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I got this and a few other pieces from a friend who is confident that it is a neolithic carving. I've also seen a lot of stuff online saying there are a lot of fakes out there, but can't find anything that goes into detail or shows pictures of what to look for to determine authenticity.

Can anyone tell me if it's really neolithic, an older pre 1900 replica, or modern fake?

Or share links to information on how to tell the difference.

Theses are difficult to date because of the simplistic carving style.
Due to the high prices these are being mass produced in China etc.
My feeling is that it's both modern and has been treated to look old.
Regards,
Mark@imperial
Adams Asian Art

To me this looks like an applied calcareous looking deposit on a rock carving to make it appear old (I do find it interesting that some have determined this and similar looks to translate as "old"). If you research neolithic Chinese carvings, the hardstone carvings do not appear to have "deposits". Maybe if you left them submersed in a hard water environment such as we have in the post-Wisconsin glacial outwash aquifer. On those rocks we see heavy calcareous deposits - but these deposits took about 15,000 years to accumulate.

Pictures of the other carvings I have from the same set.

Pictures of the other carvings I have from the same set.

Pictures of the other carvings I have from the same set and a picture of the other carvings my friend has.

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