I Need an Antonym for Charlatan

[Lafayette]

In my story I have this bit of dialog. My character, Penoit (a guitar maker) is being examine by an Elven luthier named, Taylor Gibson to see if he is really a guitar maker.

“Well, my friend, Taylor Gibson,” said the weary captain rising to his feet, “I have been patient and faithful in my duty: what is thy verdict? What saith thou? Is Mister Penoit Seysounné a charlatan or a genuine gem? The elders desire to know thy counsel.”

My problem is 'genuine gem' doesn't seem to fit the word 'charlatan'. A charlatan is a person and a gem is an object.

I thought about saying, "Is Mister Penoit Seysounné tin or gold?" The problem with this is tin is really tin. I'm trying to ask is Penoit a flamboyant fake or a gifted person? Saying it this way it doesn't flow and is too modern.

I have tried googling but haven't had any luck. I can't get any noun antonyms for charlatan.

I'm open to suggestions.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Mountebank.

 

[Cathbad]

Honest Artist?

 

[Luiglin]

Only antonym I can find for charlatan is honesty. So how about along the lines of below.

Is Mister Penoit Seysounné a charlatan or a true artisan?

Is Mister Penoit Seysounné a charlatan or honest craftsman?

 

[HareBrain]

I don't think there is a single word. But you could just say "Is [he] a charlatan?" The reverse is implicit.

 

[Cat's Cradle]

Is it redundant to use both:

"...what is thy verdict? What saith thou?"?

I ask because you could eliminate 'What saith thou?', and add a new question, if you want the drama of asking both possibilities:

"I have been patient and faithful in my duty: what is thy verdict? Is Mister Penoit Seysounné a charlatan? Is he a true craftsman? The elders desire to know thy counsel.”

This can be reworded, of course, to your tastes. Just a thought, good luck!
CC

edit: what about eliminating the words 'to know' from the last sentence?

"...The elders desire thy counsel.”

 

[Phyrebrat]

'Authentic'

pH

 

[Venusian Broon]

Perhaps: '...Is Mister Penoit Seysounné a charlatan or genuine?...'

A person can be a charlatan or genuine.

But there are positive words for that fit the 'charlatan mould' for describing people - paragon perhaps - although it's a word I don't really come across very often so might trip over it.

 

[The Judge]

I can't think of -- or find -- any countable nouns which are antonyms, so as ratsy has said, I think your best bet is to choose a suitable adjective and couple it with a neutral noun eg "or is he the genuine article?"

 

[TitaniumTi]

"the real deal" or "a true virtuoso"

 

[Matteo]

Bona fide?

And I would also remove "to know" from that last sentence.

And ;-) for "Taylor Gibson".

 

[Pyan]

Pinchbeck is a type of brass, an alloy of zinc and copper and was a cheap alternative for gold, especially for buttons and shoe buckles. It looks impressive at first, but soon wears and looks, well, brassy. How about "Is Mister Penoit Seysounné gold or merely pinchbeck?"

Pinchbeck (alloy) - Wikipedia

 

[The Storyteller]

Craftsman came to mind, and I see others have said both that and artisan. Something like 'true craftsman' or 'genuine craftsman' or 'authentic craftsman' seems good.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Damn it, I read that as 'synonym'. Ahem. Sorry.

 

[Danny McG]

The real sh*t or bean dip

 

[tinkerdan]

I find all of these listed as antonyms::
ace, adept, authority, crackerjack, expert, maestro, master, past master, professional, virtuoso, whiz, wizard.

 

[Cathbad]

I like Virtuoso for this one.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

Pinchbeck is a type of brass, an alloy of zinc and copper and was a cheap alternative for gold, especially for buttons and shoe buckles. It looks impressive at first, but soon wears and looks, well, brassy. How about "Is Mister Penoit Seysounné gold or merely pinchbeck?"

Pinchbeck (alloy) - Wikipedia

I'm with Pyan -- you may be too hung up on charlatan here, when a different set entirely may be just the ticket.