Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by terrier8HOF on February 6, 2013 at 7:48am

I would run it by Mr. Zipper. he is very strong and one of the best for space autographs.

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Permalink Reply by Ken Mills on February 6, 2013 at 8:25am

Could you or he give me a contact address so I can e-mail a scan across ? Many thanks for your reply.

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Permalink Reply by terrier8HOF on February 6, 2013 at 8:32am

He will probably read this. But try a friend request.

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Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 8, 2013 at 10:07pm

Ken,

Mr Zipper is Steve Zarelli, the top active astronaut autograph authenticator, who authenticates for RR Auction and JSA. Did you get in contact with him? 

Steve

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Permalink Reply by Ken Mills on February 9, 2013 at 2:07am

Hi Steve,

               I didn't realise they were one and the same person until I contacted RR Auction. He viewed the piece and said it matched other genuine examples but it could have either been rushed or somebody distracted him mid-flow but his advice was not to put it through the shredder on the views of PSA. The dilemma I have now is that quite naturally my customer needs to know for the sake of passing a piece of history down to his children that it is authentic. I have two ' experts ' who are at odds with each other. I know the circumstances behind how it was obtained and as Steve has not said it is secretarial or autopen then my feelings are that it is genuine. Other than what my customer now has from PSA giving a long list of reasons why they won't pass it I have nothing really to balance a strong argument for them being wrong. Ethically and morally I could very easily refund my customer and put it through an Auction house if they class it as being genuine and maybe treble or quadruple what I sold it for, but then my customer loses out. If anyone else could give their views on this piece I would be very grateful. This all goes to show just how difficult and complex authenticating can be and also how someone's ' opinion ' can affect both businesses like mine and the buying public.

Regards    Ken.

1. ArmstrongKenMills0002

 

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Permalink Reply by Ken Mills on February 9, 2013 at 3:04am

Steve has not said it is secretarial or autopen

Of course I meant to write ' it is Not secretarial or autopen ! Not sure whether the attachment can be opened to view - old age and lack of any technological knowledge or interest means I'm an amateur with computers lol.

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Permalink Reply by Steve Cyrkin, Admin on February 9, 2013 at 4:13am

Ken,

If Steve Zarelli says your Armstrong is good, you can take it to the bank. But I just reread your post and realized that Scott Cornish was the young collector you sent the photos to Armstrong for! Scott is a member here, so send him a friend request and I'm sure he'd love to hear from you and help: http://live.autographmagazine.com/profile/ScottCornish

Please try to post the photo again, or send it to me at editor@autographmagazine.com and I will.

Thanks

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Permalink Reply by Steve Zarelli on February 9, 2013 at 5:56am

Here is the photo Ken sent me for review.

In my opinion it is a textbook "rushed" Armstrong with one unusual characteristic. The signature is essentially perfect until you get to the bubble-like blowout on the right side of the paraph.

Also note how the small horizontal line at the bottom of the A formation goes directly into the paraph in one continuous line. (Usually these are 2 separate lines.) Doing it in one continuous line is something he did when rushed, and in my view, an unlikely choice for a forger to make.

The contrast is bad, but this in-person exemplar from the UACC study, Neil Armstrong: The Quest for his Autograph, shows a similar rounded "bubble" on the right side of the paraph.

The questioned exemplar was signed with great speed, confidence and is essentially perfect except for one unusual hiccup. Looking at the whole picture and based on a scan review only, I think there is a strong likelihood the questioned item is authentic.

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Permalink Reply by Ken Mills on February 9, 2013 at 6:20am

Hi Steve & Steve,

                              My grateful thanks to you both for your help. I have sent links to my customer and have offered him a full refund of his money if he is not 100% satisfied with these findings.

Best Regards

 

Ken.

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