Autograph Authentication Report
2024 Mutagen Canister Kids Stickers Open Edition - Artist Mark Pingitore Auto · #41b
Findings
Signature comparison
This card. The signature as cropped from the slab photo (front).
Below, the known examples Crown compared it with. Examples with stronger proof (signed in front of staff, or certified by an independent authenticator) carry the most weight.
Feature by feature
| Feature | This card | Known examples | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall form and proportions | Compact two-part form: an angular zig-zag 'M' with an attached upright stroke, a gap, then a 'P' with an extended stem and a closing 't'-like crossbar. Height-to-width ratio measured at 0.232. | Same two-part 'M l P…t' abbreviated form across R1–R7. Ratios run 0.18–0.238. | Match |
| Slant and baseline | Mild leftward slant of uprights (-6.3°). Baseline is nearly level relative to the signature's own axis, with the whole signature rotated vertically on the card. | Upright slant runs -18.5° to -1.0°. Baselines are near level, mostly horizontal placement. | Natural variation |
| Letter construction | The 'M' appears as a quick angular zig-zag with a following upright, as in the references. The 'P' has a looped bowl. The terminal section is reduced to a crossed 't'-type stroke. Detail is limited by crop resolution. | Angular 'M' zig-zag plus an 'l'-like upright, a looped 'P' with a long descending stem, and an abbreviated 'gt'/'t' ending with a crossbar (R1, R2, R4, R6, R7). | Match |
| Connecting strokes | 'M' and upright are joined. There is a break before 'P'. The 'P' bowl runs into the trailing letters. | Same break between the first-name and surname blocks, with joined strokes inside each block. | Match |
| Starting and ending strokes | Starts appear tapered. The ending crossbar is extended. No obvious blunt starts or stops are visible at this resolution. | Tapered entries and a long, quick terminal crossbar (R1, R2, R7). | Match |
| Line quality and speed | Strokes appear fluid with no visible tremor or hesitation. Resolution is low. | Fast, confident marker strokes throughout. | Match |
| Pen pressure pattern | Moderate width variation (0.463), consistent with a felt-tip marker. | Variation runs 0.363–0.64. | Natural variation |
| Spacing | Clear gap between the 'M' block and the 'P' block. | Same gap is consistently present. | Match |
| Flourishes and underlines | No underline. Extended terminal crossbar only. | No underlines. Extended terminal crossbar. | Match |
| Placement and size | Signed vertically up the right side over the artwork and the logo edge, in blue marker. | Mostly horizontal across the artwork in blue or black marker, with placement varying card to card. | Natural variation |
Measurements
Software traced the ink and measured it against the known examples. The shaded band is the signer's normal range across those examples; the gold marker is this card.
| Feature | This card | Known examples | Normal range | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Slant of upright strokes | -6.3° | -18.5–-1.0° | In range | |
| Overall writing angle | 0.9° | -2.2–0.5° | In range | |
| Height to width | 0.232 | 0.18–0.238 | In range | |
| Ink travel per unit width | 2.96× | 2.67–5.12× | In range | |
| Stroke thickness variation | 0.463 | 0.363–0.64 | In range | |
| Closed loops | 17 | 7.0–97.0 | In range | |
| Separate strokes | 6 | 7.0–23.0 | In range |
Our software traced the ink and compared seven measurable features (slant, overall angle, proportions, ink travel, line-thickness variation, loops and stroke count) against five clean reference signatures. Every feature fell within the normal range this artist shows across his own autographs. Stroke count was the furthest out, at about 1.6 spreads from his average, and is still normal. The numbers support the visual finding that this signature fits his known hand, though they cannot by themselves prove the ink is live.
Examiner notes
Ours is on a 2024 Mutagen Canister Kids sticker (Magic Marker Art, Open Edition artist auto). All eight references come from the same artist's recent Magic Marker Art sticker and card releases (Nintendopes, Slop Culture Kids, Horrorible Kids Series 9), so they belong to the same era and use the same kind of surface and marker. No era-driven change in the signature is expected. Remaining differences are best explained by orientation (ours is signed vertically along the right edge), surface and signing speed.
How Crown authenticates autographs: the signature is compared with known examples gathered from Crown's own authenticated cards, independent authenticators and public listings, measured by software, examined by an AI forensic model, and signed off by Crown Grading staff. The decision above is Crown's.
