Gents... I have some good info to share regarding this topic. I hope this helps everyone. It makes me want to find a REAL ONE!
About four months ago a good friend of mine contacted Henry Yee who knew about the original Ruth wrapper find back in the 80's.
Henry does PSA photo authentication and is an expert in paper testing and ephemera collectibles. He is also one of the biggest dealers in vintage Ruth and Gehrig memorabilia.
My friend purchased a Ruth wrapper(through a major auction house) that looked really good. He received opinions from others that it appears real. He sent it to Yee for a second opinion. It turned out that my friend's wrapper was fake according to Yee. Yee also went as far as writing an email for my friend with a detailed explanation. At the end, he got his money back with no questions asked when after Yee's response was shared.
When I saw this thread I contacted my friend about that email in which he asked Yee if he could post that letter here to help the collecting community. Yee agreed and below is that letter along with the scan he sent to my friend.
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"I have finished examining the Ruth wrapper in question that you sent to me and I am sorry to say that it is 100% fake. For this particular fake, I could tell right away that it is a fake.
There are three known fakes. Yours is what I call the fake "H-version" because the "H" in the name George H. Ruth is scratched with paper loss. It is the most common of the fakes.
(for this fake "H" version, I have even seen those where they tore the section of the "H" as well so it can't be detected).
Should the auction house you brought it from give you any problems or challenge you for full evidence, just for the heck of it, I also did a scientific paper analysis with several apparatus' that I usually use to examine antique photographs for PSA which includes an electronic microscope, spectroscope as well as employing several different wavelengths of Ultraviolet Light (UV/black light) with wavelengths from 350 to 410 nm.
I have also attached a scan of an authentic Ruth wrapper (top) and yours, the fake (bottom). Note that I have applied my company logo to the authentic exemplar to prevent any potential "abuse".
While the fakes might look good at first glance, the differences becomes so obvious when they are compared side-by-side. Without going into ten long paragraphs on the science of paper composition, wavelengths & optical filtering, fiber analysis and chemical analysis, here are the simple tips that any collector could use to tell the difference on this particular fake "H-version"
(1) Wax Paper - 1920's wax paper vs. modern wax paper. A simple black light / UV light will confirm that paper brighteners will show up on the fakes, particularly along the crease lines. But do keep in mind - NOT all commercially available black lights are created equal (and someone performing any black light test should always know what they are looking for as NOT all modern papers will fluoresce). Fortunately, in identifying this particular fake, there is no need for any forensic lab quality UV equipment or a spectroscope, as a simple $10 black light will do (these are in the wavelengths of 380-390 nm). In addition, when compared side-by-side. the color of the paper is obvious.
(2) Paper Thickness - There are three types of fakes with various degrees of thickness. This is one of the easier ones to spot because of the thicker paper (there is one on a thinner paper so be careful).
(3) The Ruth Portrait is much clearer in the authentic example. The originals were made through an offset lithography process. The fakes were done by a laser printer. And while this particular fake were done with a relatively good machine (appears to be a 2000-2002 Lexmark or IBM model for this particular example), a side by side comparison with a 10x loop exposes the fake's tell-tale signature.
(4) Colors - in this particular fake, it's obvious in this side by side comparison. The originals are bright in color while the fakes are faded. While this is hard to tell without an authentic one to compare it with, pay particular attention to the blue in HOME RUN which is a "darker" (closer to a navy blue vs. a regular blue) and the "7" which should be close to "magenta" (a red violet) as opposed to the fake's faded "brownish red". NOTE: on some fakes, some have went as far as tearing the "7" off so it won't be exposed.
(5) Lettering & Text - This where the counterfeiter on this "H" example went all out. Look at the text / letters. The originals were lettered "by hand" (done by a human who had excellent penmanship). The fakes were made from a computer (perfectly uniform, perfectly formed as expected). It is a dangerous fake because someone went through the ENTIRE process of "recreating" the text by computer and redoing the entire letters !
Also, there are many fakes that have been "artificially aged" (with tobacco juice, tea, coffee, etc...) and intentional torn to make the piece look old. Sad thing is that many of the auction houses have been fooled and sold the fakes as well.
Before the 1990's, there were only two known specimens (including the a trimmed one that was own by Barry Halper. Unlike several of his items in question recently, Halper's Ruth wrapper was 100% real and at the time, the only known example).
In 1989, there was a find of 14 wrappers. I had a chance to see all 14. All were original and genuine. I brought the best one. The others were scattered throughout the hobby with several I know embedded in the finest collections.
Since then, I have only seen about 7 other "authentic" examples. I personally have handled three. All the others that I am aware of are fakes. There are 3 versions of the fakes that I am aware of. One really poorly done example, one that is so-so (this "H" example you sent) and one that is dangerously good (the thin version). In the end, all the fakes that I am aware of would fail a forensics test utilizing the latest equipment and techniques available today and most certainly all would fail a carbon dating test.
Bottom line, real Ruth wrappers are very rare !
Sad thing is that they have gone the way of the 1928 Fro-Joy cards. The original Ruth wrapper is one of the most beautiful pieces ever made and certainly one of the rarest Ruth items manufactured at that time period.
But because the fakes are so plentiful, it hurts the authentic examples.
Forward this email to whomever you brought it from.
Best Regards
Henry Yee"
