French Resistance Forgery Mint Sheet of 24

1944 Full Mint Sheet of 24

This very rare full mint pane of 24 "Faux Petain" espionage forgeries was printed by the French Underground to frank mailings of clandestine literature in early 1944 prior to the liberation of France from Nazi control.  A purple handstamp on the reverse of the pane covers 6 stamps and reads ""Defense de la France - Direction / Atelier des Faux" ("French Underground - Directorate / Forgery Bureau") and shows the Cross of Lorraine, the symbol of the Free French.  Secretly printed by the Underground in primitive wartime conditions on ungummed paper, the difference between the forgery and the Vichy France postal issue is obvious.  Considering the risks of producing forgeries in Nazi-occupied France, and the potential disaster if the Underground was discovered, it's amazing that this pane survived the war! 

This is a great opportunity to own a creation of the French Underground movement in the rarely seen full pane format!