In about 1912, forgeries of the Penny Black were made from a photograph of a genuine block of stamps from Plate 9. They shouldn't dupe the experienced collector, but if you are new to philately and perhaps have not seen a genuine Penny Black before, then take care! They exist in two states:-

1) Photo-lithographic

They are printed on thickish, white paper and have a very slightly blurred appearance - the finer detail of the Queen's portrait, lettering and corner-squares is no longer sharp. It is always grey-black in appearance and thus the inexperienced collector might be duped into thinking the stamp is from a worn plate. They are invariably nice four margin copies with fine to large margins, sometimes with part of an adjoining stamp evident. The give-away is the fact that these forgeries are printed on unwatermarked paper, but you will often find them with a watermark hand-painted in watercolour paint on the reverse! To disguise the absense of watermark they often appear tied to small pieces cut from envelopes or entires. The maltese cross is usually black, but other shades have been forged. (I have seen red and deep blue.) The forged maltese cross cancel is very accurate in appearance and is usually nicely struck. I suspect that a genuine obliterator may have been used by the forger. Multiples on pieces are known.

2) Photographic

These differ from the former in that they appear as a very deep intense shade with fine detail, to the extent that they are plateable! They are printed on thin photgraphic paper, again with no watermark. To confirm this forgery, use my Chinese Cookie Method! Place the stamp face down in the palm of your hand and wait. The photographic paper is heat-sensitive and after a while the stamp will being to curl in your hand - like a motto in a Chinese Fortune Cookie! It works every time.

I hope that this may be of help to collectors venturing into the wonderful world of the Penny Black!

Mike Aldred