Forged Stamps of Iceland
“The Spud Papers”
by Atlee, Pemberton & Earée
1873. Skilling
2, 3, 4, 8 & 16 Skilling
Officials: 4 & 8 Skilling
Genuine
Engraved in épargne, watermarked with a crown; perf. 12 1/2 for the 3, 4, and 16 sk., and 13 1/2 for the others. I don’t know the reason for the two perforations. The 4 skill., unofficial, looks exceedingly like a lithograph. The corners are formed of lines of different length, making triangles. In the left top corner there are 24, in the right top 26, in the left bottom corner 28, and in the right bottom 24. The o of POST and that of KJON have a small dot or accent over them. The letters of value are nearly as large as those of the name. The strawberry-leaves on the crown are very distinct; and, with a microscope, the continuation of the lines of the background may be seen through the crown, between the cap and the arches. The top of the A in ISLAND is very square. Gum decidedly brownish.
Forged
Lithographed, no watermark; perf. 12 1/2. The numbers of the lines forming the corner triangles are as follows: left top, 26; right top, 28; left bottom, 27; right bottom, 26. There is no dot over either the o of POST or that of KJON. The letters of value are very irregular in height, and considerably smaller than those of the name. The strawberry-leaves on the crown are represented by three indistinct white blotches. The spaces between the top of the cap and the arches are quite blank. The top of the A in ISLAND is nearly pointed. The stamps are ungummed, printed in sheets of 70, 10 x 7, and postmarked with four concentric circles, like the genuine Denmark. There is a blurred, indistinct look about the forgeries which cannot be mistaken. The genuine stamps are generally very clear and distinct, though the specimens of genuine 4 sk. now lying before me, are not so clear as the rest, probably from deterioration of the die.
Country Index
Iceland
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