apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

Beware. They're probably modern prints and unsigned. Make sure it's a "vintage" image and signed with an edition number (unless that artist does open editions.)

I feel confident that we can trust NG.

I think "vintage" refers to the time the photo was taken, not when the print was made.

There wouldn't really be an "edition number", per se. National Geographic is considered to be the owner of any image created for it, and as such, there'd be more likely to be some kind of internal reference number rather than something specifically signed. Photographers submit negatives (or digital cards, anymore) and have, according to my sources, no say whatsoever in what images are printed from those negatives.

As an aside, for those interested in the topic, check out a book by Lutz & Collins called "Reading National Geographic" - http://www.amazon.com/Reading-National-Geographic-Catherine-Lutz/dp/0226497240/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1253150608&sr=8-1

Most definitely.

My father spent three "summers" working in Antarctica 1959-1962 and NG asked for his photos, but they were destroyed in transit, and so growing up I only ever saw his "b-sides" as it were. This seems like exciting stuff and a beautiful way to see the world as it was in the way NG wanted to highlight for the rest of us.