FOURNIER FORGERIES, First choice forgeries

Forgeries - Timbres-faux - Fälschungen - Falsi - Falsa - Vervalsingen

Return To Catalogue - Fournier forgeries (second choice) - Fournier forgeries, forged overprints - Fournier forgeries or France

Note: on my website many of the pictures can not be seen! They are of course present in the cd's;
contact me if you want to purchase them: evert@klaseboer.com.

Fournier was a stamp forger in the early 20th century. He started his career when he bought over the forgeries of another forger who went bankrupt: Louis-Henri Mercier (his real name was Henri Goegg) in 1904. His forgeries are in general of deceptive quality (but he also offers forgeries made by other persons, for example Spiro). He even operated a 'philatelic clinic' where stamps could be repaired. Part of his stock was listed in his 1914 pricelist. After his dead (12 July 1917), and after a certain Charles Hirschberger had tried to continue the forgery business in vain, the Philatelic Union of Geneva bought his whole stock and made 480 albums with his forgeries, forged overprints and forged cancels. This society sold these 'Fournier albums' in 1928, so collectors and dealers could compare Fournier's forgeries with genuine stamps. The forgeries in these albums were overprinted 'FAUX' (usually in black, but also in violet color) on the front or with 'FAC-SIMILE' on the back. Many of these albums have since been broken up, but in 1970 a photocopied black and white version was published as a book by Lowell Ragatz: 'The Fournier album of philatelic forgeries', in this work the 1914 pricelist is also included.

Francois Fournier

Forgery of Switzerland with 'FAC-SIMILE' overprint on the back, taken from a Fournier Album

Forged Fournier cancel of Natal a forged 'N35' and 'A91' (Virgin Islands) cancels

Fournier also had a 'Philatelic Clinic' were damaged stamps were repaired. The following postcard proves this:

Front and backside of a postcard of the 'PHILATELISCHE KLINIK' informing a customer his stamp has been repaired, note that the name 'Fournier' has been overprinted by 'Hirschburger'

The text reads:
		'Sehr geehrter Herr!
	Hiermit teile ich Ihnen dass die mir 
seinerzeit   1   zur Repartur gesandten 
Marken am  31 d.M. fertiggestelt sein 
und gegen den Betrag von Fr.   38.- 
fur Gebuhr der Arbeit Ihnen sofort einge-
schrieben ubersandt sein wurden. 
	Ich erwarte also umgehend diesen Betrag 
und im voraus bestens dankend, zeichne.
		hochachtungsvoll.
		F.Fournier
		C.HIRSCHBURGER, NACHFOLGER'

Fournier did not consider himself a forger, but more a 'creator of arts objects'. He offered the forgeries as such, but the problem is that they often are taken for genuine after they are being sold. He started his forgery business in 1891, when he took over the stock of another forger: Mercier. Fournier died in 1914.

(examples of Fournier forgeries, a french colonies forgery and a Wurttemberg forgery)

In his 1914 pricelist Fournier offers all his forgeries at that time (796 sets with a total of 3671 different forgeries). He distinghuishes between first choice forgeries, second choice forgeries (often forgeries made by other people than himself, such as Spiro) and overprints.

Fournier has also made forgeries of the so-called 'Tablet' type of all French colonies. He also made forgeries of the 'pfennig' values of the ship design of all German colonies. However, these items do not appear in his 1914 pricelist.

The Fournier Album of Philatelic Forgeries can also be found at: http://www.geocities.com/claghorn1p/FournierAlbum/AlphaIdx.htm (compiled by Bill Claghorn). Example of a page of a Fournier Album:

Page of a Fournier Album (reduced size) with forgeries and cancels of Germany, some of them with 'FAC-SIMILÉ' printed many times in blue oblique lines on the backside (especially reprinted for this album); by the way, the above forgeries are not listed in Fournier's 1914 pricelist

The Union Philatelique de Geneve, UPG, website : (http://www.upg.ch/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=47&Itemid=54) says:
Les faux Fournier
En 1927, l'UPG rachète le fond, le matériel et le stock de l'imprimerie Hirschburger à Genève. Elle acquière ainsi plusieurs caisses contenant le solde des faux imprimés par Fournier, ainsi que les presses à imprimer, à denteler et les stocks qui avaient servis à fabriquer les faux.
Les presses et les stocks d'imprimés ont été remis en 1958 au Musée des PTT à Berne. Les autres pièces des installations de Fournier ont été détruites sous contrôle. 475 albums contenants presque tous les faux marquants ont été vendus à travers le monde pour servir de matériel de référence aux experts. Cette vente a permis de couvrir le prix d'achat du matériel. L'UPG a conservé 6 albums des faux commis par Fournier. Ces timbres ont été exposés à plusieurs reprises. Cette action, unique dans les annales philatéliques, est l'œuvre maîtresse de l'UPG.

A card from Fournier to someone in the United States, explaining in bad English that he wants his forgeries back.....

In the next tables I have tried to reproduce his 1914 pricelist (this pricelist is in french and the prices are in Swiss Francs). Additions made by me are marked in red. I have also added two columns indicating if the forgeries are included in my Cd and if so, if distinghuishing characteristics are given.

Note: As you can see a lot of pictures are still missing and also a lot of distinghuishing characteristics. If you have any pictures or information, please contact me!

First choice forgeries:

The next forgery of New South Wales can be found in 'Fourniers Album of Philatelic Forgeries'. I don't think Fournier actually sold this forgery, but merely used it to illustrate his pricelists etc. When the album was made, 'reprints' were made of all the plates that were found, including this one:

(Fournier forgery, reduced size)

If this information is correct, then only 480 of such 'forgeries' can exist (since there were only 480 albums).

Another Fournier 'forgery' of a 1/2 Pi Queen Victoria stamp of Cyprus and a 2 Sh ov Victoria, also probably only used to illustrate his pricelists, note that the perforation is printed in the Ceylon forgery.

Fournier also had contacts with other forgers, as this letter from Fournier to Henry Flachskamm (famous forger in USA) indicates:

Copyright by Evert Klaseboer