You see the listings in the paper every week for estate sales and auctions. People put their treasures on the block.You can make a bid -- even walk away with an antique you would normally spend thousands of dollars for in a store.

That's how you might think these sales are supposed to work. But what if we told you that some of those sales aren't at all what they appear to be?

Channel 4 Action News anchor Wendy Bell went undercover and found out that some of these so-called estate sales are nothing more than traveling road shows. Below is her report, which first aired May 26, 2004, on Channel 4 Action News at 6 p.m.

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Video

Watch Bell's Report

You probably saw the ad in the front section of your local paper: "Grand Auction," open to the public. It shows a picture of a "renowned" doctor's multimillion-dollar estate. Come to this house, it says. See original Picasso etchings, rare furnishings, lavish jewelry.

A doctor's estate with rare and valuable items on the auction block? Yes, it is a doctor's esate. And yes, there is a sale on that property. The truth in advertising ends there.

Yellow arrows point the way up a narrow country road to a white circus tent on the doctor's 10-acre estate. The video from our camera is hidden. Although most estate sales are starved for publicity, this company would rather you not see what's going on.

The scene inside looks pretty typical. Rows of seats are set up for bidders in the back of the tent. Spotlights showcase the rugs and art that workers bring up front for bidding.

Richard Wagner, a lifetime antiques expert, is helping us determine if these so-called rare furnishings are as high-quality and lavish as the newspaper ad says.

There are bronzes, Oriental rugs, elaborate inlaid furniture and a lot of art -- "Rembrandt," "Picasso," "Chagall" -- and even jewels.

The hour-long preview is a chance for bidders to get up close to the items before the auction begins -- a chance for our expert to assess the furniture and the artworks' authenticity without attracting any attention.

Wagner: "It was strictly classic Atlantic City boardwalk vending and merchandising. It's schtick."

Bell: "Those marks on the top are put there on purpose?"

Wagner: "Yeah, intentionally, to make it look old, as is the chalky, powerdery finish. That was put there on purpose to create the impression of great age."

Bell: "It was made last year?"

Wagner: "Last week."

A curio, to me, looks like a weathered antique.

Wagner: "It's ormalou mounted, it's exotic woods. But the problem with it is, it's brand new."

Brand new? Where are the antiques?

Wagner: "There were no antiques at all."

That's right. Everything our expert found here is new.

Bell: "What if I told you that they were all modern day items that you could buy at Pier 1, Lazarus, Kaufmann's?"

Jim Sheets, attended auction: "That wouldn't be as exciting."

The fine crystal?

Wagner: "Something like that, you might see this in Marshall's for $25."

The antique furniture?

Wagner: "It's artificially distressed and color-finished to have the appearance of antiquity."

The Picasso etchings?

Wagner: "It's a wall filler."

Bell: "Worthwhile?"

Wagner: "Not at all. Bad investment."

The bronzes?

Wagner: "The bronzes were all recast and restrikes of classic bronzes. They're all available in decorating shops."

The old Chinese art?

Wagner: "I was looking at my watch. You were asking how old I thought that was. What time is it now?"

It shouldn't surprise you that none of these items is real because the entire estate sale sale isn't real.

While this is the estate of a local doctor, the public was led to believe that this is the doctor's estate sale. But this isnt his stuff. Not a single piece of it. How do we know? All we had to do was ask. The sales manager told us.

Bell: "Now that you know that none of the items up for sale today came from this doctor's estate, do you feel deceived?"

Ron Rink, attended auction: "Yes, very much so."

Wagner: "It makes my blood boil because if somebody gets burned at one of these things, they say, 'I'm not even going to mess around with antiques any more.'"

Not only is this stuff new, some of the items up for bid come from popular decorating stores.

Look at this porcelain vase. You can see the price tag partially removed. And this picture of a zebra? Look on the back. It came from Tuesday Morning, a Pittsburgh decorating store.

We found that Park Royal Galleries, the company that put on this sale, has been disciplined in at least seven states. In some cases, the states revoked their auction licenses. In other cases, Park Royal paid a fine to settle the cases while admitting no guilt.

The Pennsylvania Department of State fined Park Royal Galleries $2,000 in 2002. Again, Park Royal paid the fine with no admission of guilt, but the state did nothing to stop the company from packing up and hauling the show to a new town.

So if this isn't the doctor's stuff, how did Park Royal Galleries get to hold an estate sale here and call it the doctor's? It turns out that the owner and realtor allowed Park Royal to stage the sale in order to attract buyers to the house.

Bell: "Igor, are you misrepresenting the quality of these goods to these people? What's wrong? Why won't you talk to us?"

Igor: "You have to leave. Please leave my tent."

Is Park Royal's traveling road show unlawful?

Wagner: "No. Questionable? Yes."

It's not unlawful because of one word: "style." Everything up in the auction is catalogued and tagged with a bar code and brief description -- Louis XV-style pedestal, Venetian-style vase, Princess Katia-style commode. It's a tip-off many customers don't catch. (walking into tent, 2/12:25:35)

[take sot Name: barbara rink Number: tape 1 At: 1:10:09 To: 1:10:17 Duration:0:08]{***sot***} [cg :name id - 2 lines\]

Bell: "Did you see some Picassos or some Chagals?"

Barbara Rink, attended auction: "Yes."

Bell: "Did you think those were real?"

Barbara Rink: "Yes, because they were authenticated on the back."

Wagner: "If it has a certificate of authenticity, I seriously question its authenticity."

Still, the auction goes on at the doctor's 10-acre estate, with pricetags visible, mountings crudely cut, machine-made markings and bronze reproductions you can buy in decorator shops. People bought the stuff, leaving with a treasure they likely paid too much for.

Wagner: "Like a flock of sheep being led to the slaughter."

How can you protect yourself from estate sales and auctions that promise more than they deliver? Read the ads in the paper carefully. If you're in the market for a big-ticket item, take someone like our expert with you. Paying a few bucks for an expert's expertise -- will pay off big-time in the end.