Ancient ceramic artifacts are often copied by modern potters. This is frequently done to produce tourist art, but also to produce vessels that are passed off as authentic prehistoric artifacts. Since the middle of the 20th century, pre-Columbian ceramics have been collected as fine art and are found in private and museum collections around the world. Often these ancient vessels can be sold on the art market for large sums of money.

At times it is extremely difficult to determine which ceramics were produced in prehistory and which are modern replicas. There are several ways of determining whether a pot is authentic or not. One of the most common ways is to look at the decoration of the pot to see if it is similar to other pots known to be authentic. In other cases more scientific methods of authentication are needed. Thermoluminescence dating can determine whether a pot is modern or not, however it can be destructive to the piece and is expensive. In addition, the presence of insect pupae, or the casks that house insect larva, is a sign of authentic pottery. The presence of black stains of manganese dioxide is also a good indication of authenticity. These stains are often faked with black ink, but can be differentiated under magnification. Today there are a number of international and national laws prohibiting the trade and sale of antiquities. However, these laws are difficult to enforce and the illicit trade in these items continues in many parts of the world.