Authenticating Genuine Signatures

So you want to know if your special item is autographed or signed by someone iconic and important to you? Or you’re looking to see if maybe your object is worth more, considering an authentic signature does add to the value of a given object. Today we are going to be talking about identifying a genuine signature and some of helpful the tips and tricks to ensure that the autograph is as genuine as it is impressive, and meaningful!

  

If you've tuned in to our Amazing Appraisals Show on WOR Radio, Airing every SUNDAY AT 8-9PM! In our upcoming episode we will be discussing sports memorabilia and how to determine and authenticate signatures! The Featured item is this 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers signed Baseball! Tune in this Week for the full story! 

 

  Signed by: Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider, Pee Wee Reese, Chuck Dressen, Joe Black, Billy Cox, Wayne Belardi, Rube Walker, Bobby Morgan, Ben Wade, Clem Labine, Preacher Roe, Gil Hodges, Roy Campanella, Jim Hughes, Carl Erskine, Bob Miliken, Jim Gilliam, Carl Furillo, George Shuba, Billy Loes, Don Thompson, Russ Meyer, and Warren Giles (NL President)

 

Appraisal Value: $15,000.00 
Our Price: $7,900.00

Write your own name down on paper, you should notice that when you sign it, it typically stays in one continuous movement. Also, take notice of the pen moving before you start writing, as you move it towards the page. If the signature appears unnaturally ‘wobbly’or ‘shakey’, this can be better examined through a magnifying lens. Look out for machine-like straight lines - especially if these lines are interrupted by accidental "robotic" wobbles, which can reveal where the pen has slipped out of ‘place’ Does it look like the pen was lifted from the paper? it's often where the line is interrupted that may be more telling of a fake.

  

Fake autographs are actually more often mechanically reproduced with the help of technological advancements, and the price. Run your thumb over the signature, particularly its outline. If it is flat, then the "autograph" is likely to be a fake. Furthermore, if you can feel the texture of the ink on top of the page, then you know that it has been added afterward. Also, bear in mind that this technique won't work on fabric items. For example a worn sports jersey, which absorb the ink without leaving a raised layer, and is usually documented with particular, tears, wears, and marks in photography.

 

 

Pull out your magnifying glass and look for visual clues.

With stamped-on signatures, all the ink is applied at the same time and squeezed to the edges of the rubber. Through a magnifying glass, you will be able to see more ink on the edges of the lines than in the middle. Look for autographs printed by machines that may have an unnaturally "smooth" effect. Check the color of the ink. If you've decided that the paper is likely genuine, look at the ink. If it is dark brown, like dried blood, it may be oxidized. Some old inks had iron oxide. If it's a dark brown that fades to yellow at the edges, there were inks that were made of a hard cake dissolved in a mix of water and egg yolk. But that would be very old. Any paper used for those inks would almost certainly be vellum. Nothing else was available then. If a name is signed with a pen, the nib will cut through wet ink to produce "tunnels" and "bridges" visible through a magnifying glass. However, autographs can be duplicated with an auto pen: a machine which uses a mechanical arm to drag a pen along a plastic or metal signature template - or "matrix". The next step will provide further insights.

 

 

One of the most effective ways in determining if your signature is real is by simply turning the signature upside down. By doing this, your mind isn't as intensely reading it and you’re able to look objectively for tell-tale signs, and slight differences between the two which can reveal it as fake.

 

If an autograph dated pre-1960s is signed in a felt pen, then it is fake. Felt pens didn't exist before the 1960s, and it should be signed in ink which is an example of using a historical fact to even further verify the authenticity of the object.

 

By having a basic understanding of the occurring situations surrounding the general times and dates of the item’s origin, story and more you can determine the authenticity even with simple clues provided by the object itself!  The more signatures there are on a piece, the more mistakes there are to spot. Put a sports shirt with 10 fake team signatures against a sports shirt with 10 real ones, and it is easy to spot the fakes. Often, the fakes will have been written by one person. They will be the same height, evenly spaced and sometimes the same way up.
Period paper may give valuable clues as to the appropriate age of the autograph, and any other writing that may be used to prove its age.

  

 

 As always you can call us regarding any questions you may have regarding the items you're interested in!