Bugs Bunny FDC "What's Up Doc?"

Is it unethical to paint a cachet now 20 years later?



Something very similar sold on ebay for that very purpose. (https://www.ebay.com/itm/10-FDC-rea...22764898908)

Your thoughts and opinions?

Cachets are added to uncacheted FDC's all the time. They are referred to as "add-on," meaning the cachet is not contemporaneous with the issue.

There's nothing unethical about adding a cachet. The only issue is when someone tries to either mimic a scarce cachet and pass it off as genuine or tries to insist the add-on is contemporary to the FDC.

If you wish to create your own cachet, the market will determine whether you have created something someone wants to collect.

I have a very nicely hand-painted set of FDC's for the National Parks, issued in 1934, which were hand-painted in 2016 for the centennial of the National Parks. Below is an example:





When I purchased the set, for $60.00, I knew what I was getting and that it was an add-on cachet. I liked the artwork and the way it meshed with the design of the stamp, so I purchased it.

Hope this helps.

I see no problem with adding cachets in that most FDC collectors understand that hand painted cachets and unusual unlisted cachets can be either contemporaneous or added yesterday and they collect them simply because they find them attractive. I think it would be unethical if someone added a cachet tomorrow morning and then advertised it on ebay as being contemporaneous with the FDC cancelation, but even in such cases most knowledgeable collectors would take such a claim with a large grain of salt unless there were well documented hand painted cachets that were done "back in the day" by well known cachet painters.

Agree with both Kimo and Stampman2002. For full disclosure of the add-on, be sure to put your name or trade name on the back along with the date the add-on was applied, and the quantity that were made. Something like:

John White
AO 10/2017
1/10 (then 2/10, 3/10, and so on for subsequent copies)

General rule is if you didn't plan on the cachet before the FDOI of the stamp, then it is an add-on.

You already have received some good replies about this. Nothing unethical about it, as long as it is clear that it is an addon cachet. I have a number of nice hand painted Airmail FDC's done by David Peterman. One thing he does with his, and something you might think about this should get interested in it, is that he takes an older FDC that has no cachet and then has gotten it cancelled FDOI with a newer stamp so that it is a "dual" FDC. And his stuff sells well, but he's clearly a very skilled artist. So, no ethical issues here, as long as what it is is made clear.