Haiti Liberty Heads

The Genuine Issues
Only one plate was used for all values of the genuine imperforate series of 1881
Removable numeral slugs were used to print the values. 
The perforated stamps of 1882 were printed from two plates. More color variations exist for these.

Below the original 1881 stamps.

Above genuine stamps with missing center perfs

Partial sheet of 2C

The Forgeries

The first Haiti stamps were forged in great quantities for the paquet trade

Postal Forgeries from Renie to defraud the government are plentiful.

Collectors need to beware of Fakes (altered stamps to increase values), forgeries from Moens, Panelli, Fournier, Mekeel/Maitreat, Baguet and some unknown sources.

Rather than post a lot of forgery types, I will illustrate a few and the traits to look for.

Postal Forgeries

Moens was one of the first to make note of these forgeries some time after 1886. The earliest known usage of a postal forgery is in late 1885.

He noted that they were originally perfed 16 and later 14 to more closely resemble the originals at 13.5.

Postal forgeries are extremely rare in unused condition. All values seem to have been forged.

The postal forgeries were likely produced by a businessman and collector, George Reine in Cap Haitien for use on his extensive business correspondence. 

Reine financed the printing of the Watermarked 1898 issue. 

His 3 nephews were all involved in the stamp trade and dealer business.

Each value has specific traits but the key is the constant shape of the tip of the ornament besides the value table shown above.

Below Postal Forgery examples.

The imperforates are probably fake trimmed stamps.

Fakes

These are often Re-engraved stamps from plates 2 & 3 with trimmed perforations to mimic imperforated stamps of greater value.  

These fakes are deceptive and can be detected by their color and plate varieties.

These are issues of 1886 that have trimmed perfs

The characteristics are:

In the left stamp, the Q has a long tail that curves to the right

The U is high

The neck shading lines are horizontal instead of oblique as with

the 1881 stamp.

The C of CENT is very large as are the other letters.

The above stamp is a cutout from a 1984 commemorative. Although perfect the newness and white paper gives it away

Baguet Forgeries

Alfred Baguet of Paris, made his forgeries around 1908.

Baguet seems to have been imprisoned in Paris in 1922 for 3 months for forging French and French colonies stamps.

Another French report notes that a printing press and stamps valued at 9 million francs (over $200,000,000 in 2016 value) were seized and Baguet faced 2 years in jail.

Again we have individual traits for each value but the key item for all the values are: 

1. The Q of REPUBLIQUE that touches both frame lines. 

2. The frame line below the L is broken and a break of the thin line below the T of the right CENT (not always visible)

3, The numeral shield has a double bottom frameline.

4. Port-au-Prince cancels dated 7/SEPT/81

Below unused Baguet Forgeries

Baguet uncommon block

Baguet Perf 13.5

Baguet forgeries are also found with 15.5 perfs but these may have been applied by a third party.

Mekeel/Maitreat Forgery

Charles H. Mekeel was one of America’s greatest stamp dealers and editors.
He became a dealer in 1877 and continued for the rest of his life. His editing
began in 1881 with The Stamp Collectors’ Bureau (later called The Collectors’
Bureau).
In 1885 Mekeel published the Philatelic Journal of America, which became
one of the country’s leading philatelic journals. proprietor of the C.H. Mekeel
Stamp and Publishing Co. of St. Louis. 

It is suggested the forgery originated with Miaximilian Maitreat, a New York dealer who operated under the name of " The Loyalty Stamp Company". 

A reference in the Stamp Press to his arrest stated that the officers found at his office "four sets of plates and one woodcut of the Haiti stamps.

The key feature is the 1 with the foot serif not found in the original.
No other values or used copies are known .

Maitreat Forgery

Fournier Forgeries
These are quite deceptive but they all have the same unique features.
There are 4 places where the frame lines are broken 

The eye has a large white pupil

The left side of the numeral frame has a much thicker line

Cancelled specimens generally bear a forged Cap Haitien cancellation dated 13/Sept./82.

Forgeries without cancels are considerably scarcer than forgeries with cancels. 

Fournier Features

Fournier’s stock was purchased from his successor by the Philatelique Union of Geneva. Stamps from this collection are marked "FAUX" on the front. Unmarked stamps come from stock prior to this sale.

Perf 13.5 Fournier Forgery

The following are from the Geneva 5 volume works of the Fournier stock acquired by the Philatelic Union. They are probably color trials

Panelli Forgeries

Angelo Panelli was a stamp forger or seller from Italy in the early 1920's to around 1940.

He sold products from the forgers Fournier and Oneglia, so the true identity of some forgeries attributed to him is questionable.

The key points of the Haiti forgery attributed to him include:

1. The U of REPUBLIQUE is high and touches the frameline.

2. The Q is lower than the other letters

3. The letters in CENT are tall and thick with the C very tall

4. The right flag touches the frame (key point)

5. They are perfed 11.5

Panelli Forgeries

Moens Forgeries ?

Jean-Baptiste Moens (1833-1907) was a famous Belgian stamp dealer. He published handbooks, catalogs and 'Le Timbre Poste' (a philatelic journal). 

Some of the images of his books were used as examples by others to make

forgeries. 

Many of his illustrations were produced by Placido Torres, himself a forger of a wide array of stamps from different countries.

It is therefore possible that these are Torres forgeries made or acquired by him from his associations with other forgers.

Moens journal “Le Timbre Poste” of 1881

The consistent characteristics include;

1. Awkward A in HAITI

2. Break in the top left corner - not consistent

3. Breaks in the round frame line under the D

4. Q with the tail on the right instead of the bottom

5. Color blotches in various places are often but not always present

6. The C in the left CENT is small and no dot at the end of the left CENT.

The dot cancel does not exist in Haiti

Unknown Source Forgery

The traits that are different from the genuine and other forgeries are noted.