Well, not all ebony is pure black.  It frequently has lighter streaks or may be a bit lighter in colour overall, depending on soil conditions and other factors.  That is why most violin fingerboards and fittings are dyed, since people tend to assume that the pure black is the "real stuff".  There is only so much ebony in the world markets on any given year that is actually pure black and undyed.  It being pure black isn't a guarantee of quality either, since there can still be flaws in the grain and etc even on naturally black ebony.

However, none of that excuses the workmanship issues at the price level. 

Better luck with the next try, Barry. 

That was me, Fiddlestix.  It was also actual paint.  Once the paint was scraped/sanded off, it was light wood and had a knot in it.  A knot won't necessarily make a bad sounding guitar fretboard, so I reckon it isn't necessarily bad in a fingerboard.  So long as it isn't loose and doesn't add any odd resonances or wolf tones or make notes near it dead.  Not optimal either, though.

And that was a Mendini MV-300.  Mendinis are also Cecilio products. 

Assorted issues of materials and workmanship were why I decided to try a different manufacturer than Cecilio when I went to buy another acoustic violin.