ww1

[Athena222]

A colleague has some typed letters on aged parchment (approx 13 x 17 ins) with smudgy violet print, supposedly from the front line WW1. Is it possible these are genuine? The letter content appears genuine, but might they have been transcribed at a later date?

[MarzipanQ]

Well, the size of the paper could be foolscap and that was regularly used in the Army. Early copiers gave a violet coloured print or it could be the carbon? You could always seek help from The Imperial War Museum in London as to their veracity:)

[Count_Emmup]

They would probably have been 'Cyclostyled' - the text was laboriously inscribed on a thick waxy sheet which was fastened round a drum with an ink pad. When the drum was rotated by a hand crank copies could be made, and violet was mostly used.

What does the text consist of; anything of real interest or just routine orders etc? Are you sure it's parchment, parchment is dear and usually reserved for imortant legal documents that need to be long-lasting?

[Peter Pedant]

yes it is possible they are genuine