Forgers such as the Spiro brothers, Fournier and Sperati are well-known characters in philatelic folklore. But what of the lesser-known forgers? Gerhard Lang has spent over six years investigating the mischievous creations of the little-known Placido Ramon de Torres…and uncovered one of the most prolific forgers in philately. He is now conducting research on more […]
Forgeries
The Numerals Issues of Brazil – Fakes, Forgeries and Counterfeits
Only one of these Bull’s Eyes is genuine…the example on the right Most collectors of Latin America will be familiar with the early postage stamps of Brazil. Bull’s Eyes, Snake’s Eyes, Goat’s Eyes, Cat’s Eyes…collectively, the numeral issues of the Brazilian Empire. Stephen Rose has spent nearly fifty years studying these issues and currently serves […]
Fakes, forgeries…and buying online
In the earlier years of philately, faking and forging was big business. In many ways, it still is, with money to be made by unscrupulous types offering dodgy imitations of current issues on eBay at knockdown prices. But in the first one-hundred years of philately, much of this activity was targeted primarily at philatelists who […]