FFE #3
The stamps of the Suez Canal Co.: Genuine and forged
Class: TR
Peter A.S. Smith FRPSL
Four stamps issued by the Suez Canal Company in 1868 were valid only for 40 days prior to suppression of the postal service on 15th August, and the opening of government post offices on the following day. These are one of the most extensively forged stamps in the world. The types, cancellations and forgeries are described. Only 21 genuine covers are known. There were never any reprints, and the distinguishing marks for genuine and forges stamps areillustrated.
Article number: FFE0301
FFE #3
Wenden letters which are nothing like
Class: PH
Harry v. Hofmann BPP, FRPSL
An obvously forged letter from 1912 bearing a Wenden 1863 parcel stamp is illustrated and described. When offered at auction it was described as RRR.
Article number: FFE0302
FFE #3
Beware the forged scout machine postmark
Class: TR
Harry v. Hofmann BPP, FRPSL
Forged machine postmarks from Latvia's 1934 scout camp are known. The forgery is described and six points of difference from the genuine cancellation are listed.
Article number: FFE0303
FFE #3
The Liepaja bisect
Class: PH
Harry v. Hofmann BPP, FRPSL
The 10 Kopek dragonslayer stamp was bisected for use at Liepaja in Latvia in 1920. Seven postmarks were franked in this way, of which three are in collections. Five points of difference in a forged postmark are described.
Article number: FFE0304
FFE #3
Modern methods of expertisation III
Class: Other
Max Hertsch RDP
While expertisation requires experience and knowledge of the material, technical advances have enhanced this. Scanning technology and quartz light have helped. The writer describes the use of carbon 14 beta particle radiation in identifying repairs and improvements.
Article number: FFE0305
FFE #3
Argentine stamps: the Rivadavia imperforate 15C.; 1864
Class: TR
Mario D. Kurchan
The identifying characteristics of genuine and forged stamps of this issue are described and illustrated.
Article number: FFE0306
FFE #3
Philatelic forgery
Class: Other
Richard J. Weiss
Similarities between identifying fakes in art and philately are noted. Technological advances have provided instruments such as the Raman and infrared microprobes. The Raman probe has become portable and inexpensive and can extract information from pigmentation, gum, paper, overprints, cancellation and manipulation. DNA marks can be placed on art objects making them impossible to reproduce.
Article number: FFE0307
FFE #3
ROMANIA: forgeries of the Bull's Head issues of the principality of Moravia
Class: PH
Fritz Heimbüchler
A cover bearing a 27 Parale black on pale rose paper postmarked BAKEU 20/10 has been shown to be a forgery for 25 years, but it still reappears in auction catalogues. Another 108 Parales cover cancelled GALATZ 23/3 is shown also to be faked. Reprints from 1891 made under circumstances as yet unknown are the source of these stamps which are illustrated and described.
Article number: FFE0308
FFE #3
Like the heads of Medusa
Class: TR
Pierre Guinaud
The forged rectangular VEVEY canceller was wrongly illustrated in FFE #2. Its distinguishing features are listed and illustrated as it is becoming ubiquitous.
Article number: FFE0309
FFE #3
Forgeries or manipulation of Strubel bisects
Class: TR
Erhard Keller
Bisected sitting Helvetia stamps, often 'on piece' are divided into three groups which are considered, illustrated and described in turn. The use of genuine stamps with genuine cancellations, genuine stamps and cancellations with additional hand drawn cancellations, and cancellation forgeries on unused stamps is shown.
Article number: FFE0310
FFE #3
When someone uses a razor blade, things become dangerous!
Class: TR
Jürgen Straub
Forgeries of the 700th anniversary of St Mary's Church Lübeck can be identified with the use of a watermark detector, perforation gauge and UV lamp. Those from Peter Winter, with FAUX in the lower left front margin have the word removed with a razor blade. These are tabulated and illustrated.
Article number: FFE0311
FFE #3
Postmark forgery, "Königsee", on block 10 Deutsches Reich
Class: PH
Jürgen Straub
The circular insert from the machine canceller KÖNIGSEE of 1933 is in private hands and is used for forged cancellations. This is demonstrated through examination of genuine marks and a forged item dated 28 5 37.
Article number: FFE0312
FFE #3
Falsification of a stamp of the Federal Republic of Germany: Mi No 1628 F
Class: TR
Jürgen Straub
The 100 Pf 225th anniversary of the jewellery and watch industry (Mi. 1628) of 10th September 1992 is listed with the dark brown colour, Deutsche Bundpost, missing. This is easily faked and is known as such, with expert certificate.
Article number: FFE0313
FFE #3
Falsifications on Bolivia stamps
Class: TR
Eugenio von Boeck Parada
Forged overprints and forged stamps of Bolivia from 1925 to 1946 are illustrated, listed and described. These are predominantly overprinted airmail issues with false overprints and cancellations.
Article number: FFE0314
FFE #3
Fraudulent use of bisected stamps in the Holy Land
Class: TR
Geo. H. Muentz
Fraudulent and genuine bisected stamps from the Turkish, French, Austrian and British post offices in Palestine are illustrated and described, as are items from the interim period in 1948 and from the State of Israel.
Article number: FFE0315
FFE #3
Expertising at the Philatelic Foundation, New York
Class: Other
John E. Lievesay
The work of the Philatelic Foundation of New York, its history and reference collection is considered.
Article number: FFE0316
FFE #3
The extent of facelifting performed on a cover - a price factor?
Class: PH
Mag. Klaus Schöpfer
In 1996 a cover from Trieste to Manila (10th August 1857) was correctly described and sold at auction for DM 5700. The filing crease, wrinkled 9 Kreutzer stamp, damaged 2 Kreutzer stamp, and missing 2 Kreutzer stamp were "cured" and the cover offered for sale at auction in 1998. Described as "a cover and destination rarity of the first order, presumably unique", it sold for DM 15000. The author urges registration of defective covers.
Article number: FFE0317
FFE #3
Knowledge of history - an important expertizing tool
Class: TR
Zbigniew S. Mikulski
The history of the Boy Scout mail of Warsaw during the rising of 1944 is related. In south Warsaw, blank souvenir cards were created with censor cachets and special handstamps. 'Rarities' were created later by the addition of fictional addresses and messages. Knowledge of history allows the forgeries to be identified since senders in streets over run by German soldiers could not have sent cards. The history of the 1919 'Heinze' forgeries of Poznan overprints is explained and illustrated with both genuine and forged items.
Article number: FFE0318
FFE #3
Expert-teams at FIP-exhibitions CHINA 99
Class: Other
N/A
Photographs of the expert team and equipment at China 99.
Article number: FFE19
FFE #3
Modern French postal forgeries made in the period 1990-1998, compared with genuine stamps
Class: TR
H.W. van der Vlist
Genuine stamps and postal forgeries created between 1990 and 1998 are described, illustrated in great detail and comprehensively listed in an extensive piece of research. The first was made for the 'amusement of collectors', but like all of the others was subsequently used to defraud the postal service.
Article number: FFE0320
FFE #3
The Arthur Salm Foundation
Class: Other
Bernard A. Henning R.D.P.
The five reports so far published by the Arthur Salm Foundation are listed. These include tests of paper and hinges, lists of non-existent stamp issuing entities, and the chemistry of US pressure sensitive stamps. These are available from the Foundation.
Article number: FFE0321
FFE #3
Discovering fakes, forgeries, and bogus postal history
Class: Other
Ernst M. Cohn
Defining fake as genuine, but altered, forgery as counterfeit or imitation, and labels made to look like stamps, and markings made to look like cancellations as bogus, the article considers a range of philatelic items. These include pieces from the French Commune of 1871, World War One Zeppelin flights, the siege of Paris 1870-71, British propaganda forgeries of World War Two (The Himmler heads), and stamps and covers from the Sultanate of Wituland and the nearby Malakote area.
Article number: FFE0322
FFE #3
ECUADOR A forgery "authenticated" by the Post Office
Class: TR
Jean-Pierre Mangin
In 1958 the Ecuador post office issued an airmail stamp to mark the Guayaquil philatelic exhibition. The 1866 four Reales illustrated thereon is in fact a forgery! The differences between the genuine and forged stamp are considered.
Article number: FFE0323
FFE #3
Scientific detection of philatelic forgeries
Class: Other
Mercer Bristow
The history of the American Philatelic Society expertising service is told, and its technical resources described. This include the CS-16 CrimeScope, a light source used for testing luminescence which excels in showing cleaned cancellations, altered postmarks of counterfeit overprints. 300 volumes of genuine reference material are held for comparison purposes. The APS has seen a significant increase in forgeries produced by laser printers.
Article number: FFE0324
FFE #3
Letters to Karoline letters of Norwegian missionaries
Class: PH
Jean-François Brun R.D.P.
A stamped Norwegian missionary cover addressed to Fort Dauphin, Madagascar, was sent to the author for expertisation. Comparison with a letter sold previously, especially the paper and handwriting, shows it to be a forgery copied from an original bearing a genuine unused stamp. Look out for it in a sale catalogue or exhibition. It was offered for sale with two expert certificates by a German auction house.
Article number: FFE0325
FFE #3
Certificates at F.I.P. exhibitions
Class: Other
F. Burton Sellers R.D.P.
FIP rules for indicating the presence of an expert certificate for items in exhibitions. (e) in bold.
Article number: FFE26
FFE #3
A simple new method to identify fakes - U.F.M.
Class: Other
Chang Min
There are ten million collectors in the People's Republic of China. Prices have risen, and significant numbers of forgeries have appeared. The use of ultra-violet fluorescence in identifying forgeries is discussed and illustrated.
Article number: FFE0327
FFE #3
Forged and faked 20th century philatelic material of Australia & related areas
Class: TR
Krzystof (Chris) Ceremuga
Relatively few Australian stamps have been faked or forged, but increasing numbers are appearing on the market. This is a problem since collectors and dealers in Australia seldom get items expertised. The £2.00 Kangaroo, OS official overprints, Perfins, specimens, BCOP overprints, varieties, errors and first day covers are considered in an extensive piece. The article concludes with the 1960 Papua New Guinea postal charges overprints, the 1995 bird of paradise surcharges, the 1914-15 GRI overprints, and the overprinted 1916 George V stamps of Nauru.
Article number: FFE0328