Russia 1934 Airmail

In 1934 the Soviet government released a set of five airmail stamps commemorating the tenth anniversary of Soviet aviation and airmail service.

The basic design of the set features a Tupolev ANT-9 high wing airplane.

There is a different background on each of the five stamps; blast furnaces on the 5k, oil wells on the 10k, combines on the 20k, a map of the Moscow Volga Canal project on the 50k, and an icebreaker on the 80k.

The forgeries appear to be numerous, I found that at least 1/3 or more of these stamps offered are forgeries. Perforations and overall sizes are different as well as some minor features particularly the sharpness and rasterization.

Exist with and without watermarks. Genuine perfed 14, forgeries 10.5, 11.25, 11.5

Special edition for the 10th anniversary of airmail in the USSR. collotype printing on paper without watermark or with watermark 4 in sheets of 70 (7 x 10) perfed 14 and three-sided 14, one-sided 11

Quantity Printed - 5,10,20к-100,000, 50к-50,000, 80к-200,000 in sheets 7x10

Genuine set

Proofs

Imperforate proofs can be found in the following colors

1. 5k in brown 

2. 10K in green 

3. 10K in purple-red

4. 10K in dark red 

5. 10K in brown - see below

6. 20K in dark green 

7. 50k in of dark blue

8. 80k in black-violet

9. 80k in brown 

10. 80k in red 

11. 80k in orange 

Forgeries (left) & Originals (right)

1. Top of “2” curves down further, bottom slopes downwards

2. Wheel misshapen & does not show shadow details

3. Small “P”

4. "O & Y” touch

5. Rounded end on the “5” and smaller slit at top

6. No strut

7 Ends of window lack extensions

8. “C” touches aileron

9. Small opening in “P”

10. 9 & 3 touch

11. Dot is very close to the K

12. Letters are touching

1. “C” touches aileron

2. Small opening in “P”

3. Base of “2” slopes down

4. Misshapen wheel and it is too large

5. Small “P”

6. Longer window and no projections

7. Tips almost touch

8. 9 & 3 touch

9. Letters touch

10. Struts very heavy and do not meet in center of wheel

1. “C” touches aileron

2. Tips very close together

3. Dash almost touches “9”

4. Misshapen wheel

5. Small “P”

6. Several letters touching (over inking?)

7. No strut

8. Long window lacking extensions

9. 9 & 2 touching

10. See 6

1. “C” touches aileron

2. Long window lacking extensions

3. Extra axle

4. No aileron

5. Small “P”

6. River missing

7. Blurred letters

8. River too wide

9. River touches fuselage

10. Strut misplaced

11. Small top P

12. 9 & 3 touching

This is probably the best forgery of the series with very few blatant issues

1. “C” touches aileron and line is wavy

2. Window is larger and no prominent extension

3. “O & Y” touching

4. Window is distorted

5. 9 & 3 almost touching

Se-tenant Pairs 5к 50к 20к ВОк are fakes

Full set of forgeries