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ROMANIA (Moldova - Wallachia)

First issue, forgeries, part 2

Return To Catalogue - Rumania 1858 first issue, forgeries, part 1 - Rumania 1858 first issue - Cancels on the first issues

Note: on my website many of the pictures can not be seen! They are of course present in the catalogue;
contact me if you want to purchase it:


For more forgeries: Rumania 1858 first issue, forgeries, part 1.


Forgeries of the 27 p value, made by the same forger. The posthorn touches the circular frame line below it. I've seen such a forgery in blue sold as genuine on an Internet auction. I've also seen an orange 27 p stamp in this design (again with a red boxed "FRANCO" cancel'). It also exists with a red "FRANCO JASSY" elliptic cancel. The last letter is rather badly done (the "N" like character in "SKRISORI"). Next to it the same forgery and a forged 81 pa value on a piece of a letter. The 27 pa forgery is clearly based on an illustration of a Schaubek album (or the other way around?).


A forgery of the 81 p with very small ears. Also note the empty space at the bottom of the posthorn with two dots inside. It (always?) seems to be cancelled with part of a large circle. Also a 108 pa forgery, possibly made by the same forger?


Oneglia(?) forgeries; note the very big ears.


Forgeries, all made by the same forger. Often appearing with the cancels "GALATZ 1/10 MOLDAVA" or "BOTUSCHANI 28/? MOLDOVA"


I've seen a similar forgery of the 27 p being offered as 'genuine' for 10,000 US$ on an Internet auction..... This is the third forgery of the 27 pa listed in the Billig handbook on forgeries.


Photographically reproduced forgeries.

A cleverly done forgery, pasted on a letter:


Zoom-in of the forgery


Forged stamp on letter.

This forgery was sold on a prestigious Internet auction as genuine:

Sold on a prestigious Internet auction
The '4' in the above forgeries is closed.


(A forgery made by Peter Winter in the 1980's)


Possibly other products made by Peter Winter.


Reproduction of a 27 p stamp on a minisheet for the Salon der Philatelie in Hamburg in 1984.


Zoom-in of this minisheet


Modern forgery (1980's?) originating from Romania according to the Heimbuchler book. Often with cancel 'WASLUI 29/8', 'GALATZ 26/8' or 'JASSY 7/7'.


Similar modern forgery with "GALATZ 26/8" cancel.


A rather dangerous forgery of the 108 pa value.

Reduced size
Sperati forged cancel 'BOROHOJ 24 10 MOLDOVA' and Sperati forgery of the 108 pa value (black 'proof' in this case and blue 'normal' stamp). According to the BPA book this forgery only exists with a red 'JASSY 23 ? MOLDOVA' cancel. There is a small break in the right lower side of the outer circle next to the posthorn.


Sold as genuine, but in my opinion a Sperati forgery.


Forged cancels made by Sperati.

In 'The Stamp Collector's Magazine' of 1874 the following text can be found referring to January issue of 'Le Timbre Poste 133 page 6' by Moens (in French, can be downloaded from http://www.archive.org):
The January number contains some interesting observations on the forged stamps of Moldavia. A fresh batch has come on the market, and the better to catch the unwary, they are all obliterated, but fortunately the precaution adopted by the forgers has its weak point. The obliteration consists of the words GALATZ, 1 AUG., 1855 (in blue) ; but the year is never found in the true postmarks, and what is more, the stamps were not issued until November, 1858, and, therefore, none can exist with an 1855 cancellation ; thus, these forgeries carry their condemnation on their faces. M. Moens a long time since stated that the Jassy post-office had counterfeited its own stamps, and sold them as genuine ; he has now discovered that that dishonest speculation was carried on by Mr. Rosemblum, an ex-employe at the Jassy post-office, who pretends that he received his stamps from an ex- postmaster, M. Paratinkiewize. Probably, these new counterfeits are nothing but a fresh series of Rosemblum varieties......
Le Timbre Poste says these cancels have been found on the 81 pa and 108 pa values and the 5 pa values of the next issue. I anyone has an image, please send me a scan. The name Rosemblum might have been Rosenblum (as in The American Journal of Philately when referring to the above Le Timbre Poste article).

According to Album Weeds another bogus value of 120 Paras gold on white exists. A forgery exists with a genuine cancel of Jassy (made with the help of a fraudulent postal employee). The circle of genuine stamps has a diameter of 19 1/2 mm except for the 108 p which has a diameter of 20 mm (The forged stamps of all countries by J.Dorn). More on the idenfication of forgeries of the bull's issue can be found at: http://hem.passagen.se/utions/bull/truebull.htm.


Fournier forgeries.

 

The following text was found in The Philatelic Record June 1901, page 171, concerning a certain forger Anghel Antonescu. This forger is also mentioned in Maple Leaves 15 (6), December 1974 as a stamp forger (I have no further information):
"A Would-be Forger. The following charming order was, according to the Revue Philatelique sent to a colour-printer and die-sinker at Rouen. We take all the more pleasure in publishing this highly - interesting correspondence, as it gives us the opportunity of making known the name and address of the party in question. Anghel Antonescu, 42, Cales Mosilor, Bucarest (Roumanie). " BUCAREST, I5.iv.1901." Dear Sir,—Having seen your advertisement in the Echo that you are a maker of cliches for postage stamps and undertake colour-printing, I take the liberty to ask you whether you can make forged postage stamps, because I could give you an order for all the Roumanian stamps of 1858-1866, excepting the 30 parale of 1862 and the 20 parale of 1865. I want 500 of each value, i.e., of 11 sorts, 5,500 stamps in all. In replying whether you can execute this order kindly state your price. " Awaiting your answer,—I remain, Yours very truly, Anghel Antonescu."
The street name should probably have been Calea Mosilor instead of Cales Mosilor.

Rumania 1858 second issue


Interesting websites and literature:

http://come.to/romaniastamps/ or http://www.romaniastamps.com/; an enormous amount of interesting data for the Romanian stamp collector.

http://hem.passagen.se/utions/bull/truebull.htm

http://membres.lycos.fr/dgrecu/DM1.html; Romania, A short postal history of Romania, by Dinu Matei, Calgary, Canada, First published in 'Calgary Philatelist', issue #29, April 1998, pp.3-7.

http://membres.lycos.fr/dgrecu/

Literature:

  1. Billig's grosses Handbuch der Falschungen (in German) Rumanien I (Moldau - Walachei)
  2. Rumänien, Rumania Die Ochsenkopfen der Moldau, The Bull's heads of Moldavia: Fritz Heimbuechler, 415 pages, German English bilingual, 1994.

Copyright by Evert Klaseboer