Forgery Collection (page 3)

Piltdown Man: brain capacity compared
A page from the Illustrated London News, debating the merits of Dr. A. Smith-Woodwards reconstruction of the Piltdown Mans brain over the reconstruction proposed by Professor Arthur Keith s

Piltdown Man: Dawson and Smith-Woodward search for more bone
Seeking remains of the oldest known Englishman: looking for relics of the Piltdown Man. Charles Dawson and A. Smith-Woodward searching for other parts of the skeleton on the site of the first

Digital illustration of cordon at forgery crime scene

Trade Card for Peter De la Fontaine, Goldsmith, c. 1790s (engraving)
XJF441255 Trade Card for Peter De la Fontaine, Goldsmith, c.1790s (engraving) by English School, (18th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Peter De la Fontaine, Goldsmith)

Landscape with country lane and cottages, etched by Benjamin Wilson, 1751 (etching)
XJF412253 Landscape with country lane and cottages, etched by Benjamin Wilson, 1751 (etching) by Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606-69) (after); Private Collection; (add.info)

Kouros, c. 530 BC (Dolomitic marble)
XOS1765293 Kouros, c.530 BC (Dolomitic marble) by Greek, (6th century BC); 206.1x54.6x51 cm; J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles

Kouros; Unknown; Greece, Europe; about 530 B.C. or modern forgery; Dolomitic marble; Object: H: 206.1 x W (greatest, at forearms): 54.6 x D: 51 cm (81 1/8 x 21 1/2 x 20 1/16 in.)

GEORGE BIDWELL (c1837-1899). American con man. Ticket of leave granted Bidwell in 1887 after he had served nearly fourteen years in prison in England for forgery

CHECK FORGER, 1890. A check forger is caught at a New York bank. Wood engraving, American, 1890

Donation of Constantine- Saints appear. C016 / 8784
One of the cycle of 13th century frescoes in the basilica S.S. Quattro Coronati Rome.These purport to illustrate a decree issued by Constantine in the 4th century, which

Donation of Constantine-Baptism and cure C016 / 8787
Pope Sylvester baptises Constantine by immersion, having miraculously cured him from leprosy. One of the cycle of 13th century frescoes in the basilica S.S

Donation by Constantine to Sylvester C016 / 8790
Pope Sylvester, having miraculously cured Emperor Constantine from leprosy by Baptism, receives the tiara symbolising temporal power from the newly converted Constantine

Piltdown Stegodon tooth C016 / 5975
Piltdown Stegodon tooth (item E.596). Part of a molar tooth of the extinct mammal Stegodon. The amateur geologist Charles Dawson (1864-1916) claimed to have found this tooth

Piltdown hand axe C016 / 5972
Piltdown rolled flake (item E.613, presented as an early human flint hand axe by the amateur geologist Charles Dawson (1864-1916)

Piltdown Stegodon tooth C016 / 5973
Piltdown Stegodon tooth (item E.620). Part of a molar tooth of the extinct mammal Stegodon. The amateur geologist Charles Dawson (1864-1916) claimed to have found this tooth

Reconstruction of Piltdown skull C016 / 5942
Reconstruction of the Piltdown Man (Eoanthropus dawsoni) skull, as described in 1912, following the discovery of a skull and jaw fragments near Piltdown, Sussex

Piltdown cricket bat C016 / 5943
Piltdown cricket bat. Side view of sharpened piece of elephant thigh bone, presented as an early human digging implement by the amateur geologist Charles Dawson (1864-1916)

Piltdown Stegodon tooth C016 / 5974
Piltdown Stegodon tooth (item E.596). Part of a molar tooth of the extinct mammal Stegodon. The amateur geologist Charles Dawson (1864-1916) claimed to have found this tooth

Piltdown cricket bat C016 / 5971
Piltdown cricket bat. Side view of a sharpened piece of elephant thigh bone, presented as an early human digging implement by the amateur geologist Charles Dawson (1864-1916)

Athene blewitti, forest owlet
Donated to the Museum in 1954 by Colonel Richard Meinertzhagen, it was discovered that he had in fact stolen the specimen from the Museum and changed its label

The Piltdown man excavation site
Excavation at Piltdown c. 1913 with Cyril Woodward showing scale

The Piltdown (Skull) Gravel Pit
The site where the Pitdown specimens were claimed to have been discovered (1912-1915). Photograph believed to have been taken during the winter of 1913

Barkham Avenue, Piltdown, Sussex
View looking down the drive c. 1912, including from left to right, Venus Hargreaves, Arthur Smith Woodward (with the goose Chipper), Charles Dawson, and Robert Kenward Snr

Searching for the Piltdown Man

Excavations at Piltdown circa 1913
Charles Dawson (left) and Dr A Smith Woodward (right)

Workers at Piltdown

Pongo sp. Mandible and molar (Piltdown 1 & 2)
Lateral lingual view of Piltdown 1 mandible with Piltdown 2 left molar. Held at The Natural History Museum, London

Homo sapiens cranium (Piltdown 1)
Two pieces that represent the Piltdown 1 cranium held at The Natural History Museum, London. This specimen was reported as being discovered at Piltdown

Piltdown Stegodon tooth
Piltdown, Sussex item E.620, part of a molar tooth of the extinct mammal Stegodon, of the Pliocene to the Pleistocene epochs. Held at the Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown Mastodon tooth
Piltdown, Sussex item E.622, edge view of molar of the extinct mammal Mastodon. Held at the Natural History Museum, London

Pongo sp. Mandible with canine (Piltdown 1)
Left lateral view of the Piltdown mandible reported to be that of a newly found homind species in 1913 but then revealed as a forgery in 1953. Specimen held at The Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown flake implement
Piltdown, Sussex item E.612 held at The Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown flints
Collection of Piltdown flints held at The Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown Eolithic flint
Piltdown, Sussex item E.614 held at The Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown rolled flake
Piltdown, Sussex item E.613 held at The Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown flint implement
Piltdown, Sussex item E.605 held at The Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown Palaeolith flint
Piltdown, Sussex item E.685 held at The Natural History Museum, London

Equus sp. horse
Upper molar tooth from a species of the Equus genus. Item E. 602 of the animal fossil specimens found at Piltdown, Sussex, 1912-15, held at the Natural History Museum, London

Castor fiber, Eurasian beaver
Lower molar tooth of a Eurasian beaver. Item E. 603 of the animal fossil specimens found at Piltdown, Sussex, 1912-15, held at the Natural History Museum, London

Echinocarys, echinoid hoax
A hoax fossil echinoid found at Piltdown, Sussex. Specimen now held at the Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown memorial
July 1938, Sir Arthur Smith Woodward next to the memorial marking the site of the discovery of the Piltdown skull by Charles Dawson. Photograph loaned to Museum by Charles Taylor Trechmann

Professor J. S. Weiner
Pretoria born scientist who became Reader in Physical Anthropology at Oxford. In 1953 he famously exposed the Piltdown Man as a fraud

Piltdown 1 jaw
Left lateral view of Piltdown 1 jaw. Held at The Natural History Museum, London

Piltdown 1 jaw and Piltdown 2 left molar
Occlusal view of Piltdown 1 jaw with Piltdown 2 left molar. Held at The Natural History Museum, London

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"Unraveling the Threads of Deception: The Enigmatic World of Forgery" In 1689, a young Sir Isaac Newton sat for a portrait, unaware that his image would later become entangled in a web of deceit. Little did he know that centuries later, this innocent painting would pale in comparison to the infamous Loch Ness Monster sightings. But it was not mythical creatures alone that captured public imagination; rather, it was the Piltdown Man memorial erected in 1938. A discussion on the Piltdown skull by John Cooke shed light on its dubious origins and sparked controversy among scholars. As headlines blared "Piltdown Man: The Most Ancient Inhabitant of England, " doubts began to creep into scientific circles. A clandestine forgery meeting ensued, where experts dissected every detail surrounding this supposed ancient ancestor. The Piltdown man reconstructed with meticulous precision fooled even seasoned geologists at Piltdown. They were unwittingly drawn into an elaborate hoax that shook the foundations of evolutionary theory. Yet forgery is not confined to historical artifacts alone. From art to agriculture, deception knows no bounds. Just as Canada celebrated its largest ear of corn grown within its borders, a wine counterfeiter disguised as an excursionist met his downfall near Kufstein's Bavarian border in Germany. Throughout history, individuals like "The Falsifier Fool" have sought personal gain through their crafty manipulations – brush and Indian ink on paper serving as their tools of choice during times when authenticity mattered most. Forgery serves as a stark reminder that truth can be elusive and appearances deceiving. It challenges our notions of trust and forces us to question what we hold dear – whether it be portraits or prehistoric remains. So let us delve into these tales woven by masterful impostors and learn from them. For only through understanding past deceptions can we hope to safeguard against future forgeries lurking beneath seemingly genuine facades.