Autograph Authentication Report
2020 Topps Garbage Pail Kids: Late to School - David Gross Auto (01/35) · #14
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 monogram-style signature. A large open looping initial leads into a crossed upright 't/l'-like stroke, then an 'n/m' wave and a long horizontal terminal tail. Roughly 60% of the width is taken by the initial plus the tail. | R1, R6, R7 and R8 show the same abbreviated construction: large initial loop, crossed upright, short wave and long extended tail. The proportions are similar. | Match |
| Slant and baseline | Mostly upright letter bodies. The baseline runs roughly level, with the tail rising slightly to the right. | R6, R7 and R8 are upright with a level or slightly rising tail. R1 is similar. | Match |
| Letter construction | The initial starts at upper left with a hooked lead-in, sweeps down and around into a loop, and crosses into the upright. The middle shows a crossbar-like stroke. The 'n/m' hump is somewhat angular. | R8 and R6 show the identical hooked lead-in loop and crossed upright. In R7 the 'n' hump is rounder. R1 shows a slightly more compressed version. | Natural variation |
| Connecting strokes | The loop connects into the upright in a continuous movement. A short break appears before the wave and tail. | Same pattern in R6, R7 and R8. R1 also shows a similar break before the final wave. | Match |
| Starting and ending strokes | The lead-in hook appears to begin with a light entry. The terminal tail tapers to a fine point at the right, consistent with a flicked finish. | R6, R7 and R8 show tapered rightward tails and similar hooked starts. | Match |
| Line quality and speed | At this resolution the strokes appear fluent, with smooth curves. No visible tremor, retracing or blunt stops. | References show similar fast, fluent execution. | Match |
| Pen pressure pattern | Heavier ink in the loop and upright, lighter and tapering in the tail. Some ink density variation is visible in the scan. | R8 and R6 show a comparable felt-tip pressure pattern. | Match |
| Spacing | Compact core with an extended tail. | Consistent with R6, R7 and R8. | Match |
| Flourishes and underlines | No underline. The long terminal tail serves as the flourish. | Same in all GPK references. | Match |
| Placement and size | The signature straddles the bottom of the art and the red name bar, sitting above the printed artist-autograph caption. | R7 (same set, red bar) and R8 show identical placement, crossing from art into the name bar. R6 is the same. | Match |
| Ink colour | Dark navy/blue-black marker. | R6 and R8 are in blue. R7 is in black. Pen colour varies across signings. | Natural variation |
Examiner notes
Ours is a 2020 Topps Garbage Pail Kids: Late to School artist autograph, signed on-card over the printed 'DAVID GROSS ARTIST AUTOGRAPH' bar. R7 and R8 come from the same 2020 Late to School set (#17, #20), so they are the closest era and format match. R6 (2023 Goes on Vacation) and R1 (PSA 9 GPK artist auto, year unstated) are the same artist and format, from a similar or slightly later period. R2, R3, R4 and R5 are signatures of a different David Gross: the Nobel physicist, shown on a physics whiteboard sketch and a Brussels 2010 photo. They are not the GPK artist and cannot be used for this comparison.
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.
