF and mass spectrometry.
DNA-based tagging as an authentication system for watches and designer handbags. Molecular taggants, privacy implications, supply chain integration, and the arms race between counterfeiters and chemists.
Saffron is expensive and frequently adulterated. DNA barcoding identifies adulterated samples. Spectrophotometry and ISO-style approaches test authenticity.
For expensive wines and spirits, provenance is value. Stable isotope ratio analysis and 1H NMR verify origin claims and detect fraud.
FDA crackdowns on sites selling counterfeit or unapproved botulinum toxin products. Holographic seals, cold chain requirements, and the authentication challenge in a high-margin aesthetic market.
DNA traceability and isotopic fingerprints verify fabric origins and authenticity. The same forensic science used for food and wine now applied to luxury textiles.
Near-infrared spectroscopy can distinguish real cashmere from wool blends and synthetics. Portable devices bring authentication from the lab to the retail floor.
Computer vision models trained on millions of images spot counterfeits by detecting micro-patterns invisible to human eyes—stitching irregularities, logo distortions, material inconsistencies.
DNA barcoding verifies caviar species, catching fraud where lower-value roe is sold as premium beluga or osetra. Genetic forensics turns luxury into a molecular verification problem.