CCD imaging and BVRI photometry of 14 IRAS sources with far-IR colours similar to planetary nebulae and post-AGB stars are presented. Also results of optical and near-IR spectroscopy of 10 of these candidates are given. Based on the spectral energy distribution from 0.4 μm to 100 μm, the sample of program stars are put into two groups. The sources IRAS 08187-1905, IRAS 05238-0626 and IRAS 17086-2403 present similar flux distributions. These three sources have detached cold dust components with dust radii Rd ≈ 1000 R∗. The low infrared variability of theses sources suggests that the intense mass loss has been ceased. All three sources are at high galactic latitude (1>9°) suggesting that these are old low-mass evolved stars. In the IRAS colour-colour diagram of Likkel et al (1991) these sources fall in the region where most of the stars are evolved stars and PNe but without CO detection. This is consistent with at least one source IRAS 17086-2403, in which OH and CO molecular features are not detected. The far-IR excess, non-variability and high latitude of these objects suggest that these are post-AGB supergiants, slowly evolving towards planetary nebula phase.