This Belongs in a Museum

In a world of phonies it is more than appropriate that a museum near Cologne, Germany celebrates the world of counterfeit goods. Located in a converted railway station the Museum Plagiarius has a permanent collection of 300 products next to their identical rip-offs. Where does this all come from, you ask? The annual Plagiarius awards, of course. Designers and manufacturers submit offending objects, and the “winners” earn a spot in the museum. Don’t expect to just see a bunch of fake Louis Vuitton bags, there is also replicated Stihl chain saws, false Furbys, knock-off Swiss Fortis watches and disingenuous Game Boys. Surprisingly, the exhibit does not include a student’s essay of The Scarlett Letter based on the Cliff Notes/Wikipedia/horrible fantasy remake versions versus…I don’t know… the original manuscript. Who wants the real thing when you can just dumb it down? Fake is always better, except when it’s cheese.