Autograph Authentication Report
2024 Topps Garbage Pail Kids: Kids at Play - Brent Engstrom Auto - Fool's Gold (01/50) · #2
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 | Dominant tall 'B' with large upper and lower bowls. It is followed by a compressed, abbreviated middle ('rt' and the Engstrom 'S'), then 'm'-like humps and a long rising terminal. The signature spans most of the pill box. | R2, R3, R4 and R6 show the same tall 'B' followed by a compressed middle and humped ending. R1, R7 and R8 show the same structure stretched horizontally. | Match |
| Slant and baseline | Moderate right slant. The baseline rises slightly left to right, and the terminal lifts upward to the right. | R3, R4 and R6 show a similar right slant and rising terminal. The blue-ink examples are flatter. | Match |
| Letter construction | The 'B' starts with a left-side entry and a vertical stem, with two open bowls whose lower loop sweeps left. The 'S' of Engstrom is a tall angular stroke merged with a crossbar-like stroke. Rounded 'm' humps follow. | R3 is nearly identical in 'B' construction and in the crossbar/'S' merge. R2 and R4 show the same 'B' bowls and humped ending. | Match |
| Connecting strokes | The 'B' connects into the middle letters in a continuous run. The humps flow into the terminal without a lift. | The same continuous linkage appears in R2, R3, R4 and R8. | Match |
| Starting and ending strokes | Tapered entry at the far left of the 'B'. The final stroke exits as a long rising tail toward the right end of the box. | R3, R4 and R6 show the same tapered entry and long right exit. R1 and R7 also extend a long horizontal tail. | Match |
| Line quality and speed | Fluid, confident strokes with natural curvature. No visible tremor, patching or hesitation at this resolution. | References are similarly fast. The blue-ink examples are even faster and looser. | Match |
| Pen pressure pattern | Ink density varies, with heavier deposits on downstrokes and loop turns and lighter density on upstrokes. Some apparent overlap darkening where strokes cross. | R3 and R4 show similar heavy downstrokes. Image quality across the references limits detailed comparison. | Natural variation |
| Spacing | Tight spacing between middle letter forms. The 'B' is separated by its own width. | Comparable in R2, R3 and R4. Wider in R1, R7 and R8. | Natural variation |
| Flourishes and underlines | No separate underline. The flourish is limited to the extended terminal stroke. | No underline in any reference. The terminal extension is consistent across them. | Match |
| Placement and size | Placed within the yellow printed pill box above the printed label. The ink slightly crowds the label text, typical of artists signing into a confined box. | All references are placed in the same pill box format, with similar crowding of the printed label in R3, R4 and R7. | Match |
| Ink colour / medium | Dark green-black marker on the yellow box. | R3 and R5 show green/black marker on a yellow box. Others use blue or black. | Natural variation |
Examiner notes
Our card is a 2024 Topps Garbage Pail Kids: Kids at Play on-card artist autograph, so it was likely signed around 2023–2024. The references come from the same modern Topps GPK artist-autograph program, roughly 2020–2024: Book Worms, 35th Anniversary Series 2 (#27), Go on Vacation and other recent sets. All share the same printed pill-shaped 'BRENT ENGSTROM ARTIST AUTOGRAPH' box, so era and signing surface closely match ours. The blue-ink examples (R1, R7, R8) are faster and more horizontally stretched, while the darker-marker examples (R2, R3, R4, R6) are more compact. Ours falls with the compact group. These differences read as pen and speed variation within one era, not a change in signature style.
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.
