Checking authenticity of Earth's smallest, most valuable bits of paper

19-Aug-2013 - USA

With stamp collecting a popular hobby and lucrative investment, scientists are describing a comprehensive new way of verifying the authenticity and rooting out fakes of what may be the smallest and most valuable pieces of paper on Earth. Their report appears in the journal Analytical Chemistry.

Ludovico Valli and colleagues explain that museums, archives and private stamp collectors have long been searching for better ways to confirm the authenticity of rare stamps, and details like cancellation marks that increase value. But until now, those approaches have been limited to individual components of a stamp, like the ink, or have relied on expert inspections. Valli's team looked for a better way.

They describe successful use of a lab test called infrared spectroscopy to test all of the multiple components that make up a stamp — including paper fibers, fillers, inks, adhesives and coatings — to produce a portrait without damaging the stamp itself. Valli and colleagues tested it successfully on more than 180 Italian stamps that span almost the entire history of Italy's stamp-making, which dates back to 1850. They detected two counterfeits, one of the rare Gronchi Rosa, which was issued in 1961 for then-president Giovanni Gronchi's trip to South America, and a 2-cent stamp from 1861. They describe the technology as "a really simple, precise, immediate, and nondestructive method" for determining the authenticity of stamps.

Other news from the department science

These products might interest you

Dursan

Dursan by SilcoTek

Innovative coating revolutionizes LC analysis

Stainless steel components with the performance of PEEK - inert, robust and cost-effective

HPLC accessories
OCA 200

OCA 200 by DataPhysics

Using contact angle meter to comprehensively characterise wetting behaviour, solids, and liquids

With its intuitive software and as a modular system, the OCA 200 answers to all customers’ needs

contact angle measuring instruments
Tailor-made products for specific applications

Tailor-made products for specific applications by IPC Process Center

Granulates and pellets - we develop and manufacture the perfect solution for you

Agglomeration of powders, pelletising of powders and fluids, coating with melts and polymers

toll manufacturing
Loading...

Most read news

More news from our other portals

See the theme worlds for related content

Topic World Spectroscopy

Investigation with spectroscopy gives us unique insights into the composition and structure of materials. From UV-Vis spectroscopy to infrared and Raman spectroscopy to fluorescence and atomic absorption spectroscopy, spectroscopy offers us a wide range of analytical techniques to precisely characterize substances. Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of spectroscopy!

70+ products
35+ whitepaper
70+ brochures
View topic world
Topic World Spectroscopy

Topic World Spectroscopy

Investigation with spectroscopy gives us unique insights into the composition and structure of materials. From UV-Vis spectroscopy to infrared and Raman spectroscopy to fluorescence and atomic absorption spectroscopy, spectroscopy offers us a wide range of analytical techniques to precisely characterize substances. Immerse yourself in the fascinating world of spectroscopy!

70+ products
35+ whitepaper
70+ brochures

Last viewed contents

Oxea announces price increase for Polyols in Europe

New theory explains superconductivity in spun graphene trilayers - The study, carried out by CSIC scientists, lays the foundations for understanding the mechanisms of certain unconventional superconducting materials

New theory explains superconductivity in spun graphene trilayers - The study, carried out by CSIC scientists, lays the foundations for understanding the mechanisms of certain unconventional superconducting materials

Growth of Nanoholes Visible for the First Time Thanks to Helium Scattering - Scientists were able to observe and document the growth of hexagonal boron nitride for the first time

Growth of Nanoholes Visible for the First Time Thanks to Helium Scattering - Scientists were able to observe and document the growth of hexagonal boron nitride for the first time

Wood materials make for reliable organic solar cells - Kraft lignin improves the stability in organic solar cells thanks to its ability to form hydrogen bonds that acts as a sort of glue

Wood materials make for reliable organic solar cells - Kraft lignin improves the stability in organic solar cells thanks to its ability to form hydrogen bonds that acts as a sort of glue

Cooling towards absolute zero using super-heavy electrons - New quantum material significantly improves adiabatic demagnetization cooling

Cooling towards absolute zero using super-heavy electrons - New quantum material significantly improves adiabatic demagnetization cooling

New mid-infrared laser system could detect atmospheric chemicals

New mid-infrared laser system could detect atmospheric chemicals

Mystery of microgels solved - The results open up opportunities for new applications in materials and pharmaceutical research

Mystery of microgels solved - The results open up opportunities for new applications in materials and pharmaceutical research

Acoustic tweezers can position tiny objects

Green financing for Verkor’s first battery cell Gigafactory in Dunkirk/France - Landmark project in France

Green financing for Verkor’s first battery cell Gigafactory in Dunkirk/France - Landmark project in France

Frozen noble gas in the accelerator

Frozen noble gas in the accelerator

Converting PFAS “forever chemicals” into valuable compounds - Scientists develop a new method to incorporate harmful perfluoroalkenes into N-heterocyclic carbene ligands

Converting PFAS “forever chemicals” into valuable compounds - Scientists develop a new method to incorporate harmful perfluoroalkenes into N-heterocyclic carbene ligands

New cost-effective instrument measures molecular dynamics on a picosecond timescale