TURKMENISTAN ILLEGAL STAMPS

Information and Reference of illegal stamps for Turkmenistan

On May 29, 2000 the postal administration for Turkmenistan by request to M.S. Raman (Assistant Director-General) posted to the Universal Postal Union a circular warning of the discovery of illegal stamps created with their country name that are on the market. The circular is number 184. It states the following

Dear Sir/Madam

The postal administration of TURKMENISTAN asks me to inform you that sheets of postage stamps belonging to the EURO 2000 European Football Championship issue, with a face value of 120.00 TMM, are unofficial stamp issues not issued by Turkmenistan.

The above stamps were manufactured in violation of the Detailed Regulations of the UPU Convention and the legislation of Turkmenistan. Consequently, they cannot be accepted as a means of postal prepayment.

Yours faithfully,
M S RAMAN
Assistant Director-General

The circular only describes the EURO teams counterfeit illegal stamps and nothing else. Sadly, it does not complain about the massive number of counterfeit illegal stamps produced and distributed dating since 1997 in the name of Turkmenistan. Also sadly, no other circulars were produced for the later years either. The issues described are dated 2000.

Luckily the Scott Catalog notes many of the earlier illegal stamps. From earlier UPU circulars or through direct contact with the postal authorities, it is not known what the notes are based on. I will note under the titles that the issue is noted in the catalog.

UPDATE 2021

It has been revealed that a dossier has been found in the United States Postal Museum Archive that sheds more light on who the producer was and is of many of the Turkmenistan counterfeit illegal stamps. The name revealed is indeed Mr. Juan Carlos Marino Montero president of Mayfair International Printing Company at the time. Also France Philatelie Limited and France Philatelie (2000) Limited which is where he distributed the counterfeits throughout the world with. I discovered this dossier exists through online research. Firstly here is an image of that discovery.



For years this guy spewed lies about the Feigenbaum's being evil and how he would have nothing to do with them. In reality through emails obtained and preserved through his own words it is now proven that they were (and still are) working together. A biography on this guy not only proves he was the president of the printing company that produced the majority of earlier illegal stamps but was also president of Urch Harris (wholesale) limited which was owned by the Feigenbaum's. Here is a snapshot of part of that biography which is readily available in numerous locations on the internet. You can see that all of the companies referenced are included as being run by this person.



Because of the Covid-19 pandemic the museum was closed for over a year after I discovered the existence of the dossier. It was just sent to me in September 2021. The dossier did not have much in it that I already did not know except for that circular 184 made for Turkmenistan is included in the dossier. What the dossier does do is to connect the guy to the production of the illegal stamps in the name of Russian Federation provinces and territories, Mali, Niger, Morocco, Turkmenistan, Rwanda, Cyprus and the Ukraine. This is because the circulars and some of the original documents that were sent to make the circulars are all together and included in the dossier which as the title shown above implies and states "A French company has made illegal issue....".

It is quite obvious even though the counterfeit illegal stamps do not have the printer inscribed on them that this producer is indeed the one simply by comparing them. Same styles and subject matter give it away. The whole scam quite ingenious but at the same time quite simplistic. To this day the criminal producer and his buddies proliferate these counterfeits on the stamp market with minimal hindering. It is quite remarkable that they have been allowed to get away with this for over three decades now and that now millions of these counterfeits contaminate the stamp market in collections and dealers stocks all over the world.

The dossier establishes the fact that this guy is behind the production and distribution of the Turkmenistan counterfeit illegal stamps shown on this introduction page and the rest through 2003! As you will see this guy which I call the British producer (He is really from Argentina) has been highly involved in production of illegal stamps in the name of Turkmenistan throughout! Simply compare them with counterfeit illegal stamps made at the same time for countries like Niger or Mali which fully named this guy as the producer and distributor in their circulars and/or original documents found in the dossier.
Indeed the essence of Pure evil.

END 2021 UPDATE

Many more have been produced than on the list. The illegal stamps described in this circular and what follows are still on the market today. They are available through private stamp dealers and their websites. They are available on eBay and Delcampe. They are everywhere! These illegal issues are fabrication of stamps that have never had any postal validity in Turkmenistan and have been denounced as fraudulent. They were and are created by certain greedy, unethical and immoral stamp dealers. Any stamp seller out there that offers these "stamps" either does not know they are illegal stamps or is deceitful and they should be avoided at all costs. The deceitful ones prey upon unknowing collectors new and old. They prey upon topical collectors mostly because the majority do not have the knowledge that they are worthless in the stamp market. Some are quite obvious because they have hundreds of lots available on eBay and other public auction venues.

For years now there has been arguments as to whether these issues should be imaged for public viewing. The against argument being that collectors that see images of them will want them for their collections. We can see by the availability on the market and the sales generated that this argument has not worked. By only relying on descriptions of the illegal stamps through the UPU circulars the majority of collectors don't even know what they are.

I am a firm advocate against illegal stamps and the creators of them and the sellers of them. Perspective buyers of them need more than UPU circulars to be alerted to the problem. They need to see them and be able to recognize them when they are searching for stamps to buy on the internet or at stamp shows or buying from local dealers.

Because I am independent and run a site that is very public for collectors, I have decided that it is time for someone to display images of these illegal issues that have and are being reported to the UPU. The countries that are being victimized by these fraudulent printers need help and the UPU is not enough. It is up to you and me to get the word out and to let everyone know and understand about them since auction venues, stamp societies and catalogs seem to want to ignore the problem. Some who sell these fakes are large volume stamp dealers with supposed impeccable reputations. Some are in high positions in the stamp societies and in the auction venues. They in turn are avoiding the very problem by allowing these kind of sellers to peddle this junk because they also sell legitimate stamps on a large scale. The only way to stop the flow is to hit them where it hurts.

If they are selling this junk then avoid them!
Even if they have legitimate stamps for sale. Buy from sellers that do not have these in their offerings. If you are buying legitimate stamps from them you are still supporting the illegal stamp trade because they are supporting it. Tell them that you do not want to buy from them because they sell illegal stamps. There is no excuse to make them available to anyone.

The following images are of illegal stamps produced for Turkmenistan. 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.

Although Turkmenistan is a member of the UPU, they have never registered any stamps on the WNS system. I have found the Colnect online catalog to be very helpful. You will see the illegal stamps differ greatly from genuine issues.

The Colnect Online Catalog for Turkmenistan

Check out their Illegal Stamp section as well. It is upgraded as of 2023 and shows counterfeits that may be missing here.

The Colnect Online Catalog Illegal Stamp Section for Turkmenistan

I have found the Stampworld.com Catalog to be very helpful as well.

The Stampworld Online Catalog for Turkmenistan

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 (2020) 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.

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.

1997

In 1997 the British counterfeit producer started making illegal stamps in the name of Turkmenistan. He came in in full force on this country producing numerous counterfeits in this year.

In 1997 Turkmenistan officially issued one set of stamps according to the Scott Catalog, Stampworld and the Colnect Online Catalogs.

Turkmenistan 1997 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta
Scott Catalog No. 59-64
Issued May 5, 1997 Printer is House of Questa


Here is proof The House of Questa was the printer.



The reason I show you this is because it basically proves the stamp agency in control of Turkmenistan stamps in 1997 was not Impressor S.A. nor this Mayfair International as they printed their own stamps which I might add, is against every UPU rule for stamp production. Therefore should either "claim" they had contracts, their "contracts" are bogus and nothing more than a piece of paper made up by a fraudulent illegal stamp producing criminal. The circular, the noted stamps in Scott catalog, the Turkmenistan postal authorities and IGPC the stamp agency are all that are needed to destroy any such claim. IGPC was the controlling stamp agent from 1992 through 2002 for Turkmenistan.

Now first on the list is a note on the cancels used on the fake First Day covers. I noticed that most of the FDC's from 1997 through 1998 that are counterfeit used the same canceling device. In researching the origins of the device I found only one comparison that matches it.....sort of. The first cancel device used only on the first issues of Turkmenistan in 1992. There are many examples out there, so what I show next is easy to verify.

The counterfeit producer either created his own design of the fake cancel or the device was stolen from the Turkmenistan postal authorities or their printer. I believe this to be the latter because the fake cancel is more "advanced" than the original cancel used on the official first issues. It is possible and probable that the fake device was made for Turkmenistan for future FDC's and never used. Instead of being destroyed it was given to the counterfeiter. These illegal stamp producers are "friends" with many people within the stamp producing industry. I am sorry to say, again, that the corruption within the stamp printing industry itself runs very deep.

You see, after 1992 Turkmenistan changed the way they canceled FDC's. They basically used unique cancels for every stamp issued after 1992. Each cancel used on the official FDC's unique and for the most part involved the subject of the stamps placed on the FDC's. This was and is too difficult and expensive for the cheap counterfeit producing criminals to deal with and so almost all of their 1997 and 1998 fake First Day Covers use the 1992 "style" counterfeit cancel device. You will see this as you study this and the next page.

Here is an example of First Day Covers from the original first series issued by Turkmenistan.



Now we compare the cancel on the genuine FDC's with the cancel used on the fake ones.



A noticeable difference yes? Now you see why I say the counterfeit cancel is more "advanced". It has inscriptions within the circle around the upper emblem and is "bolder" in many ways. I note the counterfeit cancel was used so much that it is very "worn" in appearance on the latter 1998 counterfeit illegal stamp First Day Covers. Seeing this now, you can see why I believe the cancel was stolen which would be a felony crime here in the U.S.

So now you know how the producer "tricked" even stamp dealers and societies into thinking his counterfeit illegal stamp First Day Covers were genuine.

One other point to get clarified is the term counterfeit. Many dealers and collectors (mostly trying to legitimize the counterfeits to profit) want them classified as anything but counterfeit as in stating that they are only meant to defraud collectors and not the postal authorities. Sorry to blow their bubbles but it is only because of the rarity of existing covers and postcards with them on them that this case is used. In the earlier years the counterfeiters did disperse them in the victimized countries and purposely had them used to mail items thus defrauding the postal system and collectors. Therefore...counterfeit. Changing status is not an option. Any illegal stamp can be used to defraud the postal system and therefore all of them are counterfeit goods.

Here is an example of full postal usage of them in Turkmenistan. These are 1997 illegal stamps used in 1998. At this time the Russian imprinted stamp on the postal stationary was long obsolete as the USSR no longer existed and Turkmenistan had its own postal system running for years. Thus counterfeit usage proven.

Counterfeit Usage of Illegal Stamps in the Name of Turkmenistan on Postal Stationary Front



Counterfeit Usage of Illegal Stamps in the Name of Turkmenistan on Postal Stationary Back



Let's begin......

Following are images of the illegal stamps I have found offered for Turkmenistan dating 1997. There may and probably are more. All of these I found in searches on eBay, Hipstamps and Delcampe and all are illegal stamps made by a producer bent on ripping you off!

1997 Cats Souvenir Sheet of 6

Over the years many of these souvenir sheets have had the strips of six removed and sold in that form or completely broken as a single stamp set. The single stamps being sold individually as well. In most cases sold this way to avoid detection of what they really are. Counterfeit illegal stamps!



1997 Cats Souvenir Sheet of 12

This is an example of one of the values being produced in this form. All of them are this way. The producer made quite a big affair out of this set. All geared toward getting maximum profits from unsuspecting collectors.



1997 Cats Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 Cats Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover

There are several illegal stamp "issues" where the First Day Covers use a different cancel than the one described at the beginning of this page. They are a simple crude box with the date and country inscription only. This "style" of cancel used more frequently on later FDC's.



1997 Cats Souvenir Sheet of 6 with China Bankok Stamp Exhibition Imprints

How many collectors and dealers were ripped off with these at the exhibition? How many are still being ripped off with them today?



1997 Cats of the World JAPEX 98 Souvenir Sheet of 4

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 Cats of the World JAPEX 98 Souvenir Sheet of 4 on Fake First Day Cover

The producer made and makes many Fake First Day Covers to try to legitimize the counterfeits. All are completely fabricated counterfeits including the counterfeit cancels used on them. Avoid!
Noting that one thing about these is that the majority do verify the year of creation on illegal stamps like these with no date inscribed. This particular souvenir sheet is "thought" by some dealers to be made in 1998 because of the JAPEX 98 inscription. This cover proves it was made in 1997.



1997 Chess Souvenir Sheet of 4



1997 Chess Souvenir Sheet of 4 on Fake First Day Cover

Here is another bogus First Day Cover. I use these in many cases when found to verify year dates of these counterfeit illegal stamps with no inscribed year date.



1997 Chess with Ernesto Guevara Souvenir Sheet of 1

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 Dogs Souvenir Sheet of 6

Another huge production of this set also was made. This time in a different form as well as purposeful "errors" being made. All....worthless.



1997 Dogs Pieces From Souvenir Sheets of 12



1997 Dogs Souvenir Sheet of 12 with Purposely made Perforation Errors



1997 Dogs Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 Exports Souvenir Sheet of 6



1997 Formula I Champions Jacques Villeneuve Souvenir Sheet of 1

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 Frank Sinatra and John F. Kennedy Souvenir Sheet of 1

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 Frank Sinatra and John F. Kennedy Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 Golf Champion of the World Severiano Ballesteros Souvenir Sheet of 1

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 Hong Kong Back to China Souvenir Sheets of 1



1997 Hong Kong Back to China Souvenir Sheets of 1 on Fake First Day Cover

International Events of 1997

In 1997 the British counterfeit producer made this group of illegal stamps basing them on what he considers to be international events of 1997. All but the Butterflies are noted in the Scott Catalog.

1997 International Events Butterflies with Scout logo for 90th Anniversary of the Scout Movement Souvenir Sheet of 9



1997 International Events Butterflies with Scout logo for 90th Anniversary of the Scout Movement Souvenir Sheet of 9 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 International Events Elvis Presley Souvenir Sheet of 4

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 International Events Elvis Presley Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 International Events Elvis Presley Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 International Events Kangaroos Greenpeace Souvenir Sheet of 4

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 International Events Kangaroos Greenpeace Souvenir Sheet of 4 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 International Events Marilyn Monroe Souvenir Sheet of 6

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 International Events Princess Diana Souvenir Sheet of 9

The stamps in this set are noted in the Scott Catalog. Interestingly they are noted as single stamps only. At the time of discovery the reporting entity probably did not see this souvenir sheet and thus reported only seven of them as single stamps. The note reads:

"Single stamps of 100m depicting Princess Diana (3 different stamps), Mother Teresa, Pope John Paul II and Mother Teresa, 50th Anniv. of India, and 50th Anniv. of Pakistan."

This clearly describes seven of the nine stamps. The Spanish Royal Wedding and one Diana stamp was excluded from the description.
This illegal stamp souvenir sheet was produced and printed by the company Mayfair International Limited. You can tell because of the inscriptions on the stamps which are M.I.L.. This company is now proven to be the printer of numerous illegal stamps for many effected countries. This company was resided over by a Mr. Juan Carlos Marino Montero as president of the company according to his biography which is at numerous locations throughout the internet.



1997 International Events Princess Diana Single Stamp Sheet of 9

Here is an example of the massive production that took place in the production of these illegal stamps. All of the stamps on the souvenir sheet were also printed in this fashion.



1997 International Events Princess Diana Gandhi Single Stamp inscribed Michele Baumann

This really sort of broke me up laughing because it is so obvious what is going on. Note the either artist or designers name which is only inscribed on the Gandhi stamp. Michele Baumann. Then go to any documentary and or biography of the above named president of the Mayfair International (Security Printer....sic) company and see who his second marriage was to. Then add 2 + 2 together....



1997 International Events Princess Diana Single Stamp Set on Fake First Day Cover

Note the same cancel being used on this bogus First Day Cover is the same one used on all of the other fake covers.



1997 International Events Princess Diana Single Stamp on Fake First Day Cover by the Postal Commemorative Society

Here we have the counterfeit illegal stamps being placed on a Postal Commemorative Society covers with all the trimmings. Note again the cancel. It is guaranteed that this cancel was not placed on the cover by any Turkmenistan postal agency nor authority. It is fake. So here we have full evidence of the Postal Commemorative Society ramming through covers like this without even checking the authenticity of the products they sell to collectors. Do you not think the sale of these are deceiving collectors to this day because a supposedly "respectable" company like the PCS has "stated" this is "official" when in reality it is anything but official?

It would be of some interest, I am sure, to find out who had the cancels made at the Postal Commemorative Society and who they sent them to or received them from. This would reveal and expose the source of course. Which, I for one, already know because of the compounding evidence and proof against him. Please understand, these producers of illegal stamps like this have really big egos and that ego causes them to make stupid mistakes....constantly.



Finally, this one made for the Princess Diana illegal stamp set proven to be made by Mayfair International Ltd. The question next of course is, what about the rest of this International Events series? Who made them? Now.....your catching on to it......like I have....

1997 International Events Princess Diana Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 International Events Titanic Souvenir Sheet of 9

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 International Events Titanic Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 International Events Titanic Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover

End of International Events of 1997

1997 James Dean 100 years of Cinema Souvenir Sheet of 1

Some dealers and collectors believe this counterfeit was made in 1998 because of the ITALIA 98 logo. The Marilyn Monroe FDC below proves otherwise.



1997 Leaders of the World Cadillac Souvenir Sheet of 1

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.

Here in the twisted mind of the criminal producer, a memory of times long gone. Namely in dealings with the former Format International Security Printers. Please visit my reference section on them for more information. Especially the Leaders of the World Cars and Trains areas.



1997 Leaders of the World Cadillac Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 Marilyn Monroe Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 Marilyn Monroe and James Dean Souvenir Sheets of 1 on Fake First Day Cover

Here is a fake FDC with both the Marilyn Monroe and the James Dean illegal stamp souvenir sheets on it. It verifies both were made in 1997.



1997 Marilyn Monroe Souvenir Sheet of 1 with Bogus Certificate of Authenticity

Here again is more evidence of collusion with the International Collectors Society. Everything stated on the certificate is a lie. This company ripped off so many collectors it is unbelievable. Now they are finding out just how bad it is when they go to resell these counterfeits. Most dealers will not even touch them with a ten foot pole! Never believe in these kinds of certificates produced by a stamp dealer. Most are designed to convince you that they are something they are not. This souvenir sheet was never an official legal tender postage stamp. It was never issued by Turkmenistan and it was never recognized by any postal authority as anything other than a counterfeit illegal stamp! On top of this, it has no limited edition status whatsoever! It has been mass produced by a criminal. Avoid!



1997 Orchids Souvenir Sheet of 6



1997 Orchids Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 Pope John Paul II Souvenir Sheet of 1

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 Pope John Paul II with Bill Clinton Souvenir Sheet of 1

This souvenir sheet is noted as unauthorized in the Scott Catalog.



1997 Pope John Paul II Souvenir Sheets of 1 on Fake First Day Covers



Then we have this massive production of counterfeit illegal stamps featuring Princess Diana.

1997 Princess Diana and Demon Hill Formula I Driver Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 Princess Diana and Demon Hill Formula I Driver Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 Princess Diana in Designer Dresses Souvenir Sheet of 9

This illegal stamp set is very similar to a set of Princess Diana Designer Dresses illegal stamps made in the name of Niger. Proven to be produced by Mayfair International, it is against all odds that they did not produce this set as well.



1997 Princess Diana in Designer Dresses Souvenir Sheets of 1




1997 Princess Diana the People's Princess Souvenir Sheet of 6

These exact same souvenir sheets of The People's Princess with different images of Diana was denounced by Kyrgyzstan in their 1999 UPU circular 432.



1997 Princess Diana the People's Princess Souvenir Sheet of 6 on Fake First Day Cover

This and all the other "varieties" of the People's Princess series can be found on fake FDC's like this one. All using the crude box "style" cancel.



1997 Princess Diana the People's Princess Souvenir Sheet of 6 of the same Stamp

Each counterfeit illegal stamp was printed on souvenir sheets like this one as well to increase profits. Still being sold individually to this day.



1997 Princess Diana the People's Princess Souvenir Sheets of 1



1997 Religious Idols Souvenir Sheet of 6



1997 Scouts Baden Powell and Princess Diana Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 Scouts Baden Powell and Princess Diana Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 Spanish Royal Wedding Souvenir Sheet of 9

Note the M.I.L. printers logo.



1997 Spanish Royal Wedding Souvenir Sheet of 1



1997 Spanish Royal Wedding Souvenir Sheet of 1 on Fake First Day Cover



1997 Temples of the Far East Souvenir Sheet of 6



1997 Titanic 100 Years of the Cinema Souvenir Sheet of 1

Many collectors and dealers think this souvenir sheet was made in 1998 because of the "Year of the Oceans" logo on the lower right corner. The evidence showing it was made in 1997 are the fact that it is the same image of the Titanic as the International Events souvenir sheet shown above. Also the 100 Years of the Cinema James Dean souvenir sheet proven to be made in 1997 that is many times mistakenly said to be made in 1998 because of the ITALIA 98 logo on it. Basing dating on counterfeit illegal stamps because a logo on it claims a year has been found to be inaccurate as the criminal producers do this to make profits over several years off the same illegal stamp.



1997 World Cup Soccer Football France 98 Souvenir Sheet of 6

Another example of the above, using France 1998 World Cup in 1997 to sell through both years. These criminals are slick salesmen.



1997 World Cup Soccer Football France 98 Souvenir Sheet of 12

Another mass production. All six illegal stamps reproduced on souvenir sheets of 12 like this one. Imagine the cost to the collector and profits made from a whole set.



1997 World Cup Soccer Football France 98 Souvenir Sheet of 1

Note how badly cut the souvenir sheet is. Common problems with illegal stamps. Cheaply made with all kinds of faults like this.



In 1998 the production of counterfeit illegal stamps in the name of Turkmenistan continues. A major proliferation of them in sales continues to this day.

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References taken from:
U.P.U. Circular No. 184
Major Stamp Catalogs
Internet Research

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