BENIN ILLEGAL STAMPS
2001

Information and Reference of Illegal Stamps for Benin Created in 2001

The following images are of illegal stamps produced for Benin. Please remember that the producers of these illegals are not only greedy, they are crude and sometimes disgusting which is the nature of these people.

To find out what stamps are real and legitimate for Benin visit the UPU WNS website and look at the Benin section.
Sadly, it has been found out that most series displayed in the 2002-3 listings which were submitted by the stamp agent were declared invalid by the Benin Postal administration and never released in Benin.

The Universal Postal Union WNS website

You can also get a very good reference of what was officially issued from the Colnect website.

The Colnect Online Catalog for Benin

Check out their Illegal Stamp section as well. It is fully complete and shows many more illegal stamps not shown here.

The Colnect Online Catalog for Benin Illegal Stamps

I have also found the StampWorld Catalog an excellent resource.

The StampWorld Online Catalog for Benin

You can also use a respectable catalog like Scott or Stanley Gibbons. Do not listen to these dealers trying to convince you they are something other than illegal stamps.

In 2004 when Benin produced circular 30 they did not know that there were more illegal stamps that were being circulated than what they listed. This has occurred for many of the victim countries. To correct it I have researched them all using the major catalog listings and the WNS system as reference to what was officially issued.

Here we go!

Many of the following illegal stamps can be found as imperforates and as color proof sets as well. Some exist on fake First Day Covers too.
Most times now (2018) the souvenir sheet sets and sheetlet sets are sold individually. Many times the stamps have been removed from the sheetlets and souvenir sheets. All of these "tactics" are used to avoid detection by UPU circular descriptions and search terms.

Sellers that call these "private", "locals", "Cinderella's", "unauthorized" are deceiving you. They are illegal stamps produced by a stamp dealer that is bent on ripping you off! Some sellers state "we offer them because they are on the market". Well how about you use a different dealer because that seller is "on the market"? If the stamp societies, auction sites and all other venues kicked these sellers off of their sites then they would have to comply or lose their ability to sell anything.

The following images are free for the use of all to use to alert the public to them. If anyone wants to make a public list of users on eBay, Delcampe and elsewhere who are selling these issues....fine by me since the UPU, PWMO and others appear to have given up or have not been updated in years.

If you have purchased any of these stamps from a dealer or if that dealer offers them, you should avoid that dealer! You will only be supporting illegal stamp makers who are only ripping you off.

2001

In 2001 Benin made another change and started having stamps produced again in their name. As stated on the year 2000 page they had ended their contract with the previous agency and had numerous older stamp issues surcharged rather than having new stamps printed. In 2001 Benin officially issued 30 different stamp issues.

It appears that at that time Benin had two agencies fighting for control. The first producing the conservative Bouchet issues. The other going for topical issues.

Benin 2001 Lions
Only the three low values of this set were authorized and released. The other values including the souvenir sheet are declared unauthorized meaning they are illegal.



Benin 2001 Fire Trucks
Only the five stamps shown were authorized and released. Another 750f value featuring a 1940 Ladder Truck and the souvenir sheet shown
are declared unauthorized meaning they are illegal.


Benin 2001 Bouchet International Physics Conference, Cotonou Scott 1218-1220


Benin 2001 Butterflies



Benin 2001 Fish



Here we go again. Apparently rejected by Benin but still placed onto the market by this printer. According to Michel catalogs
"This series were not officially issued. However, individual values are known by letter.". According to the Scott catalog which also lists
some values of this series it is stated, "Benin postal authorities declared another 750fr stamp depicting a primate and a 1500fr
souvenir sheet depicting a Gorilla as 'not authorized'.". This again means they are illegal.

Benin 2001 Unissued Gorillas



In theory I think this ended this agency and printers association with Benin as the next year a more conservative stamp issuing producer was used resulting in no topical issues of this nature. Still, in 2003 even that agent caused a major problem.

And then came Feigenbaum with the British counterfeit producer......

In the 2004 UPU circular for Benin was described the Harry Potter illegal stamp sheetlets. What they did not detect at that time were the illegal stamp prototypes for the issue. The sheetlets described in the circular are dated 2002 and 2003. In 2001 Feigenbaum had deluxe sheetlets and a souvenir sheet probably four of them) of two produced themed with the Harry Potter movie.

I apologize for the terrible images of them but they were taken almost twenty years ago by archaic means and can only be found at one source. The price asked being so extraordinarily high nobody buys and sells them even though there are probably thousands in the stock.

2001 Harry Potter illegal stamps in Deluxe Souvenir Sheets of 1



2001 Harry Potter illegal stamps in Souvenir Sheet of 2



You will find plenty of examples of the two stamp style souvenir sheets in future productions of illegal stamps for many of the victimized countries.

This is all I could find for illegal stamps in the name of Benin for 2001. In 2002 the nightmare began......

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References taken from:
U.P.U. Circular No. 30
WNS Website
Major Stamp Catalogs
Internet Research

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