Monday, August 21, 2023

Italy Naples 1858-60

These stamps are engraved on paper with forty Fleur-de-Lis watermarks in the pane (only a portion will show on each stamp)
Because the distance between the lilies is somehow large, it is possible to find parts without watermark.
The hand made paper was not uniform but varied quite a lot in thickness, from very thin and semi-transparent (not common) to very thick, almost thin cardboard
The printing in many shades of pink to carmine leaves many stamps with little visible of the engraving details.
Quantities Printed

Genuine stamps
Sc 1

Sc 2

Sc 3

Sc 4

Sc 5

Sc 6

Sc 7

Sc 7a

Secret Marks
One way to tell the genuine is by the "secret marks" which spell out the engraver's initial.
HOWEVER, this is not foolproof as some like Sperati and a few sold by Fournier have them.


Cancels
Some cancels are written in a curve and with characters different from the usual ones.
They are the so called "svolazzo"  ("flourish" in Italian) cancellations
There are about 40 different ones depending on the city.

Forgeries
Postal Forgeries (Counterfeits)
One of the most characteristic facts of Naples is the huge numbers of counterfeits of that time to cheat the postal service. This is not an exclusive characteristic; what is noticeable is the amount of samples produced. 
Just for the value of the 20 grana the counterfeits are more common than the originals
The printing of these forgeries, very coarse, is very easy to detect. They have been printed in engraving using plates probably made of copper containing only one impression. This is evident from the fact that there are no multiples of these forgeries as well as there are no pieces showing parts of adjacent stamps.
2Gr

Both postal forgeries of the 2 g are lithographed, instead of engraved, they have no secret mark. 

10Gr


This postal forgery of 10 g is lithographed, instead of engraved. They have no secret mark.

20Gr
This issue has by far the most postal forgeries





The above postal forgery of the 20 g is lithographed, instead of engraved. The secret mark "N" is missing. 

"Reprints"
Private reprints exist of all values except 2 gr (the printing plate could not be found). They were made in 1896  and printed on thicker unwatermarked paper. These reprints were unofficial and made in Turin with the original printing plates. The colours are slightly different from the original issue.

They are too clear and the secret marks are very visible.

Oneglia Forgeries
These are engraved and appear to be from Oneglia or Panelli?
 




Torres
Based on his 1879 catalog, these are probably his or inspired by him.



Fournier Forgeries
Fournier sold a vast assortment of forgeries from at least 6-8 different sources














Assorted Forgeries
Sc 1 Forgeries
Billigs Type 5

Billigs Type 6

Unknown woodblock print?

Sc 2 Forgeries
Billigs Type 10

Sc 3 Forgeries
Billigs Type 12

Billigs Type 15

Sc 4 Forgeries
Billigs Type 30

Unlisted

Sc 5 Forgeries
Unlisted

Unlisted

Billigs Type 34

Sc 6 Forgeries
Billigs Type 38

Billigs Type 39

Based on cancel "909" this is a Torres

1860 Sc8 & Sc9
New tarrifs required new stamps but there was no time so the second plate of the ½g stamp was selected  and the currency symbol ‘G’ was transformed with a printer’s punch into a ‘T’ for tornese. This stamp was known as the Trinacria
Once a sufficient quantity of stamps had been altered to address the urgency of the tariff reduction, the same plate continued to be modified, this time by scraping away the central part of the design, and replacing the Bourbon emblems with the Cross of Savoy. This operation was accomplished using a hand burin, and therefore one hundred unique incisions (one in each position in the plate) exist, which allows for the identification of varieties and to establish the position of each stamp within the sheet. The Cross was issued on 6 December 1860.
Above shows the trans formation

Sc 8 Genuine

Forgeries

Fournier Forgeries




Issued in wrong color


Miscellaneous Forgeries
Cutout from an advertisement card from Ettore Ragozino


2 forgeries with an E besides the T

An engraved forgery with the 1 too large



3 forgeries ith a G instead of a T

Crude modern forgery with a G instead of a T


Top forgery by Senf Bros.
Bottom one FACSIMILE removed and covered up with bogus cancel


2 unlisted forgeries

Sc 9 Genuine

Forgeries

Peter Winter 1980's forgeries and cover

Sperati Forgeries
Sperati forged three positions of the Cross; positions 100, 1 and 3, respectively referred to as forgery types A, B and C

Type A
This forgery only exists with "11 APR 1861" cancel always in the same position
The bottom loop of "B" in "BOLLA" has a break, the top left serif of "N" of "TANA" is broken away
There is a dot in the "D" of DELLA
There is a extension in the 2nd "N" of "TANA"

Type B
Bottom loop of "S" of "POSTA" has a stray appendage
Top left frame damaged
"P" has a line connectig to thecircle
Top of "O" in "POSTA" has a bump
"T" of "POSTA" has dots
"D" of "BOLLA" is not filled in 
:L: of :BOLLA" has a dot

Type C
This is the type with the largest number of recorded copies and the greatest variety of cancels
The outer frameline at right is broken where it should meet the circular frame 
The right frame is very thick
There is a dot between the "N" and "A"
The circle frame contacts the color area
Type C variety

Fournier Forgeries



Miscellaneous Forgeries
Dot below T

Dot besides T

Possibly engraved Panelli forgery

Somewhat primitive forgery

T with b

T with large I, small fraction

Very large T

Torres forgery left, 1879 catalog impression right