On September 10/11 an USA auction house sold "The Alfred F. Kugel Collection". There were some nice Croatian feldpost items in one big lot. In that lot the above pictured cards were sold. They look lovely, really great Feldopost cards. As usual, if it is to good to be true, it's not true.
These cards are fake ! Forgeries made to deceive collectors!
About cards:
1. Green Croatian Feldpostcards are original.
2.the round censor cancels are original, i have seen them applied on cards and letters in blue and purple colour but this is first time in black, probably they are in private hands.
3. Square cancel GSBP with smudged letters, on the left side of cards is fake.
4. Square cancel GSBP with clear letters, on the right side of cards is fake
5. Zagreb 1/60 cancel was seen on fake covers before, it is in private hands.
6. The Military stamps on covers have not been seen on original covers yet.(there is still hope we will see original covers with these stamps, but after 80 years it is really a tiny hope). The stamp with croatian amblem was to be used on parcels and not on cards and letters. The other stamp with Neretva river is a forgery itself.
7. Really interesting is Feldpost adress of reciever Fp.58207E - 4. Kompanie Genesenden Abteilung Kroat. Ausbildungs Brigade. On the 04.04.1945 (the date in the cancels!!) Kroat.Ausb.Brigade recieved orders to leave Stockerau , only 540 men sick with typhoid remainded there in Genesenden Abteilung (reconvalescent unit). These information was known to forgerer so he used Fp.58207 and not any other as other units were moving out of Stockerau. The last days of Kroat. Ausbildungs Brigade are described in Franz Schraml book: Kriegsschauplatz Kroatien. I'm sure forgerer had read it. Croatian translation of the book was published in 1993.
The German text of Franz Schraml : Kriegsschauplatz Kroatien is available here
https://znaci.org/00001/180.htm
