Knowledge

Philatelic fakes and forgeries

Source đź“ť

1119:
two sides, and only 81 stamps were perforated on all four sides. (A pane of 50 commemorative-sized stamps typically contained only 36 fully perforated copies.) Because stamps with a straight edge are less desirable to collectors—and fetch lower prices—than fully perforated examples, unscrupulous dealers have "reperforated" many older straight-edged stamps: that is, they have carefully cut false perforations into the flat side, so that the copy can be sold for the same price as a normally perforated version. In other cases a valuable and a common variety of a stamp may differ only by the presence or size of the perforations. Thus new perforations are cut into the stamp, or perforations are cut off to make a common stamp appear like a rare imperforate or rare coil issue.
698:. It was hoped that stamp collectors became aware of this stamp and that a major press campaign would subsequently take place about it. It turned out, however, that this forgery did not attract a lot of attention, neither in Switzerland nor in the rest of Europe. In the end, the British agents were forced to take the Himmler stamp directly to stamp dealers to make it public. However, even this measure did not lead to the desired success and the action turned out to be a complete failure, as practically nobody believed in the alleged Himmler overthrow. What was curious, however, was that a member of the US secret service 564:'s head in place of King George's, the inscription that was faulty ("This war is a Jewsh war" ) and the years altered to 1939-1944. A similar falsification concerned the coronation issue from 1937 in which Stalin's head appears in the place of the Queen's, the star of David is present, as well as an inscription concerning the Tehran conference. A third forgery is different and affects the 1937 series with the head of King George VI. The alterations are very subtle affecting emblems. Six values of the series were falsified. In the short film "Adolph Burger's Historical Artifacts" Sachsenhausen survivor 658: 414: 290:
cancellation, it necessarily is a philatelic forgery since it was obviously made for sale to collectors, not to be used to send a letter. If the cancellation is genuine, it is likely, but not necessarily, a postal forgery, since sometimes forgers have used genuine cancellation devices to "cancel" forged stamps. A helpful distinction may be to have one of these stamps on an envelope that actually went through the mail, but that too requires caution. Counterfeits that reach the philatelic community are fairly scarce, and that alone makes them more valuable.
36: 380: 1078: 403: 784: 581: 1070: 772: 1145: 1209: 992:. The story is about a Britain that was occupied by Nazi Germany during the Second World War. In this context, a stamp with Hitler's head and the inscription "Postage Revenue", as found on all British stamps, appeared on the front page of the book. As a clever marketing strategy for the introduction of the book, a booklet of stamps was produced, which contained the alleged Hitler stamps with three different values and in three different colours of six stamps each. However, the 674: 1197:
philatelic community. The authorities can do that profitably because they no longer need to provide the postal services that the stamps were meant to pay for. Many collectors are more interested in stamps that have been correctly used, and the corresponding used stamp may often be worth more than a mint stamp. Authorities who do this tend to use the same canceller for all CTOs, and apply it very neatly in the corner of four stamps at one time.
549: 93: 858: 535:. The fake postage stamps were printed on slightly more yellowish paper than the originals. Furthermore, the stamp images of the forgeries are slightly higher (¼ – ½ mm). Used war mail forgeries have not yet been found; however, there are mint pieces of all three values as well as proofs of the 10-Hellers value in small sheet format in three different colours with the date September 25, 1918. 392: 666: 976: 764: 1165:(for the 1893 card). This led him to the conclusion that the recipient addressed them to himself and had a sympathetic or complicit postal clerk fraudulently back date the year to match the card's date of origin. He probably then sent the uncirculated, but postmarked, cards to the Senf brothers who sold them to collectors. 927:
Remainders are surplus stocks of legitimate postage stamps that are put on the philatelic market after ceasing to be valid for postal purposes. Among these are the later stamps of Nova Scotia, before it became a province of Canada, and the German inflationary period stamps. One effect of distributing
876:
from 1940 to 1945. The British designer and engraver N.V.L. Rybot was commissioned by the German administration to design and print Jersey stamps. Apparently to his personal satisfaction, he engraved the very small and inconspicuous letters "AABB" and "AAAA" in the four corners of the ½ as well as of
1169:
There are many instances of stamps that have been produced in large quantities, but where comparatively very small numbers have done postage service. Huge quantities of mint stamps can be left over after a bout of inflation, a political overthrow or loss of a war. In some cases a genuine stamp can
1118:
For many years, sheets of stamps were generally cut into four quarters (panes) before being perforated. This produced many stamps that were perforated on only three sides. On a pane of 100, for example, 18 stamps appeared with a single straight edge, the single (corner) stamp lacked perforations on
1109:
In another example the 1948 Gandhi stamps of India were overprinted with the single word "SERVICE" to produce a stamp for official government use. The key to knowing the difference between the two is based on recognizing the difference between a typographed and a lithographed overprint. The former
324:
Unlike counterfeits these are very common in collections. Many that were produced in the earliest days of stamp collecting in the 19th century are still plentiful. At that time many considered it quite acceptable to fill a space in an album with a facsimile when the genuine stamp was unavailable.
212:
Those who produce counterfeits appeal to a very different market from philatelists. They depend on their stamps being produced in large quantities in order to be able to recover their outlay. The person who would use them must feel that he or she can purchase them for a price that is significantly
158:
Stamps are legitimate if they are recognized internationally in practice, even if they are not recognized expressly, as by a treaty or international agreement. This is the same principle of international law that applies to the recognition of nation-states. A nation becomes a nation-state when the
1053:
This is the most obvious way of producing forgeries. The forger starts from scratch, and engraves a completely new plate. It is virtually impossible to produce a new engraving that will be identical to the original. Thus, in the earliest set of Hong Kong stamps the forgeries can be distinguished by
936:
Bogus stamps are fictitious stamps which purport to be produced by an entity that exists and might have produced them, but did not. A bogus stamp is not a forgery because it is not based on any genuine stamp. It does not even resemble anything that the entity did produce, and only rarely are any of
877:
the 1 penny stamps. After the war, Rybot explained that he had inserted the secret letters in order to strengthen the fighting spirit of the British, who were informed about the forgery. According to his statement, the letters "AABB" were to represent an abbreviation for the words "Adolphe Atrox" (
1094:
One would imagine that overprints should be easier for a forger to falsify. It is just a simple matter of applying a few letters to a stamp with black ink. Paying attention to detail can reward a philatelic sleuth. The stamps of Bangkok from the 1880s were produced by overprinting each stamp a
725:
There are two distinctly different versions of the Himmler stamp, one with wide lines, a second type with narrow lines; there are imperforated proofs of the second type in both violet and black, and of the first type in violet. No genuine cancellations have yet been found; all known specimens are
354:
As an expert can falsify stamps often quite easily, it is advisable particularly when dealing with stamps of value to have them examined and expertised. Such experts are highly specialized and generally focused on a selected philatelic area. Falsified stamps may be marked as such, while a genuine
220:
was the first stamp to be copied in 1840, its first year. Partial forgery consists of changing colors or changing the face values of stamps to imitate a higher value stamp. Other tricks consisted of methods to make the cancellation disappear (chemically erasing, placing a second stamp on it if it
289:
It may not be possible to distinguish between a philatelic and postal forgery if the stamps are unused, merely by looking at them; the techniques utilized in producing them are identical. However, if the stamps bear cancellations, they may be more readily distinguished. If a stamp has a forged
814:
written in German. Also, in the right-hand "Italian part", the cutting and stabbing weapons were depicted heavily worn or damaged. In the left "German part" the sword hilt received the small caricature of a head or face. More subtle was the characterization of German dominance over Italy in the
1177:
It is also important to know that not all cancellations are postal. Some countries have inscribed their stamps "Postage and Revenue". Some very high face values on such stamps could not reasonably have been used for postage, thus making any kind of proper postal usage exceedingly rare. More
1196:
Technically CTOs are not fakes since they have been cancelled by the stamp issuing authority. Many of these are easily identified because while they have been postmarked they still retain their original gum. Some postal authorities cancel them and sell them at a considerable discount to the
333:
Fakes begin with a genuine stamp, which is altered in some way to make it more valuable to stamp collectors. When catalogues show different varieties with significantly different values this can be great motivation to alter the cheap example into something that can be sold for great profit.
710:
in which he described the mysterious stamp. As the US side amazingly had not been informed about the counterfeiting operation by the British secret service, the US secret service started superfluous investigations and thus tied up personnel, which finally turned the whole operation into an
370:
Political and propaganda forgery is produced by countries in conflict to hurt the opponent. Stamps may be issued to deprive the enemy of revenue, to distribute propaganda material, to cause confusion, and to depict propaganda messages. Propaganda stamps are very collectable and have been
1095:
single letter "B" on stamps of the Straits Settlements. Some of these overprints are bogus because they are on underlying stamps that were never known to have been issued with that overprint. Forgeries can be discovered by examining the relative heights of the two loops of the B.
918:
Official reprints of stamps that are no longer valid for postage are usually produced by governments to meet a philatelic demand. Scott numbers 3 and 4 of the United States were produced for this purpose. This also happened with several early sets of the People's Republic of China.
693:
and wanted to make himself a new leader or president of Germany, an allegedly prepared stamp issue with his portrait was considered suitable to bring this idea into the minds of the NS leadership in the first place. The stamp was distributed by British agents, especially in neutral
809:
in a caricature-like manner, so that the impression was created to contrast an "aggressive and grim" looking Hitler with a "baffled and intimidated" looking Mussolini. The Italian text was changed from (translated) "Two peoples, one war" to "Two peoples, one FĂĽhrer", with the word
337:
Knowledge is an important tool in helping to detect fakes and forgeries. A person who is able to identify some of the most obvious forgeries can save a lot of money in expertising fees, though the information may not yet be enough to establish that a stamp is genuine. Earee's
172:
The first postage stamp was issued in Great Britain in 1840, and by the early 1860s the first postage stamp forgery—in the sense of a stamp created to fool philatelists into thinking that it is a genuine one—appeared on the market. By 1863 forgeries were so common that the book
835:. It is assumed that this was intended to be used to frank the propaganda booklets "Neapolitan letters" from 1943. Both perforated and imperforated specimens of this stamp exist. The forgery differed from the original mainly by the perforation (14 Âľ : 14) instead of 14. 1039:
Cinderellas is a broad term for just about anything that looks like a postage stamp but is not. While the term includes bogus stamps and fantasies, it also includes many fund raising labels, Christmas seals, and other stickers that were produced for legitimate purposes.
325:
Later, especially in the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, massive numbers of stamps were forged for the packet trade, including very common as well as rare stamps, so that the fact that a stamp is common is no guarantee that it is not a philatelic forgery.
1102:, is four stamps overprinted for an industrial exhibition held in Auckland in 1913. The accompanying image shows genuine overprints, and forged overprints from an internet auction. A New Zealand dealer prices a set of postally used stamps with genuine overprints at 1089:
alongside a genuine surcharge. While the relative spacings of the three elements of the surcharge are roughly the same as on the genuine stamp, note, however, the differences in the crossbar on the "t" and the cap of the "5", together with the crispness of the
1178:
commonly these high face values were for fiscal usages to indicate the payment of taxes on real estate or corporate shares. While such cancellations are not fakes, they can easily be misrepresented to the unwary as the more valuable postal cancellations.
146:
is used to indicate the alteration of a genuine stamp to make it appear as something else. Fakes might refer to cancellations, overprints, added or clipped perforations, stamp design alterations, etc." While difficult to do today, one famous case is the
371:
philatelically forged: a forgery of a forgery. Many propaganda stamps would have been difficult to circulate in the postal system because they would have been immediately removed, thus used propaganda stamps are unusual (but easily falsified).
722:, commented after the war that Heinrich Himmler was very indignant about this British forgery with his portrait. This apparently prompted him to repay with the same coin and also to commission mocking propaganda stamps on the British side. 1156:
noticed that he had other cards postmarked MayagĂĽez and addressed to the same recipient who lived in MayagĂĽez, who he knew to be a representative of the Senf brothers, stamp dealers in Leipzig, Germany. The other cards were dated 8 April
1135:
The colour of a stamp can be changed by exposing the stamp to various chemicals, or by leaving it out in bright sunlight. Carefully applied chemicals can also be used to remove specific colours to produce "rare" missing colour varieties.
642:
Regarding Germany, the first forgery was the 12 pfennig Hindenburg head stamp, later followed by the 3, 4, 6, and 8 pfennig values, to distribute propaganda material in Germany. Other stamps such as the Hitler heads and some
1170:
have a fake cancellation applied to make it appear to be a rare, and valuable postally used example. A notable example is the 90¢ U. S. stamp of 1860, withdrawn within a year, on which a genuine cancellation raises the
996:
confiscated all the booklets it could get its hands on as rapidly as possible. The remaining booklets quickly became a rarity sought after by collectors. At an auction in England, for example, a booklet was sold for 300
1016:
are usually intended to serve a local purpose, and are not necessarily fraudulent. Thus we have in relation to the Great Britain: "... there were two local entities that 'performed much in the way of postal service ...
485:. The five forged issues were about twice the size of the original stamps, presumably to show the overprint in larger letters. The stamps were apparently intended to put the massive German resistance in the colony of 195:
to make an almost perfect copy of the stamp. In his lifetime, Jean de Sperati forged over 500 stamps. He sometimes signed his work in pencil on the back. His forged stamps are now often worth more than the originals.
213:
lower than the price at a legitimate post office, or is perhaps duped into thinking they are genuine. This makes the most common current stamp used for everyday mailing a prime target for counterfeiting activity.
838:
Stamps were produced in Great Britain for the Generalgouvernement and used by the Polish underground army to distribute propaganda material. The Hitler head stamp of the Generalgouvernement was modified to depict
823:. The stamp, which was originally issued in a violet shade, was printed in green. The text was changed from "Poste Italiane" to "Two Peoples/One War". Both forgeries were probably produced in autumn 1943. The 508:", a blue 20 pfennig stamp the imprint "Schweiz 25 Centimes". The article stated that there are more Germania stamps with various other values. This was obviously intended to give the impression that neutral 1849:, in two volumes: vol.1, "Europe", Nice, Imprimerie de l'Éclaireur, 1927; vol.2, "Hors d'Europe", Bergerac, Imprimerie générale du sud-ouest, 1929. A one volume translation of this was published in 1998 as 983:
In exceptional cases, even fantasies can be highly traded in collector circles. Fantasy stamps from 1978, which were produced in Great Britain, represent an exceptional case. In that year the British author
452:
fell victim to war mail forgeries. However, only unused pieces are known. Imperforated proofs were also discovered among these forgeries. The war fakes differ in drawing and paper from the original stamps.
1005:. So it was not long before counterfeiters came up with the idea of forging even these booklets with fantasy stamps themselves. These imitations also brought in several hundred dollars on the US market. 1025:.' Those two, it would seem, are considered thoroughly legitimate." These islands did not have official post offices, and a private service needed to be established to transport mail to the mainland. 1057:
Modern electronic techniques would appear to make things easier for the forger, but understanding how different printing methods work can be very helpful in discovering these forgeries. Recently
831:
No. 626 (Italy) is shown, but in blue coloring instead of a violet tone. Probably already at the beginning of 1943 the PWE also produced a war forgery of the Italian stamp with the image of King
1174:
value from US $ 3000 to $ 11,000. Scott's listing includes the caveat: "All used examples ... must be accompanied by certificates of authenticity issued by recognized expertizing committees."
905:("un-German un-democratic dictatorship"). Other changes were made to the stamps of the Five Year Plan. The group also modified production instructions to factories that caused economic damage. 1054:
counting the number of shading lines in the background. Some early Japanese forgeries are distinguished by remembering that the chrysanthemum crest in the stamp should always have 16 petals.
255:
Postal services developed, early on, measures to protect the integrity of their stamps. Some of these steps are similar to those used to protect against forged currency. Major steps include:
1865:
Theodore M. Tedesco, Index of Literature in the English Language that Describes Postal Stamp Forgeries, Fakes, Reprints, Fraudulent Postal Markings and Other Obliterations and Bibliography.
552:
Propaganda stamp with the head of King George VI. Version with red overprint: "Liquidation of Empire/BAHAMA-Is". Additionally with false cancellation: "LONDON AAAO/-6JUN/44/SPECIAL-STAMP".
177:
was published and by 1864, forgeries were being produced of both common and scarce stamps from a wide range of issuing countries such as Austria, British Guiana, Finland, India and Spain.
937:
these labels ever shipped to the place that is shown as issuing them. The term also refers to a genuine stamp which bears the sham addition of an unauthorized surcharge or overprint.
298:
Soon after their introduction, stamps became philatelic objects, and stamp forgery to the detriment of the collector became a problem. The first book about the topic was written by
191:
forgery refers to a stamp that was originally issued in 1865. To produce his forgery, de Sperati bleached a real, cheaper stamp of the same vintage. He then used a process called
163:
which is not a member of the UPU but which does get its mail delivered, this demonstrate that the stamps it issues are neither propaganda labels nor part of a money-making scam.
247:
As a curiosity postal authorities have published their own forgeries, thus the British Post Office forged its own 1d stamps in 1856 to see if its features were fraud-proof.
596:
in 1944. These stamps were applied to letters containing propaganda, marked with false postmarks (Wien 8, Wien 40, Hannover 1), and distributed by drops from airplanes as
881:
for "Cruel Adolf") and "Bloody Benito". Furthermore, the letters "AAAA" had the abbreviated meaning "Ad Avernum, Adolphe Atrox", Latin for "To hell, cruel Adolf".
520:
felt compelled to deny the article and accuse the newspaper of having fallen for a forgery, which, according to subsequent evidence, was without doubt the case.
184: 890: 706:, of all people, ascribed extraordinary significance to this stamp. On June 10, 1944, US agent Allan Dulles prepared a detailed report for his superior in 204:
Stamp-like objects, not all of which are really fakes and forgeries, are described below for the sake of developing a better understanding of such claims.
1106:
1600, while the same four stamps, postally used without the overprint, are priced at NZD 8. This indicates the potentially lucrative payoff for forgers.
1179: 730:, which were prepared with attached Himmler stamps and faked German cancellations. These were intended for neutral countries such as Switzerland, 1409: 138:
to indicate stamps produced to defraud collectors (properly known as forgeries) and to defraud stamp-issuing governments (properly known as
154:
Questions are often raised about when a stamp is legitimately produced for postage. Matthew Karanian has proposed the following guideline:
221:
just hits a corner). The Spanish Post Office had to change its stamps almost annually between 1850 and 1879 to stay ahead of the forgers.
1152:
canceled on "8 April 1885". This was thought to be a genuine (and quite valuable) used card until a noted collector of Puerto Rican
560:
by order of Heinrich Himmler during the war. The modifications included the insertion of Jewish and communist emblems, placement of
1921: 1258: 972:. The stamps of New Atlantis required the construction of a bamboo raft that would be floated in the Atlantic as the country. 726:
clearly forgeries to the collectors' detriment. However, some postcards and envelopes were made by the British secret service
556:
All known German falsifications are propaganda forgeries. Forgeries of the Silver Jubilee issue of 1935 were falsified at the
130:
To a large extent the definitions below are consistent with those given in the introduction to various recent editions of the
1743: 897:(GDR). The first stamps to be modified were the 12 and 24 pfennig values of the series depicting the President of the GDR 1689: 1514: 1061:
from Germany used modern technology to produce convincing reproductions which were then unscrupulously sold as genuine.
964:
Fantasies are stamps claimed to be issued by places that do not even exist. One of the most famous of these were "King"
827:(PWE) also produced two propaganda booklets in Italian on which the Italian stamps are depicted. On one of the booklets 474:
white paper. Unlike the previous war mail forgeries, there are also pieces with real postmarks from both forged stamps.
470:
edition of the German Reich. The drawing deviates from the originals, as does the watermark, which is too thin, and the
1790: 148: 97: 1474: 1182:
was sentenced recently in a high-profile German legal case for forgery of postmarks to increase the value of stamps.
183:
is among the master forgers in the history of philately. He created forgeries of the 10 cent black, one of the first
79: 57: 965: 568:
shows examples of some of these stamps that he helped produce. He also describes this in greater detail in his book
50: 949: 928:
large quantities of remaindered stamps to the public is that used stamps can be much more valuable than mint ones.
557: 611:. Similarly, the Hitler block from 1937 was altered to show a death head, graves, and gallows; the inscription is 1926: 1421: 588:
The first stamps to be forged were the common 6 and 12 pfennig Hitler head stamps. The forgeries were printed in
1617: 1555: 1254: 753:("Hanged on...") Other forgeries were based on the welfare stamps from 1938, and the 1944 Hitler putsch stamp. 1890: 92: 1882: 1249: 699: 593: 318: 17: 824: 727: 477:
There is also known a type of propaganda forgery, which was produced between 1914 and 1918. Forgeries of
956:. The 1923 famine relief stamps of Azerbaijan were bogus, but these too were also subsequently forged. 603:
The US modified the 12 pfennig Hitler head stamp by the insertion of a death head and the inscription
650:
A major effort was the production of propaganda stamps. The Hitler head stamp was modified to depict
160: 1392: 1353: 1579:
Gustav Schenk. The Romance of the Postage Stamp. Doubleday & C0, Garden City, NY (1959), p183ff
1244: 1058: 941: 44: 1367: 1223: 1110:
will leave an impression in the paper which can be detected by looking at the back of the stamp.
1876: 756:
Regarding France, Britain produced forgeries of the Iris series and of stamps depicting Marshal
657: 481:
stamps were produced, which showed the imprint "G. E. A. BRITISH OCCUPATION" and a new value in
682: 61: 1825: 311: 1379: 1340: 1328: 1234: 449: 235: 1864: 1445: 872:
may be regarded as a curiosity. Jersey, like the other Channel Islands, was occupied by the
893:
produced anti-communist propaganda including stamps that were used in the postal system of
597: 532: 8: 1832:, 2nd edition, London, Stanley Gibbons, 1892. A classic for identifying early forgeries. 742: 413: 402: 299: 265: 523:
Shortly before the end of World War I, war mail forgeries of the values of 5, 10 and 25
379: 1239: 1191: 1103: 1077: 854:
to create confusion and suggest an imminent German occupation. Few examples are known.
832: 719: 715: 636: 478: 757: 355:
stamp of value should receive a certificate of authenticity by a reputable authority.
1822:, Vol. 96, No. 12, December 1982, pp. 1097–1103. Includes detection techniques. 1796: 1786: 1534: 1470: 1310: 1153: 1086: 969: 665: 644: 497: 1502:
p. 10 (Mexico sold genuine cancellation devices which were later used on forgeries).
1127:
In some cases the value of a damaged stamp can be enhanced by repairing the damage.
690: 1905: 1214: 1034: 975: 873: 738:
to be distributed there by agents. Some of these postal items have been preserved.
707: 651: 465: 456:
The second German postage stamp issue was forged by Great Britain on behalf of the
192: 188: 1839:, Vol. 96, No. 5, May 1982, pp. 439–443, 467. Even the experts can be wrong. 940:
They are generally issued to deceive collectors. Among these are the "issues" for
1894: 1883:
Fakes and forgeries: cull them or collect them? by Rick Miller, Linn's Stamp News
1842: 1518: 1462: 1171: 1082: 624: 482: 461: 422: 180: 101: 1747: 1589: 1535:"Friedman: British Forgeries of the Stamps and Banknotes of the Central Powers" 1229: 998: 866: 800: 783: 580: 524: 112: 1693: 1511: 1069: 187:, in 1847. It is possible to identify these forgeries by two small flaws. The 1915: 1800: 1002: 898: 771: 763: 623:
Soviet forgeries were limited to postcards with propaganda messages that had
561: 430: 426: 1487:
The Yucatan Affair - The Work of Raoul C. De Thuin, Philatelic Counterfeiter
1144: 805:
No. 625 (Italy) was changed by disfiguring the heads of Hitler respectively
799:, which was allied with Germany in the Second World War. Thus the design of 741:
Another propaganda forgery concerns the 1943 Hitler putsch stamp that shows
358:
In recent years, homemade forgeries can easily reach the market through the
985: 945: 894: 746: 565: 334:
Sometimes only minor changes can affect the apparent valuation of a stamp.
673: 531:
were produced in England. The stamps show the Austrian imperial crown and
1726: 1149: 1099: 1013: 850:
received stamps forged by the British authorities that had overprints of
695: 686: 509: 489:
into perspective and to propagate an early occupation of the whole area.
457: 217: 139: 1906:
World Forgery Catalogue: A reference list of stamp forgery descriptions
993: 840: 259: 843:
on the 20 groszy value. These stamps circulated in the postal system.
1899: 979:
Hitler-fantasy: a genuine stamp on top and a fake stamp at the bottom
820: 806: 635:
Great Britain produced forgeries for Germany, France, Italy, Poland (
464:. Affected are the postage stamp values of 10 and 15 pfennigs of the 434: 124: 116: 1888:
Propaganda and Espionage Philately by SGM Herbert A. Friedman (Ret.)
1877:
Detecting the Truth: Fakes, Forgeries and Trickery: Postal Imposters
1621: 1559: 1489:(2d ed. American Philatelic Society, State College, PA 1980) p. 149. 1257:, a collection of world forgeries to about 1900 that is part of the 1001:. In Germany, in 1998, one of them realized the proud price of 1250 857: 685:
with the intention of driving a wedge between the leadership of the
548: 1887: 1783:
Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps and Covers 2013
1469:. 1st edition. London: Guinness Superlatives Limited, 1982, p.150. 735: 505: 359: 1769:
Postal Cards of Spanish Colonial Cuba, Philippines and Puerto Rico
460:
Propaganda Office. It was used to frank leaflets and brochures in
1818:
Werner M. Bohne, "Caveat Emptor: Detecting German Forgeries", in
847: 528: 513: 501: 492:
On December 12, 1914, two Germania stamps were reproduced in the
445: 441: 406:
Probes of the British "Germania"-forgery, connected to 10 and 15
346:
are only two books in the vast literature about stamp forgeries.
1870: 1500:
CharacterĂ­sticas de Algunas Falsificaciones de Timbres de MĂ©xico
391: 953: 869: 731: 712: 493: 1900:
Propaganda stamps showing originals and forgeries in pictures
1022: 989: 901:. The propaganda versions showed a noose and the inscription 878: 796: 471: 123:. Learning to identify these can be a challenging branch of 120: 1731:
The Encyclopædia of British Empire Postage Stamps, 1775-1950
1448:, a virtual museum exhibition at Library and Archives Canada 1414: 167: 1018: 791:
Nr. 626 (Italy) (top). The original stamp is at the bottom.
779:
Nr. 625 (Italy) (top). The original stamp is at the bottom.
703: 589: 517: 543: 512:
was on the verge of being occupied by Germany. The German
282:
Secret marks either visible or invisible to the microscope
216:
The earliest commercial forgeries are all postal, and the
1618:"Herbert A. Friedman: Propaganda and Espionage Philately" 669:
Proofs of the Himmler-Forgery Type II in black and violet
159:
international community begins treating it as such. For
1851:
The Serrane Guide, Stamp Forgeries of the World to 1926,
1408:(Sharp Photography Publications, 2021) ASIN B091MBTGJ7 1767:
Mitchell, Byron, editor of the Puerto Rico section of
575: 365: 433:. Virtually all counterfeit stamps are forgeries for 1204: 884: 677:
Cancelled Himmler stamps forged by PWE on a postcard
349: 207: 1867:Massive bibliography of stamp fakes and forgeries. 1835:Stephen G. Esrati, "When Expertzers Disagree", in 1446:Detecting the Truth: Fakes, Forgeries and Trickery 243:USA: 2c Washington (1894), 13c Liberty Bell (1980) 27:Fraudulently manufactured imitation postage stamps 1853:American Philatelic Society, Pennsylvania (1998). 1847:Vade-mecum du spĂ©cialiste-expert en timbres-poste 1913: 306:in 1862. Shortly thereafter Pemberton published 228:France: 20c (1870), 15c (1886), sower 25c (1923) 618: 149:Stock Exchange forgery of the late 19th century 1648:, Stanley Gibbons Publications, London (1978). 1556:"Friedman: Propaganda and Espionage Philately" 865:The propaganda forgeries of two stamps of the 1713:Richard M. Langworth, "Herm and Its Locals", 1612: 1610: 1608: 1606: 1467:The Guinness Book of Stamps Facts & Feats 952:, and for the uninhabited Scottish island of 718:inmate Adolf Burger, who had participated in 1830:Album Weeds; or, How to Detect Forged Stamps 1744:"Auckland City Stamps 2008 Catalogue Page 5" 1374:. London: E. Marlborough. 1864-05-01: 67–69. 1073:Forged overprints on 1913 New Zealand stamps 795:Propaganda forgeries were also produced for 689:. With the idea that Himmler was planning a 661:Himmler-Forgery (Type I top, Type II bottom) 500:". A red 10 pfennig stamp bore the imprint " 417:"Germania"-forgery, 15 Pf. in correct colour 1733:, London, Robson Lowe Ltd., 1951, pp. 380-1 1295:Matthew Karanian, "The Karabagh Story", in 1185: 639:), and French Morocco during World War II. 527:of the then current postage stamp issue of 1640: 1638: 1603: 1529: 1527: 1422:"Stamp forgeries of British Columbia, BNA" 1399: 747:July 20, 1944 Hitler assassination attempt 240:Australia: 2d Sydney Harbour Bridge (1932) 1335:. London: E. Marlborough. 1863-05-01: 61. 1314:, Edinburgh, 1863 (1979 republication in 889:Between 1948 and 1954 a group founded by 647:stamps may not have reached circulation. 448:postage stamp issue with the portrait of 168:History of philatelic fakes and forgeries 80:Learn how and when to remove this message 1458: 1456: 1454: 1282:Tom Horn, "Beware of Problem Areas", in 1143: 1076: 1068: 974: 856: 782: 770: 762: 672: 664: 656: 579: 547: 412: 401: 390: 378: 91: 43:This article includes a list of general 1635: 1524: 1308:Thornton Lewes & Edward Pemberton, 544:German forgeries for the United Kingdom 293: 14: 1914: 1771:, Robert Littrell, editor, UPSS (2010) 1717:, Vol. 95., No. 11, Nov. 1981, p. 1009 1573: 1259:British Library Philatelic Collections 861:Inserted letter «A» on a 1 penny stamp 681:The Himmler stamp was designed by the 304:De la falsifications des timbres-poste 250: 132:Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue 96:"Brighton forgeries" of the stamps of 1774: 1451: 1406:A Sharp Eye on collecting US Classics 1780: 1690:"Propaganda and Espionage Philately" 1644:Bennett, Russell and Watson, James; 1498:See, e.g., Roberto Liera GutiĂ©rrez, 1299:, vol. 114, No. 3, March 2000, p.267 1286:vol. 118, No. 1, p. 60, January 2004 1064: 913: 630: 29: 1785:. Scott Publishing Co. p. 22. 1048: 903:Undeutsche Undemokratische Diktatur 825:British Political Warfare Executive 576:United States forgeries for Germany 366:Government and propaganda forgeries 321:have become collectibles, as well. 224:Notable postal forgeries include: 24: 1139: 387:(left). On the right the original. 49:it lacks sufficient corresponding 25: 1938: 1858: 1661:, London, Heinemann, 1970, p. 81. 1311:Forged Stamps: How to Detect Them 1161:(for the 1887 card), and 8 April 1130: 885:Cold war: West Berlin for the GDR 308:Forged Stamps: How to detect them 231:Germany: 10pf (1902), 10pf (1909) 199: 175:Forged Stamps: How to Detect Them 1368:"The Stamp Collector's Magazine" 1329:"The Stamp Collector's Magazine" 1207: 1113: 558:Sachsenhausen concentration camp 350:Expertising stamps as protection 208:Postal forgeries or counterfeits 34: 1761: 1736: 1720: 1707: 1682: 1673: 1664: 1651: 1582: 1548: 1505: 1492: 1479: 1008: 931: 538: 1922:Philatelic fakes and forgeries 1879:. Library and Archives Canada. 1873:. Stamp forgeries of the World 1438: 1360: 1321: 1302: 1289: 1276: 1255:Turner Collection of Forgeries 1028: 966:Charles-Marie David de MayrĂ©na 908: 852:Deutsche Reichspost in Marokko 615:. Postcards were also forged. 429:postage stamps were forged by 374: 109:philatelic fakes and forgeries 13: 1: 1264: 922: 1692:. psywar.org. Archived from 1646:Philatelic Terms Illustrated 1620:. psywar.org. Archived from 1558:. psywar.org. Archived from 1316:Early Forged Stamps Detector 1269: 1250:Russian philatelic forgeries 959: 619:Soviet forgeries for Germany 594:Office of Strategic Services 7: 1908:by G. Kock, Helsinki, 1998. 1781:Snee, Charles, ed. (2012). 1485:See, e.g., James M. Chemi, 1200: 440:The values of 5, 10 and 15 236:4d World Cup Winners (1966) 185:United States postal issues 10: 1943: 1811: 1189: 1122: 1043: 1032: 988:published a book entitled 607:("ruined Reich") replaces 234:Great Britain: 1s (1872), 115:but have been produced to 111:are labels that look like 1081:Forged overprint on 1899 751:Gehängt am 8. August 1944 711:embarrassing mishap. The 584:American propaganda stamp 279:Insertion of silk threads 276:Special ink for postmarks 1679:Williams (1970), p. 109. 1245:Philatelic expertisation 1186:Cancelled-to-order (CTO) 328: 1657:L. N. and M. Williams, 1224:Fakes Forgeries Experts 64:more precise citations. 1927:Philatelic terminology 1902:, retrieved 04-12-2008 1670:Williams (1970), p. 2. 1444:"Postal Imposters" in 1387:Cite journal requires 1348:Cite journal requires 1166: 1098:Another example, from 1091: 1074: 980: 862: 792: 787:Propaganda forgery of 780: 775:Propaganda forgery of 768: 745:(a participant in the 683:British secret service 678: 670: 662: 585: 553: 418: 410: 399: 388: 165: 104: 1410:(read online, page 6) 1318:, New York), pp. 7-8. 1235:List of stamp forgers 1147: 1080: 1072: 978: 950:Maluku Selatan stamps 860: 786: 774: 766: 676: 668: 660: 583: 551: 416: 405: 394: 382: 317:. Stamps produced by 156: 95: 1837:American Philatelist 1820:American Philatelist 1715:American Philatelist 1521:retrieved 04-12-2008 1297:American Philatelist 1284:American Philatelist 819:No. 626 (Italy), 50 613:Deutsches Reich 1944 598:Operation Cornflakes 570:The Devil's Workshop 294:Philatelic forgeries 134:. "We use the term 1826:Robert Brisco EarĂ©e 815:propaganda forgery 749:) and is inscribed 637:Generalgouvernement 395:Propaganda forgery 312:Robert Brisco EarĂ©e 300:Jean-Baptiste Moens 251:Protective measures 1893:2008-03-17 at the 1871:Stampforgeries.com 1517:2008-09-19 at the 1426:Stampforgeries.com 1240:Outline of forgery 1192:Cancelled-to-order 1167: 1092: 1075: 981: 891:Werner Hildebrandt 863: 846:French-controlled 833:Victor Emanuel III 793: 781: 769: 720:Operation Bernhard 716:concentration camp 679: 671: 663: 586: 554: 479:German East Africa 419: 411: 400: 389: 285:Re-issue of stamps 270:Delicate engraving 105: 1659:Cinderella Stamps 1590:"PSYOP MISTAKES?" 1154:postal stationery 1087:provisional stamp 1065:Forged overprints 914:Official reprints 743:General Witzleben 734:or probably also 631:British forgeries 487:Deutsch-Ostafrika 397:Deutsch-Ostafrika 383:War mail forgery 98:Jammu and Kashmir 90: 89: 82: 16:(Redirected from 1934: 1805: 1804: 1778: 1772: 1765: 1759: 1758: 1756: 1755: 1746:. Archived from 1740: 1734: 1724: 1718: 1711: 1705: 1704: 1702: 1701: 1686: 1680: 1677: 1671: 1668: 1662: 1655: 1649: 1642: 1633: 1632: 1630: 1629: 1614: 1601: 1600: 1598: 1597: 1592:. psywarrior.com 1586: 1580: 1577: 1571: 1570: 1568: 1567: 1552: 1546: 1545: 1543: 1542: 1537:. psywarrior.com 1531: 1522: 1509: 1503: 1496: 1490: 1483: 1477: 1460: 1449: 1442: 1436: 1435: 1434: 1432: 1418: 1412: 1403: 1397: 1396: 1390: 1385: 1383: 1375: 1364: 1358: 1357: 1351: 1346: 1344: 1336: 1325: 1319: 1306: 1300: 1293: 1287: 1280: 1217: 1215:Philately portal 1212: 1211: 1210: 1049:Entire forgeries 1035:Cinderella stamp 874:German Wehrmacht 652:Heinrich Himmler 625:imprinted stamps 342:, and Serrane's 273:Printing methods 193:photolithography 189:Vancouver Island 85: 78: 74: 71: 65: 60:this article by 51:inline citations 38: 37: 30: 21: 1942: 1941: 1937: 1936: 1935: 1933: 1932: 1931: 1912: 1911: 1895:Wayback Machine 1861: 1856: 1843:Fernand Serrane 1814: 1809: 1808: 1793: 1779: 1775: 1766: 1762: 1753: 1751: 1742: 1741: 1737: 1725: 1721: 1712: 1708: 1699: 1697: 1688: 1687: 1683: 1678: 1674: 1669: 1665: 1656: 1652: 1643: 1636: 1627: 1625: 1616: 1615: 1604: 1595: 1593: 1588: 1587: 1583: 1578: 1574: 1565: 1563: 1554: 1553: 1549: 1540: 1538: 1533: 1532: 1525: 1519:Wayback Machine 1510: 1506: 1497: 1493: 1484: 1480: 1461: 1452: 1443: 1439: 1430: 1428: 1420: 1419: 1415: 1404: 1400: 1388: 1386: 1377: 1376: 1366: 1365: 1361: 1349: 1347: 1338: 1337: 1327: 1326: 1322: 1307: 1303: 1294: 1290: 1281: 1277: 1272: 1267: 1213: 1208: 1206: 1203: 1194: 1188: 1172:Scott Catalogue 1142: 1140:False postmarks 1133: 1125: 1116: 1083:Puerto Principe 1067: 1051: 1046: 1037: 1031: 1011: 962: 934: 925: 916: 911: 887: 767:Emanuel-forgery 758:Philippe PĂ©tain 633: 621: 609:Deutsches Reich 578: 546: 541: 462:German language 423:First World War 377: 368: 352: 331: 296: 253: 210: 202: 181:Jean de Sperati 170: 102:Harold Treherne 86: 75: 69: 66: 56:Please help to 55: 39: 35: 28: 23: 22: 15: 12: 11: 5: 1940: 1930: 1929: 1924: 1910: 1909: 1903: 1897: 1885: 1880: 1874: 1868: 1860: 1859:External links 1857: 1855: 1854: 1840: 1833: 1823: 1815: 1813: 1810: 1807: 1806: 1792:978-0894874758 1791: 1773: 1760: 1735: 1719: 1706: 1681: 1672: 1663: 1650: 1634: 1602: 1581: 1572: 1547: 1523: 1504: 1491: 1478: 1450: 1437: 1413: 1398: 1389:|journal= 1359: 1350:|journal= 1320: 1301: 1288: 1274: 1273: 1271: 1268: 1266: 1263: 1262: 1261: 1252: 1247: 1242: 1237: 1232: 1230:Illegal stamps 1227: 1219: 1218: 1202: 1199: 1190:Main article: 1187: 1184: 1141: 1138: 1132: 1131:Colour changes 1129: 1124: 1121: 1115: 1112: 1066: 1063: 1050: 1047: 1045: 1042: 1033:Main article: 1030: 1027: 1010: 1007: 999:British pounds 968:'s stamps for 961: 958: 942:South Moluccas 933: 930: 924: 921: 915: 912: 910: 907: 886: 883: 867:Channel Island 632: 629: 620: 617: 605:Futsches Reich 577: 574: 545: 542: 540: 537: 376: 373: 367: 364: 351: 348: 330: 327: 319:famous forgers 295: 292: 287: 286: 283: 280: 277: 274: 271: 268: 262: 252: 249: 245: 244: 241: 238: 232: 229: 209: 206: 201: 200:Classification 198: 169: 166: 113:postage stamps 88: 87: 42: 40: 33: 26: 9: 6: 4: 3: 2: 1939: 1928: 1925: 1923: 1920: 1919: 1917: 1907: 1904: 1901: 1898: 1896: 1892: 1889: 1886: 1884: 1881: 1878: 1875: 1872: 1869: 1866: 1863: 1862: 1852: 1848: 1844: 1841: 1838: 1834: 1831: 1827: 1824: 1821: 1817: 1816: 1802: 1798: 1794: 1788: 1784: 1777: 1770: 1764: 1750:on 2008-05-22 1749: 1745: 1739: 1732: 1728: 1723: 1716: 1710: 1696:on 2019-03-06 1695: 1691: 1685: 1676: 1667: 1660: 1654: 1647: 1641: 1639: 1624:on 2020-02-07 1623: 1619: 1613: 1611: 1609: 1607: 1591: 1585: 1576: 1562:on 2020-02-07 1561: 1557: 1551: 1536: 1530: 1528: 1520: 1516: 1513: 1508: 1501: 1495: 1488: 1482: 1476: 1475:0-85112-241-8 1472: 1468: 1464: 1463:Mackay, James 1459: 1457: 1455: 1447: 1441: 1427: 1423: 1417: 1411: 1407: 1402: 1394: 1381: 1373: 1369: 1363: 1355: 1342: 1334: 1330: 1324: 1317: 1313: 1312: 1305: 1298: 1292: 1285: 1279: 1275: 1260: 1256: 1253: 1251: 1248: 1246: 1243: 1241: 1238: 1236: 1233: 1231: 1228: 1226: 1225: 1221: 1220: 1216: 1205: 1198: 1193: 1183: 1181: 1175: 1173: 1164: 1160: 1155: 1151: 1146: 1137: 1128: 1120: 1114:Reperforating 1111: 1107: 1105: 1101: 1096: 1088: 1084: 1079: 1071: 1062: 1060: 1055: 1041: 1036: 1026: 1024: 1020: 1015: 1006: 1004: 1000: 995: 991: 987: 977: 973: 971: 967: 957: 955: 951: 947: 943: 938: 929: 920: 906: 904: 900: 899:Wilhelm Pieck 896: 892: 882: 880: 875: 871: 868: 859: 855: 853: 849: 844: 842: 836: 834: 830: 826: 822: 818: 813: 808: 804: 803: 798: 790: 785: 778: 773: 765: 761: 759: 754: 752: 748: 744: 739: 737: 733: 729: 723: 721: 717: 714: 709: 705: 701: 697: 692: 688: 684: 675: 667: 659: 655: 653: 648: 646: 640: 638: 628: 626: 616: 614: 610: 606: 601: 599: 595: 591: 582: 573: 571: 567: 563: 562:Joseph Stalin 559: 550: 536: 534: 530: 526: 521: 519: 515: 511: 507: 503: 499: 495: 490: 488: 484: 480: 475: 473: 469: 468: 463: 459: 454: 451: 447: 443: 438: 436: 432: 431:Great Britain 428: 424: 415: 409: 404: 398: 393: 386: 381: 372: 363: 361: 356: 347: 345: 341: 335: 326: 322: 320: 316: 313: 309: 305: 302:from Belgium 301: 291: 284: 281: 278: 275: 272: 269: 267: 263: 261: 258: 257: 256: 248: 242: 239: 237: 233: 230: 227: 226: 225: 222: 219: 214: 205: 197: 194: 190: 186: 182: 178: 176: 164: 162: 155: 152: 150: 145: 141: 137: 133: 128: 126: 122: 118: 114: 110: 103: 99: 94: 84: 81: 73: 63: 59: 53: 52: 46: 41: 32: 31: 19: 1850: 1846: 1836: 1829: 1819: 1782: 1776: 1768: 1763: 1752:. Retrieved 1748:the original 1738: 1730: 1722: 1714: 1709: 1698:. Retrieved 1694:the original 1684: 1675: 1666: 1658: 1653: 1645: 1626:. Retrieved 1622:the original 1594:. Retrieved 1584: 1575: 1564:. Retrieved 1560:the original 1550: 1539:. Retrieved 1507: 1499: 1494: 1486: 1481: 1466: 1440: 1429:, retrieved 1425: 1416: 1405: 1401: 1380:cite journal 1371: 1362: 1341:cite journal 1332: 1323: 1315: 1309: 1304: 1296: 1291: 1283: 1278: 1222: 1195: 1176: 1168: 1162: 1158: 1134: 1126: 1117: 1108: 1097: 1093: 1059:Peter Winter 1056: 1052: 1038: 1014:Local stamps 1012: 1009:Local stamps 986:Len Deighton 982: 963: 948:printed the 946:Henry Stolow 939: 935: 932:Bogus stamps 926: 917: 902: 895:East Germany 888: 864: 851: 845: 837: 828: 816: 811: 801: 794: 788: 776: 755: 750: 740: 724: 680: 649: 641: 634: 622: 612: 608: 604: 602: 587: 569: 555: 539:World War II 533:Emperor Karl 522: 491: 486: 476: 466: 455: 444:of the then 439: 420: 407: 396: 384: 369: 357: 353: 343: 339: 336: 332: 323: 314: 307: 303: 297: 288: 254: 246: 223: 215: 211: 203: 179: 174: 171: 157: 153: 143: 140:counterfeits 135: 131: 129: 108: 107:In general, 106: 100:produced by 76: 67: 48: 18:Stamp forger 1727:Robson Lowe 1180:Rainer BlĂĽm 1150:postal card 1100:New Zealand 1029:Cinderellas 909:Other types 696:Switzerland 691:coup d'Ă©tat 687:Nazi regime 510:Switzerland 496:newspaper " 421:During the 385:Ludwig III. 375:World War I 340:Album Weeds 315:Album Weeds 218:Penny Black 62:introducing 1916:Categories 1754:2008-08-30 1700:2020-04-29 1628:2020-04-29 1596:2020-04-29 1566:2020-05-05 1541:2020-05-05 1265:References 1090:lettering. 994:Royal Mail 923:Remainders 841:Hans Frank 708:Washington 645:field post 450:Ludwig III 344:Vade Mecum 260:Watermarks 45:references 1801:781677423 1270:Citations 960:Fantasies 821:Centesimi 807:Mussolini 435:espionage 136:"forgery" 125:philately 1891:Archived 1515:Archived 1512:Examples 1201:See also 1085:, Cuba, 736:Portugal 506:Centimes 498:Le Matin 467:Germania 446:Bavarian 442:pfennigs 408:pfennigs 360:internet 264:Special 161:Karabagh 70:May 2020 1812:Sources 1431:June 5, 1123:Repairs 1044:Methods 848:Morocco 592:by the 529:Austria 525:Hellers 514:embassy 502:Schweiz 121:defraud 117:deceive 58:improve 1799:  1789:  1473:  970:Sedang 954:Staffa 870:Jersey 829:Michel 817:Michel 812:FĂĽhrer 802:Michel 789:Michel 777:Michel 732:Sweden 713:Jewish 566:Burger 494:French 472:chalky 427:German 144:"Fake" 47:, but 1023:Lundy 990:SS-GB 944:when 879:Latin 797:Italy 483:Cents 458:Dutch 329:Fakes 266:paper 1797:OCLC 1787:ISBN 1471:ISBN 1433:2020 1393:help 1354:help 1163:1893 1159:1887 1021:and 1019:Herm 704:Bern 590:Rome 518:Bern 310:and 142:). 1104:NZD 728:PWE 702:in 700:OSS 516:in 504:10 119:or 1918:: 1845:, 1828:, 1795:. 1729:, 1637:^ 1605:^ 1526:^ 1465:. 1453:^ 1424:, 1384:: 1382:}} 1378:{{ 1370:. 1345:: 1343:}} 1339:{{ 1331:. 1148:A 1003:DM 760:. 654:. 627:. 600:. 572:. 437:. 425:, 362:. 151:. 127:. 1803:. 1757:. 1703:. 1631:. 1599:. 1569:. 1544:. 1395:) 1391:( 1372:1 1356:) 1352:( 1333:1 83:) 77:( 72:) 68:( 54:. 20:)

Index

Stamp forger
references
inline citations
improve
introducing
Learn how and when to remove this message

Jammu and Kashmir
Harold Treherne
postage stamps
deceive
defraud
philately
counterfeits
Stock Exchange forgery of the late 19th century
Karabagh
Jean de Sperati
United States postal issues
Vancouver Island
photolithography
Penny Black
4d World Cup Winners (1966)
Watermarks
paper
Jean-Baptiste Moens
Robert Brisco Earée
famous forgers
internet

Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.

↑