Autograph Authentication Report
2021 Nintendopes Stickers Open Edition - Artist Mark Pingitore Auto · #29a
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 | Abbreviated two-group signature. A large angular 'M' runs into a small 'k/l'-like terminal, then a gap, then a looped 'P' group with small letters and a descender, ending in a long 't' crossbar. The 'M' and 'P' dominate in height. | R1, R2, R4, R7 and R8 show the same two-group abbreviation. Each has a tall angular 'M' group and a 'P' group, and the 'P' group ends in a long horizontal crossbar or tail. Proportions are comparable. | Match |
| Slant and baseline | Strong right slant on the 'M' uprights. The baseline rises slightly from left to right, and the trailing crossbar runs near-horizontal. | R1 and R7 show the same right-slanted 'M' and the near-horizontal trailing stroke. R4 and R6 are slightly more compressed but have the same slant. | Match |
| Letter construction | The 'M' is built as a zig-zag of sharp peaks with no rounded humps. The 'P' has a single bowl formed as a loop off the upright, followed by a short 'g/y'-like descender and a 't'. | R1 is a near-identical construction of both the 'M' and the 'P' bowl/descender. R2, R5 and R7 show the same zig-zag 'M' and looped 'P'. | Match |
| Connecting strokes | The 'M' flows into its trailing small letters without a lift. There is a lift between the 'M' group and the 'P' group, and the 'P' group connects through to the crossbar. | The lift between the two groups is present in R1, R2, R4, R7 and R8. The internal connections are consistent. | Match |
| Starting and ending strokes | The 'M' begins with a tapered entry. The signature ends with a long, tapered, flicked crossbar extending well to the right. | R1 shows the same extended tapered terminal. R4 and R7 end with a shorter flick or hook. The ending length varies across references, which is within normal range. | Natural variation |
| Line quality and speed | Fluid, confident strokes with tapered terminals and no visible tremor, hesitation or patching at this resolution. | All references show fast marker execution with similar fluency. | Match |
| Pen pressure pattern | Blue paint/marker with heavier density on the downstrokes and lighter density at the tapered exits. Some slight density variation is visible. | R1 (blue) shows a similar pressure pattern. R2–R7 use black or blue-black marker with similar downstroke emphasis. | Match |
| Spacing | Moderate gap between the 'M' group and the 'P' group. The small letters are tightly packed. | Spacing is consistent with R1, R7 and R8. R4 and R6 are slightly more compressed. | Natural variation |
| Flourishes and underlines | No underline. The extended terminal crossbar serves as the only flourish. | None of the references show an underline. The terminal crossbar or tail is the recurring flourish. | Match |
| Placement and size | Signed vertically along the left side of the card face over the artwork, sized to roughly half the card height. Ink color is blue. | The references are on-card sticker autos placed over the artwork. Ink color varies (blue in R1, R3 and R7; black in the others), which is consistent with an artist signing a run with multiple pens. There is no printed 'Artist Autograph' caption on ours, unlike R1 and R2, but those are different products or variants. | Natural variation |
Examiner notes
Our card is a 2021 Nintendopes Stickers Open Edition artist auto. R2–R7 come from the same Nintendopes run, so they are the same era and the same signing context (marker on a glossy sticker face). R1 (Horrorible Kids Series 9) and R8 (JSA-certed print) appear to be roughly contemporary, early 2020s. No meaningful era drift is expected across this set.
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.
