(Genuine stamps)
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Note: on my website many of the
pictures can not be seen! They are of course present in the
catalogue;
contact me if you want to purchase it: evert@klaseboer.com.
(Genuine stamps)
$1 red $2 green $2 red $4 green $4 black
I do not know if these stamps are genuine as well:
(Pony Express 4 Dollars)
Forgeries, examples:
Forgery, bogus value of 3 dollars.
Forgeries with the "ES" of "EXPRESS" joined,
I've been told that these forgeries were made by Taylor. Some of them with an elliptical
"PONY EXPRESS SERVICE" cancel and other with mute
cancels. A bogus 3 $ brown exists.
In this forgery of the 4 $ value, the tail of the horse is very
'bushy'.
A genuine 2 $ stamp with a bogus fancy 'jumping horse' cancel.
Other forgeries
Very dubious items.
Cut from a stamp album?
In my view dangerous forgeries with the tail of th horse
different.
A 1 $ blue 'facsimile' stamp, the word 'Facsimile' is printed at
the back in red.
I've also seen the values 1 $ green, 1 $ red, 2 $ green, 2 $ red, 4 $ green and 4 $ black with this 'Facsimile' printed at the back of the stamps. The word 'Facsmile' is printed in green, black or red. In the 2 $ the '2' has no curved bottom, but is flat in these facsimiles. In the 4 $ value, the '4' is too small when compared to a genuine stamp.
(Genuine stamps)
10 c brown 25 c blue 25 c red
Reprints:
Britton reprints: A sheet with 5 columns of 4 values printed in
black. They 4$ values have two lines across the stamps. They were
made in 1897 and exist in different colors (at least blue, black
and red).
Proofs were made of these reprints as well. Note that the 1 $ has
"DOLLARS" inscription.
Britton reprints. Note the deleted "S" in the 1 $
value. Also a 4 $ value which has not yet been defaced with a
cross.
These are the forgery-reprints made by Joseph
Britton as explained in Philatelic Forgers, their Lives and Works
by V.E.Tyler. The Britton firm had printed these stamp in 1860
and Joseph Britton decided to make reprints of them. He did some
extensive retouching and printed all values in all colors. If I
understand correctly, between 92 and 132 sheets were printed.
More information seems to be available in the book "The Pony
Express" by M.C.Nathan and W.S.Boggs (1962).
In a letter to the Phlatelic Californian, Britton writes:
"SAN FRANCISCO, MAY 12, 1897
To "Philatelic Californian," City -
The occasion of our printing the pony stamp came about in this
way. Our boy at home
caught the stamp-collecting complaint, and, remembering that we
printed all stamps issued in
the early days of California, I thought I would see if I could
find any impressions of our
work. Some stamp friend, however, had stolen such as we had had
in our specimen books;
then I looked for plate from which they had been printed; but
only so far have found the
Pony Express stamps. I then had transfers made, and about one
hundred stamps of each de-
nomination printed. In using in the course of our business the
other engravings on this plate,
the engraving of the pony stamp had been very much worn, and some
of the finer work al-
most obliterated; so we ahd work to do to restore these injured
parts. We did not have an
original impression, so made some few errors. Had I known the
importance that collectors
gave to stamps (we had so little work to do), we could easily
have avoided these errors;
nevertheless, this restauration I find has interested philatelic
circles, and to give assurance that
there will be no more printed, I have place the engraving in
Wells, Fargo Memorial Museum.
Yours truly,
Joseph Britton."
Literature: https://siegelauctions.com/enc/pdf/Pony_Stamps.pdf
I've been told that the next stamps are 'reprints':
Note that the tail goes much higher in the above stamps than in
the genuine stamps.
Forgeries of the 25 c blue and 25 c red stamps. The tail of the
horse is rather 'bushy'. The letters in "PONY EXPRESS"
have shading on them.
A souvenir sheet in a similar design, issued for the "Chicago Hobby Show 1935" with the word "FACSIMILE" written at the bottom:
(Genuine stamp)
$1 blue
I've been told that the next stamp is a reprint, I have no further information:
In most forgeries there is a line between '1/2 oz.' and '$1.00'.
(Forgery)
A forgery made by (or inspired by an image of) Moens. Next to it
the same forgery(?) in red color.
(genuine, reduced size, image obtained from a Siegel auction:
http://www.siegelauctions.com/1999/817/yf817280.htm#293 )
(Paid, One Newspaper over our California Routes)
(I've been told that this stamp is forged)
(Paid, One Newspaper over our routes in the U.S.)
6 different types exist of these newspaper stamps: A black stamp with inscription 'TO BE DROPPED IN NEW YORK POST OFFICE' and 5 blue stamps ('OVER OUR CALIFORNIA ROUTES' (4 types) and type with inscription 'OVER OUR ROUTES IN THE US'.
I've been told that this stamp is a forgery made by the forger Taylor
Forgery, made by Taylor (first type)
Another forgery made by Taylor (different from the above one).
Very dubious stamp, most likely another forgery. The label with
"WELLS, FARGO & CO" is shorter.
Another very dubious stamp.
Covers, example:
I've seen labels with the head of an Indian chief and inscription "WELLS FARGO & COMPANY EXPRESS FRANK FOR FREE TRANSPORTATION OF SUBJECT TO CONDITIONS ON COVER OF THIS BOOK" in 50 Pounds red (1905) and 50 Pounds blue (1904).
The Western Express Blacks Express
were forged by Georges
Carion. He added fake cancels to
genuine Wells Fargo envelopes. The following text can be found on
http://www.westerncoversociety.com/library/expresses/expresses_52.htm:
Most collectors of western material consider all Black &
Co.'s items to be recent fabrications. All of the known covers
are addressed to Samuel Grosh or Reynolds & Co. (considered
to be part of the Tandler correspondence) and have a genuine red
Wells Fargo Sacramento hand stamp applied to a stampless cover.
The Black & Co. Express franks were believed to have been
added to deceive buyers by Georges Carion, a Bay Area stamp
dealer; however, Wiltsee in his "Pioneer Miner and Pack Mule
Express" (p106) notes that it operated between Sacramento
and San Francisco but gives no information on its background.
(See also 'Philatelic Forgers their Lives and Works' by V.E.
Tyler for more information).
Carion forged envelope 'Samuel Grosh' envelope of Wells Fargo
with added forged 'Black & Co' cancel.
Most likely Carion forgeries of the 'Tandler collection'. Genuine
envelopes of the Wells
Fargo & Co with additional cancels
added to them.