Forged Stamps of Finland

Suomi

1856. Oval. 5 Kop

Genuine vs. Forgeries

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_small_pearls_genuine

Genuine characteristics

Handstamped in blue. Paper: ordinary, narrow-laid or wide-laid

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_small_pearls_1862_reprint1

Illustration of 1861 1st reprint

Made for Belgian stamp dealer Moens

– Large pearls in posthorns
– Small color spot to the right in the crowns cross
– Original die. Handstamped in lever press as the originals. Tete-beché exist
– Color: From light blue to blue
– Paper: Two kinds, without gum:
1. Ordinary thick brownish, clear wire-marking. Thinkness: 0,115-0,135 mm
2. Laid (17 lines per 2cm). Thickness: 0,105 – 0,120 mm

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_small_pearls_1862_reprint2

Illustration of 1861 2nd reprint

Made for Belgian stamp dealer Moens

– Large pearls in posthorns
– Small color spot to the right in the crowns cross
– Original die. Handstamped in lever press as the originals. tete-beché exist
– Color: Blue
– Paper: Two kinds, without gum, usually larger margins than 1st reprint:
1. Ordinary lighter brownish, harder more glazed. Less wire-marking. Thinkness: 0,090-0,100 mm
2. Wide laid

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_small_pearls_1871_reprint

Illustration of 1871 reprint

Made for folders sent to the UPU

– Small color spot to the right in the crowns cross
– Original die. Handstamped in a lever press as the originals
– Color: Dark blue, dry and smudgy
– Paper: Ordinary thick yellowish. Originally gummed. Thinkness: 0,120-0,125 mm

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_small_pearls_1881_reprint

Illustration of 1881 reprint

Nickname: “The Granberg issue”

– Small color spot to the right in the crowns cross
– Original die. Handstamped in lever press as the originals. Narrow margins vertically as printed in long strips
– Color: Greenish blue
– Paper: Hard white and thin. Impression showing on the reverse. Thinkness: 0,070-0,080 mm

1892 reprint

– New clichés. Lithograped in sheets of 20 (4×5)
– Color: Deep-dark blue
– Paper: Ordinary with smooth gum

1956 reprint

– New clichés. Letterpress by galvanic clichés
– Color: Dark blue
– Paper: Watermarked. White glossy gum

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_small_pearls_genuine_pencancel_removed

Genuine with pen-cancel removed

Fournier forgery with his characteristic ‘WIBORG’ postmark

Forgery

Notice the ‘scissor-lines’ at the edge. They are never on genuine stamps

Forgery

Postal stationary cutout with bogus postmark to resemble genuine stamp

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_Torres_Illustration

Illustration by Plácido Ramón de Torres: Album ilustrado de sellos de correo, Barcelona 1879. Torres sold illustrations to various dealers/forgers from 1864 onwards, as well as made forgeries himself.

Fournier Forged Postmarks

‘WIBORG’ in a rectangle with unreadable date. Size 23×16 mm

Finland_Fournier_Helsingfors_Forged_postmark

HELSINGFORS 27 I 1868

Finland_1856_Oval_5k_Fournier_Sheet_Forgery

Fournier made his forgeries in sheets of 25. No genuine Finnish postmarks resemble the two postmarks – the circular one is bogus, and the lowbox style imitating the Helsingfors low box cancel without its date was discontinued in 1851, well before the stamps were issued.

Country Index

Finland

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