Sometimes the most interesting philatelic items are not necessarily the rarest, or even the genuine ones, but the pieces which lead you into a deeper investigation.
Earlier this year I picked up a small group of five Queen Victoria stamps used in Malta from an eBay auction. Among them was an imperf Penny Red on piece, cancelled with the scarce barred oval A25 of Valletta, Malta.
The stamp proved to be a Plate 41 example — SG Z24 (SG8) in the Stanley Gibbons Commonwealth & British Empire Catalogue (125th Edition, 2023), catalogued at £3,250.
Naturally, this raised an important question.
Was the cancellation genuine?
Penny Reds Used Abroad
Collectors of classic Great Britain will know the “Used Abroad” field can be both fascinating and difficult. British stamps used through overseas post offices are a specialist area in their own right, particularly when tied to scarce numeral cancellations.
The Malta A25 barred oval is one such cancellation.
While researching the stamp I came across the excellent publication Penny Red Stars Used Abroad by Mike Batty, published through the Great Britain Philatelic Society. Batty’s work documents known examples of imperforate and perforated Penny Reds used abroad, together with cancellations, locations and known forgeries.
One section particularly caught my attention.
In earlier editions, Batty explained that no genuine examples of the barred oval A25 cancellation on imperforate Penny Reds had been confirmed. More importantly, forged Malta A25 cancellations were known.
One of the identifying features involved the shape of the letter “A” within the obliterator. On genuine strikes, the crossbar divides the letter at roughly a 60/40 ratio. On forged examples the crossbar sits noticeably lower.
After comparing my example against known illustrations, the strike initially appeared promising.
First Impressions
Before contacting anyone, I gave the stamp a closer inspection myself.
I ran the image through image-analysis software, ImageSleuth (similar in to RetroReveal), generating multiple enhanced versions designed to make alterations or additions easier to spot. Nothing obvious appeared tampered with.
That said, something still felt slightly “off”.
At one stage I aligned the cancellation perfectly upright and found myself repeatedly looking at the shape of the numeral “2”. It was not enough to dismiss the piece outright, but enough to leave some doubt in my mind.
I eventually contacted Mike Batty directly, sending scans of the stamp and asking for his opinion.
His first reply was encouraging:
“The cancel looks good to me.”
He also mentioned that Plate 41 cancelled A25 had previously sat on his list of possible Malta forgeries simply because no genuine recorded example had been confirmed.
He added:
“Apart from anything else, it is the clearest example I have seen of Plate 41 ML and thus a great plating reference.”
For a short while, it seemed possible this might prove to be one of the very few genuine imperforate Penny Reds with the Malta A25 barred oval.
The Reassessment
A short time later Mike contacted me again after further consultation and comparison against proof-book impressions of the Malta obliterator registered on 2 February 1859.
The conclusion changed completely.
The cancellation on my stamp did not match the recorded proof strikes and therefore had to be considered a forgery.
Once presented alongside the genuine proof-book examples, the differences became much clearer — particularly in the proportions and shape of the numeral “2”.
The proof-book date also raised another interesting point. By February 1859, perforated Penny Reds had already been in use for several years, while Plate 41 imperforates had been printed and withdrawn much earlier, the plate itself being destroyed in February 1845.
That immediately made the idea of a genuinely used Malta A25 imperforate feel much less likely from a postal history perspective. If genuine examples do exist, it seems more plausible they originated from privately retained old stock rather than normal post office supply.
Looking back at the scans afterwards, I realised those same doubts had quietly been there from the beginning.
What makes the piece particularly interesting is that this is not a crude forgery at all. In my opinion it is an extremely convincing example, convincing enough to initially pass informed scrutiny before later failing against definitive proof-book reference material.
That alone says a great deal about the quality of the forged strike.
Still an Interesting Piece
Despite ultimately being rejected as genuine, the stamp remains a fascinating item.
In some ways the investigation itself became more rewarding than the possibility of a four-figure rarity.
The example has now been included in the revised Malta section of the 12th Edition (2026) of Penny Red Stars Used Abroad by Mike Batty as a forged A25 on SG Spec. B1 Plate 41.
That inclusion highlights an important point within philately:
forged material can still hold genuine research value.
In specialist areas such as “Used Abroad” cancellations, convincing forgeries form part of the wider story and can become useful reference pieces in their own right.
Final Thoughts
This small eBay lot turned into an unexpectedly interesting philatelic investigation and a reminder of how careful research can completely change the understanding of an item.
It also reinforced the importance of:
- specialist literature,
- expert comparison,
- and keeping an open mind when dealing with scarce cancellations and unusual material.
Most importantly, it was a reminder that the research journey is often just as enjoyable as the stamp itself.
Current editions of Penny Red Stars Used Abroad and other specialist publications can be found via the Great Britain Philatelic Society website.
Happy collecting.
— Dan Williams
Apollo’s Lots GB Stamps