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Forged Dollard-style overprint on Scott Great Britain 172, 1s bistre brown, used.


1s bistre brown
Forged Dollard-style overprint
[MID]  [LAR]

 

Notes: This stamp displays an overprint of the type used by Dollard Printing House, Ltd. on its low-value issue of 17 February 1922 (set 1T). Yet this particular value, the 1s bistre-brown, was never handled by Dollard: it was overprinted by Alexander Thom & Co., in a style readily distinguishable from that of Dollard (see T19 in set 4T, with its block-type "1922" followed by a period). A previous owner of the stamp, William J. Waldron, raised this issue in a letter addressed to Linns Stamp News, probably in the late 1980s. Linns replied: "We consulted the 1987 MacDonnell Whyte Stamps of Ireland Specialised Catalogue and the Hibernian Specialised Catalogue of the Postage Stamps of Ireland 1922-1972. Although both have extensive listings for the 1922-23 overprints as you would expect, neither of these references lists a 1/- stamp with a five-line Dollard-style overprint, either, nor any essays, proofs, or overprint varieties that might explain what you've got. That leaves the unpalatable possibility that the overprint may be a forgery, created by a forger who didn't know that the overprint he'd chosen didn't belong on the 1/- stamp. . . .If the cancel and overprint overlap on your copy and you have a strong magnifier, you may be able to confirm that the overprint on your 1/- stamp is a fake. Take a close look under bright light. If the overprint is printed over the cancellation, it is a forgery." This latter point is difficult to determine; it would certainly appear, though, that the letters and numerals of the overprint are much less fine than is usual, and many of the individual letters appear eccentric (note the "h" in "héireann", for example). There would seem to be little question that the overprint is indeed forged.

Provenance: William and Ann Waldron.


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