Romania 75th anniversary Stamps
November 20, 1932 a set of 7 imperforated stamps with the coat-of-arms of the different Romanian provinces and the years 1858 and 1933 (Sc 421-427) were issued.
A total of 200.000 sets of 50 stamps were printed. in Bucharest in the Stamp Printing Works on white paper with a watermark "Crown and Monogram".
Although the Scott catalog makes no mention, the whole series is forged on original watermarked paper possibly obtained from selvage.
These forgeries were probably postal in nature which again answers the question - "Why bother forging low value stamps ?" Simple, there is more potential profit with low value postal forgeries than with collector forgeries.
Comparison of the Genuine & Forgeries
Overall the forgeries are quite good so get out your best magnifying glass for this exercise.
I will stick to a comparison of the main features.
NOTE in the comparisons, the genuine is always on the left
Sc 421
 |
| Genuine |
2. Lines and shades on the bull's head are thicker
3. The mouthpiece is too shaded
4. The 33 are too close together
Sc 422
 |
| Genuine |
1. There is no space below the tongue
2. One of the 4 diagonal lines of the mane is defective
3. On the tail there is a missing small protrusion in the large opening
In the forgery:
1. The bricks have round ends
Sc 423
 |
| Genuine |
In the forgery;
1. Lines are badly blurred and missing
2. Very thick shading
1. The 1 is poorly inked
2. The top of the 5 is thick
Overall blurry
Sc 424
 |
| Genuine |
In the forgery:
1. The castles are blurred
2. The feather shading is lacking
1. The top of the 5 is very thick
Sc 425
 |
| Genuine |
In the forgery
1. The coat of arms of the 4 provinces on the shield is unrecognizable
2. The sword and scepter are not detailed
1. The numbers are not sharp and too thick
Sc 426
 |
| Genuine |
In the forgery:
1. The tail feathers do not touch the posthorn
2. The claws are not curved
1. Overall the numbers lack definition
2. The back of the 5 is rounded and there is a large ball at the tail
Sc 427
 |
| Genuine |
Details are blurred and missing in the forgery
1. The letters in LEI are smaller and poorly shaped
2. The shading lines in the horn opening are shorter
Reference
Originals and Counterfeits of the First Moldavian Stamps 75th Anniversary Issue - G. Pataki 1980
