Forgery
Forgery, in law, the act of falsely making or altering a signature, document, or work of art for the purpose of fraud or deceit. The material that has been forged is also called a forgery. The type of writing most commonly forged is a signature on something such as a check or a charge-card purchase slip. However, entire documents such as deeds and wills are sometimes forged. Forgery for personal gain is a crime, punishable by fine or imprisonment.
Forgery is an important tool of international espionage, where a spy may be supplied with passport, birth certificate, and other documents to establish a false identity. Criminals and illegal aliens may use forged documents to hide their true identities. Sometimes such documents as maps, diaries, and letters are forged—either by being altered or by being entirely fabricated—to support some theory or accomplish some political aim, or simply as a hoax. A notable example was the Vinland Map—an alleged 15th-century map widely accepted as authentic when “discovered” in 1965 but later revealed to have been a modern forgery.
Works of art are forged in several ways. Sometimes an exact copy of a famous painting or sculpture is made. More often, the forger creates a work in the style of a famous artist and claims it is authentic. Another type of forgery is made by signing the name of a famous artist to an existing work done in the artist's style by one of his students.