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  and show me
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-29-10 at 05:57:59 PDT   Listings
jeff: cute cover. I don't collect the issue per se but I am sometimes known to put aside things I stumble across for my "supreme court" collection.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-29-10 at 05:35:36 PDT   Listings

Who was/is the 15-cent Holmes collector here?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 21:06:42 PDT   Listings
Bill Yeh, I got it now. My brain was malfunctioning.
I haven't added anything to Canada in nearly 20 years. Needing only around 20 pricey stamps kind of killed my interest. I did/do have/had a pretty good stock of Canada.
I need to look and see if I still do or gave it to someone.
Last time I ran some Canadian Stamps they did not do so well.
Might try again, I just want to get rid of most these dupes I have filed away. Hadn't run any auctions for over 9 months but did so last week. All 17 auctions sold and I was pretty happy with the realizations I got on mostly a bunch of old funky German States. Kind of inspires me to keep digging and listing. I got around $350 for the German states but would have probably sold the whole thing for $50
or given them to a trading friend, as I did not feel they were worth messing with considering all the faults and no gum. Instead of describing each fault in a group I simply inverted the damaged stamps and noted they were faulty. I can't say I recall anyone doing that before but it worked out well.

I got a stay today which I am quite pleased with.
When I quit drinking about two years ago I started loosing weight. After 70 pounds I started to wonder what was up.
I just got the results back from a long list of blood tests and they found everything to be A-OK
I was thinking some of my wild wild past had caught up with me but I guess not yet <:~`)

Got to meet someone at Point Lookout.....bbml
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 20:02:59 PDT   Listings
Mitch, in my 2003 Scott that stamp is cataloged at $700 (Scott #29c). I'd have expected it to have gone up in the last few years. The Clutha Mills watermarks are graded in Fine in Scott and are quite a bit tougher to find than Scott seems to imply.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 19:07:30 PDT   Listings
Here are two P’s - Portugal and Puteaux
The cover to Lisbon was sent from Mrs George Cooke to her husband Surgeon George Cooke, a career US naval officer. You can see that Cooke replied on July 2, 1878 writing letter #717 to his wife. The US Naval Squadron had just complete a tour of the Mediterranean and was resupplying for its ongoing tour. Nearly all the letters from George to his wife were saved by her, and are now in various archives. She travelled around Europe while his ship was at sea and they were able to meet in such places as Rome, Athens, etc. Apparently letters from her to George are scarce. This being one of about 10 post -UPU Sitting Helvetia to Portugal.



This registered cover was never delivered. It went from Basel to Puteaux, near Paris, 16 March 1877. The rate was 25 centimes postage and 20 centimes registration. Try as they might the post office could not find the addressee so the letter was returned to Basel where it was received only three days later on 19 March. That is moving the mail much faster than it could ever be done today!
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 19:07:05 PDT   Listings
Postage Due - 1901
This front was probably a large envelope containing a manuscript. It was mailed from London to Oxford, England, then forwarded on to Celerina, Switzerland where the recipient refused to pay the postage.
First class international letter 25 centimes/15gms. This weighed 230 grams which was just over the 15th weight level. The clerks rounded it off to Sfr3.75. One might think this an important letter, but it was probably a manuscript, which would be read on Mr Schiller’s return to Oxford. Why pay Sfr3.75, the price of a very good dinner, when the post office would send it back to England for free? To understand the reason we neede to know about the man.

Ferdinand Canning Scott Schiller (August 16, 1864 - August 9, 1937) was a pragmatist philosopher associated with Corpus Christi College, Oxford. I think the refusal of this item was a real world action of his philsophy. I did not read the whole Wikpedia page, but I did scan down and found a reference to an article published in 1902. "Useless 'Knowledge'" reprinted in F.C.S. Schiller's Humanism (1902) probably expounds real world reasons why one should not spend the whole day using Google for philatelic chatboards!
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 18:53:45 PDT   Listings
Mitch,

There appears to be a problem with the scan color on the certificate. It states Lilac Grey but looks more like Pale Reddish Purple which cats 1400 Pounds with the Bothwell watermark,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 18:02:31 PDT   Listings
D2 Thanks, I must be suffering from thickening of the skull <:`~(
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 17:50:30 PDT   Listings
Pangborn and Herndon's airplane:

Miss Veedol

jimbo
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 17:42:48 PDT   Listings
Jim,
I think the offsets are a result of stacking covers in a stack after cancelling them. I think the bishop mark on the previous cover provides the offset for the red. If the covers weren't aligned then the offsets won't match. I'm not sure how the Portsmouth CDS relates to the smudge on the back.

Paul,
Those intrepid airmen who challenged the oceans in the first years of air exploration were quite a bunch. So many of them learned to fly in WWI and then spent years trying to keep flying. I used to work with a pilot who flew in Hell's Angels (the movie). He had 100s of stories about those 'stunt' pilots. They bordered on just plain crazy.

jimbo
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 17:14:50 PDT   Listings
JIMBO ----Nice TransPacific cover ,interesting story too.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 17:04:31 PDT   Listings
Hmmmmmmmmmmmm

Jimbo

the stain on the back of that Mulready is very offset from the cancel on the front.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 16:56:06 PDT   Listings
Portsmouth Postmark on a Mulready used domestically in Great Britain - July 28, 1840 - 170 years ago today


M. Perrett in Switzerland gets a bill from his French wine merchant - July 28, 1872 - 138 years ago today


Pangborn and Herndon make an eventful transPacific flight - Story of the Flight - July 28, 1931 - 79 years ago today




jimbo

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 16:17:43 PDT   Listings
Alec,

looks like it was post certificate damage,

will see if I can get a better look at the certificate,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 16:05:21 PDT   Listings
Mitch,

check Scott's for the stamp with Papermakers watermark, they are very scarce,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 16:03:59 PDT   Listings
David B Admittedly I've never dealt with Royal certificates but should such obvious faults as the tears / crease not have been mentioned on the certificate? Assuming of course the faults were indeed there at the time of submission.

It is possible of course that the faults occured after the issue of a cert. But for that to be the case such a good stamp has been terribly treated.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 16:01:45 PDT   Listings
Montana,

it looks like the buyer has English language problems however his comment,

"repaired and some spots is a new gum "

means that it is regummed.

If I was you I would relist it as regummed, it won't sell to Germany but probably would sell but at a greatly reduced price,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:58:53 PDT   Listings
Mitch,

that Canada 15c. watermarked cats. at 800 Pounds in Gibbons,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:56:14 PDT   Listings
djs127: So far, that has been my experience as well.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:54:25 PDT   Listings
nnwmontana Each summer someone complains here or on the Virtual stamp club of sales being slow. It always depends upon what you are selling but I have found my sales when I was seling on Ebay did better from September until February or March.
David Snyder
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:54:11 PDT   Listings
Perhaps there is something I am not seeing in that stamp (anyone)? I'm guessing it's the scarcer shade Red Violet but as stated has the common watermark. Realization still 2 1/2 times cat. 3 tears and at least one crease.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:51:08 PDT   Listings
David It varies from a couple of weeks to a couple of months. It really depends on how busy they are,(yes more than one Schlegel, but of the same family). I believe they can correspond in English also which helps non German speakers of course.

As with using any German based expertizer make contact first before submitting any material is best. Be sure to check online if they are indeed recognised to accept the material. Each area of German philately has a list of experts in Michel and who can work on certain issues.

Montana Another option of course is to ask here first with images about any high value items you propose to list in the future.

Pretty much you will find someone here who knows a bit about whatever you wish to list. But obviously regumming can not be identified from a scan alone. Yet most regumming does leave faint traces of gum in between the perforations. If examined under a good magnifier you can soon spot abnormalities in the gum. Things like varying thickness, patches, even gum colour are all warning signs.

The other option available if selling German material at least, is to submit for expertization yourself. Not as difficult as it may seem.

If there happens to be high value US material then again there are several expertising options available to you. Some of course can be expensive and others very reasonable. I'll not mention names here but do be aware there is at least one US recognised expertizer who is a frequent poster here, who I think most regulars will know and can recommend to you.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:49:26 PDT   Listings
Guess it's time to sell Canada. I would not expect to get more than $20 for that stamp and thought I had pretty good idea abiut values in general. Guess you knew that if you started the stamp out at several times cat you would get a buy it now buyer. I think we need to ask you for advice on selling.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:45:54 PDT   Listings
Dbenson: I can tell you that my buyer had Schlegel's opinion back about 6 days after he received the stamps.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:43:35 PDT   Listings
antonius-ra: Not trying to "make a killing", but seems stamp valuations are highly volitile right now...mostly in a downward direction. We're int he process of marking down many items...way down. I've offered (relisted) some stamps at bargain basement prices and no interest. Seems summer (and this economy) aren't conducive to stamp sales. Perhaps Autumn will be a better marketplace. ?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:38:03 PDT   Listings
Thank you all for your prompt assistance. You have laid my fears to rest and provided valuable information. Buyer said both "repaired" and "some spots is a new gum" in his message. I am not inclined to offer "as is", especially after the information you have provided. But after three returned transaction in close order, I was dismayed. We will continue to stand behind our items.

Thanks again everyone!
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:33:18 PDT   Listings
Montana All is not lost! You made a killing on this lg Queen. I just cannot figure out why someone would pay way over cat for a stamp that has a few tears and crease. You must be doing something right?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:30:45 PDT   Listings
Alec,

do you know the turn around for submissions to Mr. Schlegel,


David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:28:55 PDT   Listings
Montana,

Hans-Dieter Schlegel is considered an expert on that period of German stamps and if he states there is a problem with those stamps, then there is a problem,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:28:50 PDT   Listings
Montana Firstly if the stamps were indeed sent to Schlegel, and I have no reason to think they were not, then Herr Schlegel is a recognised expert for this issue. He is in fact one of only two experts in Germany allowed to authenticate those particular stamps.

However, I seriously doubt the stamps were "repaired". Far more likely that they were "regummed" My guess is the buyer has used the wrong translated terminology when returning for a refund.

Sadly many of the better early Germany stamps are known regummed. A look at the price differences between hinged and mnh in Michel catalogues will tell you why.

Should you state that overseas buyers can only bid "as is" so to speak then do not expect to receive many bids. You as seller should be willing to stand by your description and if something is returned for any reason, issue the refund.

What you may consider doing is offer extensions for a return if an item is bad, providing the bidder informs you of his intentions before shipment is made by yourself.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:25:34 PDT   Listings
Montana,

thanks,

did the buyers say " repaired " or " regummed ". I can't see any evidence of repairs and regums are difficult to tell from scans however if a German expert actually saw the stamps he could instantly tell if they have been regummed. Regummed German stamps of that period are considered almost worthless and unsellable in Germany,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 15:11:43 PDT   Listings
dbenson: here are the two most recent: 120582298189 120582352440; buyer says his expert (Mr. Schlegel) claims they are "repaired". Indeed that has been my experience that german buyers are picky...thanks for confirming.

Cobbie10. thanks for the info. My fater is a philatelist of some 70+ years (he's 91)... We have no reason to beleive the stamps we are selling are anything but authentic. Of course, even he admits that there are some damn fine counterfeits floating about and it's not impossible that his collection is immune. Still our selling intentions are absolutely honorable. I do the selling because he isn't computer or ebay literate. I was just looking to confirm that indeed my recent experience WAS just, as you say, part of doing business on ebay.

Any of you have suggestions or resources you can direct me to, to improve my listings and protections as a seller?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 14:57:14 PDT   Listings
montana--depending on the stamps, they could be fakes. Or the cancels could be fakes. Or they could have been doctored or repaired. There are some issues that were so widely faked that most of the ones you see in albums are fakes. Sad, but true.

What were the stamps? If you have scans, or an auction number with an image, it would be helpful if you can post an image.

Anne
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 13:55:00 PDT   Listings
Montana -

German buyers are very picky. However, having said that, if you are not 100% sure that your stamps are genuine you shouldn't be selling them. Even if they were sold to US buyers and they found them to be fakes / repaired, they would still be sending them back for refunds. This is all part of doing business on Ebay.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 13:19:19 PDT   Listings
montana,

any chance of a scan of the items or the lot numbers,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 13:16:00 PDT   Listings
I'm not a dealer, I'm just selling stamps from my father's collection using current catalogs as reference. I provide hi-res scans and price them at roughly 50% or less of catalog.

I've now had three transactions where a German buyer (not the same buyer) has claimed to have submitted stamps to experts and report they are fakes or repaired and then return them to me for refund. I beleive the returned items are the same sent, but wonder if I'm being scammed. It concerns me and I'm wondering if anyone is aware of scams or frauds that look like this.

I'm considering not selling internationally except as "all sales final".

Thoughts anyone?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 13:08:40 PDT   Listings
yardbird24525 I totally agree that I am a stamp collector. I won't become a real dealer until I retire when I will start selling more than I buy. I still have so many stamps I purchase throughout the years and even some of my father's collection which needs to be checked against my stamp albums and either put in or catalogued for trading or selling.
We should take a poll one day to see who on this board considers themselves dealers and who collectors?
David Snyder
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 12:49:06 PDT   Listings
Cobbie,

re. the 5f. Belgian Congo,

there are many forgeries of that stamp,

http://www.congostamps.com/independentstatecongo/1IndependentState1886.htm


David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 11:25:14 PDT   Listings
kathmoon yes, printed on the continous web rotary press. The normal method to distinguish coils of the same value is in strips of 11, one more than the usual counter sheets, but there a few "combination" coils of the Germania series as well as others.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 11:17:46 PDT   Listings
Chaswilly: For my own education. Are those referred to as "coils" even though they are perfed on all sides?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 11:01:30 PDT   Listings
1845 New York Postmaster’s Provisional
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 10:51:37 PDT   Listings
David S IMHO - You are a collector. Looking at and “playing with” your stamps is fun. You are a dealer when it becomes work to deal with your stamps. As long as my stamps are fun I’ll “play” with them when it becomes work I’ll find something else to do
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 10:42:27 PDT   Listings
Papal States 50 baj. tied in combination with pair 7 baj. to cover from Rome to Ohio in 1852, correct single rate prepaid, Detroit Mich Paid 30 exchange datestamp:
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 10:03:19 PDT   Listings
P is for Postauftrag or Postal Collection Order. The rate for May 12, 1917 being 35 Pfennig. Note the coil usage paying 20 Pfg. of the rate.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 09:45:46 PDT   Listings
Cont.
I have the images stored by filename which is date/country. (e.g. 072810usa1 is the number of a front view of a cover postmarked July 28, 1910 - stopping at 1945 eliminates most of the overlapping dates.) That makes it easy to find ones for any date.

jimbo
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 09:40:25 PDT   Listings
Breffington,
Not that I want to disillusion you, but I posted the following a couple of weeks ago. (I probably ought to post it more often.)
Disclaimer: For those who don't already know, the cover images I post have been collected from the internet - principally eBay - to satisfy the needs of my Today in Postal History series. They are not from my collection. The current criteria are: cover must have sold for more than $100; cancellation date must be determinable from the cover images; the cover must be cancelled before the end of WWII; there must be scans of both front and back which can be easily downloaded. I generally avoid stampless, zeppelin, and holocaust items. The original criterion only required legibility of the cancellation date. Subsequent changes added the other criteria.

I certainly wish I had the real covers for all of these. I do have close to 10,000 by now - I've been doing it for 8 years.

jimbo
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 09:09:05 PDT   Listings
Infla-alec: Thanks for the tip on how to get a picture from and ebay listing so I can sell my Scott 2010 excess stamp catalogs. Now, if I can just get the steps sequenced correctly!
Jimbo: Been enjoying looking at your covers. Most are in pristine condition. Amazing after all these years.You must have a massive treasure trove of stuff. Do you store your covers by date vs categories like airmails, ship covers etc? One time I thought about building a complete set of port of call covers for Schooner Yankee's 3rd world cruise. Even at the New York shows I rarely saw them so moved on to collecting other things.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 08:50:00 PDT   Listings
antonius-ra I find filling in stamp albums and making packets of used stamps for trading very relaxing.
David Snyder
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 06:30:08 PDT   Listings
Sorry, but my precancels are being stored about 50 miles from where I sleep. Until I get a full time position it will be that way. So, I could only post scans that you all have seen previously.
:8^ (

Otherwise I'd have a scan a day of pre-cans. I could even focus on towns beginning with the letter "P."
:8^ )
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-28-10 at 05:28:48 PDT   Listings
Belgian Congo 5fr Imperf on very thin paper.

Can anyone give me a clue as to whether this is off a newspaper wrapper, a different piece of stationery or maybe is some kind of proof ?

http://s255.photobucket.com/albums/hh134/cobbie10/?action=view¤t=congo.jpg"
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 22:55:03 PDT   Listings
hhmmm,

http://cgi.ebay.com/NIGER-COAST-1893-Waterlow-and-Sons-Die-Proof-Queen-VIC-/190304432886?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c4f0732f6

http://cgi.ebay.com/NIGER-COAST-1894-QV-WATERLOW-AND-SONS-DIE-PROOF-/190304442931?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item2c4f075a33

Virtually all of the Niger Coast Proofs I have were bought from Argyll Etkin in the 1970's and early 1980's at nowhere near the current prices. At the time time they were expensive as Niger Coast proofs are most probably amongst the most expensive Proofs in the world. The other Essay Proof is currently being offered by a London Dealer at 4500 Pounds,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 22:42:59 PDT   Listings
last one,

Photobucket

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 22:40:39 PDT   Listings
more,

Photobucket

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 22:38:28 PDT   Listings
more Niger Coast Proofs,

Photobucket

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 22:37:12 PDT   Listings
Niger Coast Proofs

Photobucket

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 20:35:37 PDT   Listings
DJS Well it might be worth doing it for that but I doubt you'll trade many of the same thing. I usually just leave that stuff in the albums. If I need one they're easy enough to find. They are not worth the time to strip them out of albums much less filing in envelopes. I still have a perhaps a couple hundred thousand of them in envelopes. Did to much stripping before I realized it was not productive. For the most part I just bought other peoples stock in glassines and combined them. Basically a huge waste of time. I sold about 50,000 of them on Ebay years ago in 1,000 diff lots. They only went for around $35.


Bwphilately Nice looking proofs of a beautiful stamp. I love proofs but seldom see foreign (to U.S.) ones.
Of course P is for Pictoral proofs!!!
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 19:58:51 PDT   Listings
I thought by now we would have seen some precancels from Jim L and Panama-Pacific Expos from nomad55.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 19:50:12 PDT   Listings
P is for Proofs of the Costa Rica October 1945 coffee promotion issue printed by the American Bank Note Company.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 17:50:29 PDT   Listings
antonius-ra I am oeganizing my US stamps to trade with foreign stamp collectors via Facebook. It also frees up some stock sheets.
David Snyder
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 17:24:43 PDT   Listings
Posted by breffington ( 496 ) on Jul-26-10 at 21:40:10 PDT

In answer
1. Find an image of the book cover in question from the web.
2. Right click with mouse and opt to save image as. If need be give it your own file name. Now the image is on your PC so remember where you saved it.
3. Use ebay to upload the image from your PC.
4. Then upload saved image from PC to a web picture host and use HTML to insert into your listing description section.

Hope that helps. But if using a Mac it might be different.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 17:12:24 PDT   Listings
The Parks vertical imperfs are rare errors, not at all the same thing as the Farley releases.




(not mine)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 16:53:37 PDT   Listings
Polar Farhrt Graf Zeppelin flight - Germany to Germany - July 27, 1931 - 79 years ago today


Paradise bird on registered first flight from New Guinea to Australia - July 27, 1934 - 76 years ago today


Port Moresby, Papua to USA from Schooner Yankee's Third World Voyage led by adventure tour leader Irving Johnson - July 27, 1940 - 70 years ago today


Postal stationery issued by Provisional government of the republic - Honolulu to San Franciso - July 27, 1896 - 114 years ago today




jimbo

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 16:34:16 PDT   Listings
DJS Why are you doing that? I've seen so many people arranging those totally worthless stamps thinking there is some value to them. It is a complete waste of time and no one will need them except for a kid or two (and that's about all the kids that are collecting) save yourself the trouble and trash them.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 16:19:55 PDT   Listings
P is for "a ppercevoir" and PPostage Due.

http://cgi.ebay.com/EGYPT-1884-2-MILLIEMES-POSTAGE-DUE-IMPERF-PROOF-BLOCK-/130412414200?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item1e5d2f84f8

My new acquisition is a proof block of four of the 1888 Egyptian dues. There are a lot of forgeries of these and the earlier 1884 and 1886 dues. Each of the values come in four types, and if you can type them, they're real (assuming of course they meet the standard criteria for watermarks and perfs--many fakes don't. In addition to the types, the real ones all show a specific characteristic. In the 1884 and 1886 issues, it's a very slight thickness in the innermost thin line around the value right between the I and the R in "percevoir." In the 1888 issues, there's a little vertical line between the thick line and the thin outer line near the upper right corner. It's really clear on the proofs, as are the four types.


Anne (being kicked of the computer by The Offspring)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 16:15:24 PDT   Listings
Just started working on my used US putting doubles into glassines by face value (e.g. 3cent, 4 cent, etc)
Now going to check more used stamps to see if I found any I was missing.
David Snyder
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 16:14:01 PDT   Listings
IO Expensive? Any imperf park is available for a dollar or two tops. Now finding the Farley's on legit commercial mail.....that's hard.

Billsey Those are indeed London prints (#6's). Easiest tip for any newbies is check the framelines. The guys in Richmond never did grasp the concept of even pressure for typographic plates. A whole lot of even the very early locally printed 7's on English paper, have wonky printing with frames either filled in or underinked.

After that first run or two, Richmond print quality was evident to even blind people. Specks, flaws, random dust bunnies, plate damage, poor quality paper......easy to spot.

Not sure what the final declaration was (if its OK to tout happy victory's here).....but I snagged margin single of #6 on EBay as one of my earliest wins. Close inspection (unmistakable local gum) indicates it was in fact a very early run #7. Who was it here that was emailing me with "please, pleeeeeeese, sell me that one?". LOL! Sorry, but I've since even designed a custom mount for that one, so you can flip it up and see the neato streaky Richmond gum!
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 15:54:37 PDT   Listings
SC 757 Center Line Arrow Blocks mint no gum as issued
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 14:56:36 PDT   Listings
Why are the Parks vertical imperf so expensive?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 14:54:25 PDT   Listings
P is for Peru I've made a few additions to it in the last month or so.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 14:33:14 PDT   Listings
Jeff,

the National Parks stamps have to be my favorite US stamps. Now I've got something else to think about collecting.

Anne
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 13:53:02 PDT   Listings

Jeff,
Great covers! Particularly the one sent by Jessica Dragonette. That's a name I haven't heard since WWII. Tough being reminded of how old one is! ;-)

jimbo
PS: We're in the midst of a thunderstorm here now.

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 13:41:06 PDT   Listings
P is for Parks, specifically the 1934 US National Parks set.
I have begun remounting this volume, my collection was formed over the years by value,
and now am re-doing it by traditional postal rate organization.
Always looking for covers of philatelic merit, grin.




Jeff

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 13:11:54 PDT   Listings
Bill S....I'm 99% sure its the London print.
But if you want positive ID, send for a certificate from the Confederate Society.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 13:06:48 PDT   Listings
Got a Confederate question: Is this the london print or the later Archer Daley? I would expect the earlier print, but since it matches the earliest known cancel date for the later... :-)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 10:43:50 PDT   Listings
Mark

Thanks. I'm just curious to know whether the buyers are satisified with the stamps or not and whether some buyers are taking the stamps for certification. I guess I just need to suppress my curiosity and assume the transactions are completed.


Peter
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 10:15:31 PDT   Listings
Peter

I've never contacted a buyer for FB. If they leave it for me, I use Inkfrog which automatically returns the favor and leaves it for them. None left for me means none gets left in return.

If they don't receive the item, they won't hesitate contacting you about it.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 10:11:51 PDT   Listings
Question for sellers

Do you contact buyers if no feedback is given after a period of time to confirm whether the buyers have received an item or not?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 10:04:37 PDT   Listings
Mark

A MNH one won't be that cheap. If you ever find a MNH one, may be you should BURN money to get it. :-)


Peter
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 09:57:40 PDT   Listings
P is for Perfin

egypt ottoman bank perfin OB

There's nothing particularly unusual about this one--the OB perfin seems to be among the most common for Egypt

Anne
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 09:51:39 PDT   Listings
Thanks Rich

I was surprised at the diversity of rocks that occur within an area as small as Hong Kong.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 09:38:37 PDT   Listings
I wonder what a MH one goes for.

I don't think I want to take a chance on it being MNH, I may get burned.


290350621214
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 09:09:48 PDT   Listings
Actually, if you click on the page itself and then zoom in on the large image, I can see the horizontal mesh pretty clearly...
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 09:07:34 PDT   Listings
daveroo, I find the easiest way to tell the mesh is held at an angle to the light and looking at the back side of a used stamp. You should see what looks like tiny dashes on the paper surface, with the long side of the dash either going up and down or side to side. They were formed when the paper was produced and won't be diagonal. I have an exhibit page that may help, even though you won't be able to tell the mesh from my scan. :-(
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 07:06:02 PDT   Listings
jimbo and iomoon,

For that Rocks of Hong Kong stamp (Po Pin Chau - Tuff) , the Hongkong Post Stamps bulletin states "Thick volcanic rock layers (tuff) occurred along the coast and on offshore islands of eastern Hong Kong. During cooling, the volcanic ash layers developed spectacular columnar joints which were formed in a similar way to the cracks seen in dried mud."

The stamps have a raised surface because "A special printing technique, thermography, has been applied to this set of stamps during the printing process. This involves putting a layer of transparent thermographic powder to the stamp sheet before the ink dries. With this special process and coating, the tactile and visual appeals of the stamps in depicting the structure of the rocks have been greatly enhanced. This is also the first time to apply thermography to Hong Kong stamps."
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 06:55:11 PDT   Listings
Bookmark
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-27-10 at 05:04:43 PDT   Listings
I'm examining my New Zealand ½d newspaper stamps.
Reading my Campbell Paterson I find that "mesh" is one of the diagnostics.
Is there any reasonably easy way to determine the direction of the mesh?

I thought I was seeing it on some of the stamps.
Supposedly the mesh is either in a horizontal orientation or a vertical one.
Complication #1: The catalogue says also that the mesh direction is relative to the watermark orientation.
Complication #2: I've got one that looks like it's diagonal across the stamp!?

Any suggestions about the best way to do the sorting?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 22:58:54 PDT   Listings
Paul,

thanks for showing the Bonny bisects however the problem is with the Opobo 1/2d. overpint used at Bonny,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 21:55:07 PDT   Listings
Antonius-ra: Forget what I wrote I'm wrong.
I thought they all were Sud West but it's a mixed lot and the one mark New Guinea cats at $4.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 21:45:41 PDT   Listings
Antonius-Ra: The German South West Kaiser Yacht one and two mark yacht stamps in the 2010 Scott catalog at $140. So the lot went for about a third of catalog.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 21:40:10 PDT   Listings
My scanner doesn't lift up enough for me to put a book on the glass and scan the cover. How do I pick up an image from a current listing of book front and export it into a listing I'm working on?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 20:09:36 PDT   Listings
I was very surprised at what this lot went for. I did not even bother to cat it but am quite sure the winning bid was higher than cat value. The buyer was pleased and just left pos feedback so I can breath easy. They were properly described but I kind of felt guilty. I haven't added any to my collection for quite awhile. Seems every time I get interested in one someone is wiling to pay more than I. Not sure what the difference between Michel and Scott is on valuing these but I think Scott needs to beef up their values. Good time to sell them but they are in top 10 of favorite areas.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 20:07:59 PDT   Listings
Jim

I'm still missing other $1 Perry with overprint. :-(
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 19:46:50 PDT   Listings
P is for Portuguese Provisionals (provisorio).
I've been piecing together these 1892 & 93 sets for the last couple years. I was very happy to add 3 of the better ones to the page in the last month. Still a couple to go and a couple to hopefully replace someday.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 19:12:35 PDT   Listings
oy. #300 and #301. (see what happens when I try to remember US Scott numbers by memory?)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 18:41:02 PDT   Listings
IO & J/W: looks like moss on some rocks.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 18:32:33 PDT   Listings
Jim

I don't know the geology of that area very well (but better than most), judging by the color, I'd probably go for a welded tuff or ignimbrite.

The columnar structure is a function of cooling characteristics rather than composition.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 18:19:52 PDT   Listings
Iomoon… Is that crystallized basalt in the circular inset on the HK stamp?

Peter C… You realize that one of your Perry stamps is a “GUAM” overprint.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 17:59:45 PDT   Listings
A recent acquisition:

Po Pin Chau
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 17:55:28 PDT   Listings
Penny red and two friends from London to China Expeditionary force - July 26, 1860 - 150 years ago today


Paris, France, to Melbourne, Australia - July 26, 1867 - 143 years ago today


Panama routing from British Post Office in Valparaiso, Chile, to Bordeaux, France - July 26, 1851 - 159 years ago today


Paris from Baden - July 26, 1867 - 143 years ago today



jimbo

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 17:40:05 PDT   Listings
More of my ugly $1 Perry
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 17:17:30 PDT   Listings
Jim

Nice Perry.

More of my ugly $1 Perry
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 17:09:07 PDT   Listings
Jim -
You should soak off the gum, cut off the perfs, then list it as a proof. Rare and unique!

Roger
PS: Nice stamp.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 16:46:26 PDT   Listings
P is for Perry… Found lurking in Europe described as “$1 dollar black stamp”. The scan was big enough to show it was definitely TYPE II and I was pleased to discover when I got it there was no watermark.

    

    

A lot of serious US collections are disposed of in Europe, where the dealers usually have no clue about the material. I’m guessing well-heeled expat Americans die over there and their widows just call up a dealer and say “Can you sell this stuff for me?”
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 16:24:18 PDT   Listings
FOR THE BALCONY -------For those trying to follow the discussion about the bisect stamp from NIGER COAST here is a rare double bisect which sold at Shreves stamp auction in Oct of 2003 .........Photobucket
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 14:37:14 PDT   Listings
Lux officials:

I can't get a good feel for varieties in the genuine overprints. Prifix doesn't list any, but one of mine seems to be similar (not that I have many with good certs--three to be exact).

It should also be added that there is a set of officials picturing the Grand Duck (oops--I mean Duke) Adolph with "Officiel" in perfs running diagonally up the stamp.

Anne
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 14:03:19 PDT   Listings
P is for Perry

Some of my ugly $1 Perry
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 13:38:52 PDT   Listings
I use the 86 Dietz on a regular basis.
But it was especially beneficial in helping Richard Frajola with the Haas Cover Project, as I entered into his data base all the civil war material. Dietz helped tremendously in figuring out origin towns on Confederate covers where only a few letters of the town name were visible.

I also scan in Dietz pages showing the drawings of postmarks when I need to extract a postmark for an album page.

The next version may be released in time for the Confederate Society annual 2011 meeting in the Bay Area. If so, I will buy mine there.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 13:32:38 PDT   Listings
Brian & Matt… Thanks for the Dietz info. I may have a couple questions for you guys in a few days.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 13:27:24 PDT   Listings
P is for Panama Pacific Paquebot

My album page showing a pair of Paquebot cancels with the Panama Pacific slogan used on incoming ship mail.

[IMG]http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v313/nomad55/Page10.jpg[/IMG]
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 13:20:49 PDT   Listings
paperhistory

US Scott#311 is $1 Farragut.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 12:40:28 PDT   Listings
Alec,

it is a front only, wish it was a complete cover,

As far as I know the overprints at Opobo & the bisects at Bonny were sold at the Post Offices already cut in half. They are readily available on pieces neatly cancelled with the respective Post Office cancels.

David B.

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 12:37:25 PDT   Listings
The new Dietz has been a long time coming. It'll be a great book when it comes out and I'm looking forward to buying it, though I handle very little confederate material. Also very much looking forward to the new edition of the American Stampless Cover Catalog, which will probably be somewhat longer until it comes to fruition.


p.s., Briguy - the CSA group is making a rare northern incursion in 2013 when the come to Cleveland and the Garfield-Perry March Party, just in time for the 150th anniversary of Morgan's Raid.

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 12:26:24 PDT   Listings
I'd be surprised to see perfins on #311 (the original 2 cent 1902 issue). Recall that the stamp was replaced by #319 - the 2 cent shield design -- in late 1903 and was long out of service before 1908.


oh, and P is for proof. That's a die proof of the 1953 American Bar Association commemorative. P is also for "positively insane", which, after buying the aforementioned proof, I think I am.


And yes, P is for Packard.

Posted by   ( )   on Jul-26-10 at 12:25:25 PDT   Listings
Deitz has been a century long evolution of a catalog. The 1986 is the latest, with 1929 & 1959 editions before that. The 86 is great EXCEPT, they used the word "provisional" to describe run of the mill handstamp paids.

That's unfortunate, because it means evey newbie on EBay with access to a Deitz, now thinks their tattered $20 stampless paid/due is worth thousands.

HOWEVER -- The Confederate Stamp Alliance (same people issuing those CSA certificates), now owns the rights to the Deitz catalog. I believe the latest 2010 reprint is due out....right about now!

If you're going to spend $75+ on a used 86 Deitz....I'd just as soon wait and order up a sparkling new 2010! Lots of interesting more current info, can happen in a quarter century.

UPDATE The latest Deitz edition has been pushed back to next Spring. According to the updates found here
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 11:53:56 PDT   Listings
Wrong category award of the day … …goes here.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 11:39:20 PDT   Listings
Ralph-the-Packard-guy… Thanks for the “Blighty” info. Never heard that before.

thebriguy2010… Which edition of the “Dietz” Confederate catalog and handbook is best? Is there one after 1986? I saw one for sale on eBay but it looked like it had bullet holes in it.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 10:24:17 PDT   Listings
Anne For the "Officiel's" invest in one of the magnifiers with scale shown in 0,1mm steps. You can also sometimes find a small clear hard piece of plastic with etched on measuring scale- same increments as the magnifiers. Both usually found measuring up to about 3cm.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 10:13:29 PDT   Listings
Afternoon all.

Love Swiss cheese, even on stamps. I'm a closet perfin collector,so this is an interesting discussion.

Luxembourg Officials: I'll check my references later today. Paul is right about the size differences. I've been fooled several times buying officials from otherwise reputable sources and have had certs come back bad, so I no longer buy them without a preexisting cert. Let's just say, I have a lot of holes in that part of my Luxembourg collection.

Anne
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 10:04:48 PDT   Listings
thebriguy2010(Brian)

I don't collect perfin but I have seen many ebay listings of 310 and 311 with perfin. I only aware of perfin starting from 1908 the last two days.
Posted by   ( )   on Jul-26-10 at 09:52:42 PDT   Listings
Being suspicious by nature (welcome to CSA collecting - and the rest of your life forever a cynic) I'll wonder now about the perfins on those #310's. They didn't go for much, $6 & $8....

Is faking rare perfins a common thing?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 09:34:20 PDT   Listings
Closed ebay listings 150468430511 and 310232878726 are 2 different perfins on 310.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 09:30:25 PDT   Listings
FORD MOTOR CO. stock is over $13.00 a share.......how they do that .......time to start looking for another stamp auction that has collection lots .........like shooting fish in a barrel .........wife is yaking about me buying more stamps ,when I told her when retired I'll start selling stamps .... ps. plan to buy for another 20 years
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 09:27:38 PDT   Listings
Perfins are pretty ubiquitous on the 1914 series in all it's forms as well. Documentaries, Stock Transfers, and Future Deliveries all got "Swiss Cheesed" with great frequency. So did beer stamps starting with the 1902 series.
Posted by   ( )   on Jul-26-10 at 09:20:26 PDT   Listings
Peter8888 That would be neat. I don't think I've seen any perfins on the 1902 series....then poof, they're everywhere. I know we've got a perfin expert here....hopefully he'll post some pictures!

Don't you just love the new EBay stamp seller? I just read a description for a "mint" stamp, described as: "super clean! - looks recently washed!!"

AH ha ha ha ha ha!
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 08:48:36 PDT   Listings
Perfins are almost ubiquitous on the "reds" for the 1940 and after docmentary issues, and are priced separately in the Scott Specialized in that condition....

1908 is indeed the first year for perfins; you can find 1 cent 2nd bureau (1902 issue) and the 2 cent shield (#319) perfins used early, before the Washington Franklin issues were widely distributed. It's not particularly easy, but they are out there and not necessarily very expensive.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 08:41:18 PDT   Listings
Does anyone have US Scott#114 in different colors (ultramarine, pale ultramarine, dark ultramarine, and blue)?I want to go through all my 114s to see which color do I really have. They all look same to me. :-(
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 08:37:11 PDT   Listings
stjohnstamps

Thanks. I found out about the year 1908 for perfin when I was researching for those punch holes on the Columbians.

I remember that I have seen some perfins on 1902-1903 issues (at least on Scott #310 and #311). I wonder whether they are really perfins or something else.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 08:22:37 PDT   Listings
Blighty is an English slang term for Britain
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 08:14:38 PDT   Listings
D2 said…
“I am hesitant to send it to the Royal (the only really accepted authority on Niger Coast) as it may come back as uncertain but really have no choice so it will go for a trip to Blighty soon”
Who/what is “Blighty”?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 08:14:36 PDT   Listings
Yes, 1908 is considered the first year for 'traditional' US perfins. In that year, the USPD published specifications and they quickly came into widespread use. There are lists available for the EKU of perfins for each state.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 08:02:40 PDT   Listings
Officiel Luxembourg Based on Paul's scan does anyone know if the first "I" which appears to be damaged at the top left is a characteristic found only on genuine examples?

David B I don't suppose the cover shows the sender? If yes and he is a known "philatelist type" perhaps it is possible to track down if he produced other covers around the same period from both Bonny and Opobo.

What I would also like to know is if the overprinted half's were only sold as a half or if both halves had to be paid for at once? If the latter then no reason why the buyer would not try and use up the second half as soon as possible. Which would make the sender if someone who travelled, have a reason to use the overprinted half at Opobo.

I agree that the Royal are probably the best ones to give an opinion. Though I do think if something is submitted "unknown" before now, & returning an "uncertain" opinion is a bit unfair. More so if the cover shows no signs of being a forgery they could state believed genuine and the only recorded example.

Either way please let us know what the outcome is.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 07:52:12 PDT   Listings
stjohnstamps

Is it correct that perfins on US stamps were started around 1908?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 07:52:06 PDT   Listings
.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 07:47:30 PDT   Listings
"Traditional" perfins occur on US revenue stamps quite frequently. In fact, they present an evaluation problem. Many of the scarcer perfin patterns (rated A & B) are common on revenue stamps. US catalog values are for perfins on POSTAGE stamps. It's easy for a beginner to get fooled and over-value (as a seller or buyer) one of these on a documentary or stock-transfer revenue.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 07:43:30 PDT   Listings
Peter: I'm soaking 28 stamps right now from an old "first quality" lot. They're tricky because the stamps were supposed to peel right off the backing paper. However, if they sat for 30 years or more, they tend to stick pretty well. Now, the fun part is that the backing paper usually has ink that runs, so the timing, water temperature has to be done right or you get a pile of rubbish.
I did ok on these, I used hot water and got them off before the ink ran.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 07:40:12 PDT   Listings
Does this mean that the Columbian stamps cannot be used for bulk mailings of newspapers and periodicals?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 06:37:25 PDT   Listings
The vast majority of punch cancels on US revenues were to prevent reuse, not to prevent theft as is found with typical perfin punches on postage stamps.

In fact I don't recall ever seeing a traditional perfin on a US revenue stamp.

Jeff
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-26-10 at 05:21:17 PDT   Listings
Any revenue use for those Colombian's with the punch cancels could only have been from 1898-1902, and that seems unlikely. There are several examples of Bureau issues and Trans-Mississippi's used as revenues, almost always with a ms. I.R. overprint. Punch cancels were sometimes used during 1898-1902, but are far less prevalent than they were during the 1860's and 1870's, or later in the 1920's to 1950's(many of these were perf initials designed to prevent theft).
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 23:52:05 PDT   Listings
Roger,

distances between Post offices didn't matter as all communications were by river or along the coast by ships. Bonny is on the coast and Opobo is inland and would have had to go through Bonny.

Bonny wasn't the 1st. to use bisected stamps, Opobo was, followed by Bonny.

The Opobo overprint on the 1d. divided (I don't think bisect is the correct term for a stamp that was divided into two and each half overprinted) was only used between May & June 1894. The Bonny bisect (a true bisect as it was not overprinted) was used in August & September.

I am 95% sure it is a genuine usage of the Opobo 1/2d. overprint used later at Bonny.

I am hesitant to send it to the Royal (the only really accepted authority on Niger Coast) as it may come back as uncertain but really have no choice so it will go for a trip to Blighty soon,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 23:20:04 PDT   Listings
I guess i forget the ending html code. :-(
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 23:19:07 PDT   Listings
I'm still trying to find more info about the punch holes in my columbian. So far, no one seems to know for sure but all guesses are pointing towards newspaper or revenue used purpose like the info mentioned in here. Another mystery to me is that they exist in Columbian stamps (50c and $1) with or without gum.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 23:08:59 PDT   Listings
billsey

I'm asking the hinge remnant issue for used stamps this time. Is this very common that hinge remnant on stamps will harden the stamps to the point that the stamps are bending upward in the area covered by the remnant?

Jim
I have not soaked any stamps for over 30 years. :-)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 22:52:31 PDT   Listings
David B -

If the rate was 5d to England, then the franking with the overprint is correct. I don't see where any other stamps would have fit. I don't know the distance between post offices but if all are philatelic from Bonny, the first office to create bisects, what was to stop a philatelist from keeping a Bonny overprinted bisect and use it later in Opobo? When shipments of stamps are delayed the first office to run out creates a first solution. Later offices replicate the solution or create something different and an "in" philatelist would have known shortages would probably reappear after Bonny.
Would 4 1/2d have been a valid rate, if nom then the surcharge was necessary?

Either that or a very smart forger created the whole cover, which is unlikely if they are all part of the same correspondence and direct comparisons can be made.

Roger
PS: My wife and I went into Seattle today. These pictures are from the ferry on return trip.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 21:35:24 PDT   Listings
Peter, since you're asking the question, I assume the stamp is mint... You can use a small paintbrush to gently brush water onto the surface of the hinge, eventually freeing it up to be removed without affecting the gum in other areas. Care and patience is required! If you try to pull the hinge too soon you can thin pretty easily.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 21:19:25 PDT   Listings
Facebook, if properly used it is definitely a nice feature but when i see how it is used by most of it's user, i stick to my definition. To stay in touch with others, a personal web site or some Emails a week will do the same...
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 20:13:56 PDT   Listings
Peter… Soak the hinge remnant off.

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 19:23:21 PDT   Listings
When a stamp has hinge remnant which has hardened the area and makes the stamp not flat, is there anything I can do to fix it so the stamp will not bend upward at the hinged area?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 18:53:41 PDT   Listings
David - it is a lovely item of which I previously knew nothing, thanks for posting it.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 18:47:16 PDT   Listings
Jeff,

light correction,

all of the Bonny bisect covers are Philatelic and addressed to either Luton or Manchester,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 18:01:17 PDT   Listings
Old Royal Mail Coach with dual franking from both Northern Rhodesia and Belgian Congo franking to Belgium - July 25, 1925 - 85 years ago today


Österreich Feld Post in China - July 25, 1911 - 99 years ago today





jimbo

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 17:51:08 PDT   Listings
Jeff,

Full Frontal View

Photobucket

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 17:46:35 PDT   Listings
IO: You may possibly see that.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 17:45:31 PDT   Listings
Like a tear almost bisecting the stamp?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 17:42:13 PDT   Listings
Quoting from the seller's description, The stamp is in good condition except for what you may possibly see.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 17:12:58 PDT   Listings
David - I can't imagine it either.
How about a full scan of the front? Jeff
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 16:38:54 PDT   Listings
Jeff,

actually,

all of the known covers cancelled Bonny are philatelic, they are all addressed to the same addressee in Manchester, UK but covers with the Opobo 1/2 overprint have not been recorded. It is of course possible that this is a one-off as some strange combinations of bisects are known on the Bonny covers.

It doesn't matter if this front is philatelic or not as Philatelic covers are considered the norm for this type of material, the question is why would any idiot apply a fake overprint to a genuine bisect,


David B.

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 16:33:28 PDT   Listings
David, could it simply be that the franking had a touch of philatelic input? Not unheard of from such countries. Jeff
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 16:12:35 PDT   Listings
Jim Thanks for friending me on facebook.
David Snyder
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 16:02:28 PDT   Listings
LUXEMBOURG------difference between the overprints .....Photobucket
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 15:24:33 PDT   Listings
make that

I can't understand why anyone would want to add fake overprint,

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 14:36:56 PDT   Listings
Jeff,

thanks,

I showed it at a meeting yesterday and received one interesting comment that I never thought of.

The bisected stamp is not clean (read dirtier) than the others and may have been caused by being in someone's pocket during the interim period. Another comment was " why didn't the sender use another 2 1/2d. instead of a 2d. & the bisect ".

The majority of opinions yesterday were " not sure " and with one adamant " I am sure that the cancel is under the overprint ".

I can't understand why anyone would want to add fake cancel as it is a rare item and the Bonny cancel would have not raised any eyebrows whilst the overprint, which should be used at Opobo raises huge doubts,


David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 14:28:33 PDT   Listings
Well, that was a miracle, it came out OK.

The item I just showed has a problem. There is no doubt that the bisected stamp originated on the front but it possibly has had a fake 1/2 overprint added although the overprint looks OK.

The problem is that the Post Office in Opobo authorised and surcharged the 1/2d. on 1d. Dull Blue in May 1894 and all known examples are cancelled in either May and June 1894.

The Post Office in Bonny authorised bisection of the 1d. Dull Blue in August and September 1894 without overprinting each half.

This front of a Registration Envelope which I am showing the stamped portion bears the correct rate 5d. which was double the 2 1/2d. rate and the Registration Fee was paid when buying the Envelope is used at Bonny during the later period. There are no other known examples of either Provisionals being used outside of the Post Office of issue.


David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 14:27:33 PDT   Listings
David - I looked at it in increments to over 600%, looks good to me.
Trick question?
Jeff
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 14:19:05 PDT   Listings
Afternoon from a wet and darkling NJ.

Roger, Many congratulations on the medals.

O is for Officials and also Overprints:

This is a Luxembourg official overprint. The overprints on these were widely forged, and most of the ones in albums today are not genuine. The problem is compounded by the fact that no only were the overprints forged, but the stamps themselves have been forged. This one is genuine. It's not in my collection, but I saved the image for reference purposes.

07 genuine cert

Anne
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 14:18:56 PDT   Listings
Opinion as to whether the cancel is over the overprint on the bisected stamp,

Photobucket

David B.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 14:18:07 PDT   Listings
I love Facebook. It's the only way I keep in touch with all the people that I left behind in England. Also, most of my other Family from the US is on there, a great way to share photos and keep in touch.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 14:12:23 PDT   Listings
Hi Love that definition of Facebook :-)) We are of the same opinion!
cheers
Peter
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 12:56:04 PDT   Listings
Jim_lawler Sure I will friend you on facebook - send a friend request to David Snyder in Staten Island, New York
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 12:36:01 PDT   Listings
Facebook = Public Prostitution

at least my opinion...
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-25-10 at 12:11:38 PDT   Listings
David, do you wnat to friend me on Facebook?
:8^ )
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 19:12:33 PDT   Listings
Started going through my US used stamps to see which are doubles so I can trade with foreign stamp collectors on Facebook.
David Snyder
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 17:49:25 PDT   Listings
If I remember correctly, Bill said he has only seen that punch cancel on this issue. I asked one of the major US experts about that item today, and he said that the newspaper use was possible, but no one seems to know much of anything about them.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 17:21:03 PDT   Listings
Ken

Thanks. Bill is probably enjoying his birthday dinner at this moment. :-)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 17:10:24 PDT   Listings
Oval agent's (or sender's?) stamp; Mauritius to Bordeaux - July 24, 1856 - 154 years ago today



jimbo
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 15:45:10 PDT   Listings
Punch cancels. Punch cancels (in general) are found on many stamps (especially revenues). However, I've only seen that specific pattern of holes on Columbians. Maybe Bill W. can comment on whether he's seen them on other "front of book" issues.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 14:49:04 PDT   Listings
One of the most remarkable volcanoes in the world in that it erupts carbonatite (basically limestone).

Ol Doinyo Lengai
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 14:16:46 PDT   Listings
O is for Orange River Colony, albeit a contrived cover but still a little bit different:-)






cheers

Peter
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 13:38:17 PDT   Listings
Matt

thanks, sometimes Scott isn't very helpful!!
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 13:09:43 PDT   Listings
Iomoon:

930d: "Horses and Riders"

930e: "Aerial View of Island"

Matt
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 13:04:07 PDT   Listings
Can someone inform me of Scotts description for French Polynesia 930d (people on horses) and 930e (aerial view of islands.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-24-10 at 07:14:03 PDT   Listings
.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 21:46:53 PDT   Listings
Jeff & Jimbo -

Thanks for enjoying my stuff. Esoteric was not the word came to my mind when I was writing the description. LOL Don't screw up was closer to my thoughts.

Roger
PS: I think it is great that consensus tolerates posting images. Much more interesting than links.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 17:57:12 PDT   Listings
boogiechillin526 & Nomad55
Thanks for your help, found out its a Death Certificate & the stamp is called a "Movil", sort of a fee to obtain a legal document.
Still makes a good piece of Spanish History.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 17:52:25 PDT   Listings
Does anyone know what this is? Is it a cover, a wrapper? It looks to be made of rice paper maybe. I am certain I can find the stamps value but if anyone knows what kind of value it might have as a cover, etc, please let me know. Thanks in advance.


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Photobucket
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 17:35:26 PDT   Listings
Here’s an example of “free” government mail on which extra services had to be paid for—

    



And another. This is military personnel “free” mail for which registration was not free—

    
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 17:20:21 PDT   Listings
Io… Ha!

Alec… Actually most odd values can be arrived at by some combination of parcel post or third class with/without insurance. Then there was first class sent certified or registered, with option of return receipt, and a lot of government mail was sent free although extra services had to be paid for.

The rates and categories were Byzantine, to say the least.

Another scarce solo I forgot to mention is the 17¢:

    
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 17:16:13 PDT   Listings
I, too, enjoy the interesting covers Roger posts as well as the ones that Jim D. has posted. It's fun to see what interests everyone and the variety of things one can see.

jimbo
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 17:14:02 PDT   Listings
Jim

I will see how long it takes me to find one of the hard to found Prexies solo. :-)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 17:13:22 PDT   Listings
Overprints for 1932 International Airpost Exhibition. Sold for double the surcharge value, the excess went to support the exhibition. (I have another example of this usage.) - July 23, 1932 - 78 years ago today


Odd couple - Uusikirkko, Finland, and Teheran, Persia - July 23, 1932 - 78 years ago today



jimbo

Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 16:38:35 PDT   Listings
Jim For what possible rates are the difficult Solo Prexies to be found?

I'm assuming some are only found on foreign mail?
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 16:07:54 PDT   Listings
Sooooo, it was probably $2 to mail entire pistol and $5 for a shotgun?

:-)
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 15:43:42 PDT   Listings
Io… Should have added these to the toughest list—
  • 22¢
  • $1
  • $2
  • $5
I have a $1 solo, used to ship a pistol barrel, but the $2 and $5 remain out of reach.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 15:39:46 PDT   Listings
Io… The chase after solo prexies is like all other chases—some are hard to obtain, therefore attract collectors who like a challenge.

There’s a list somewhere of the hardest to obtain, although I forget where. These are my candidates for toughest—
  • 19¢
  • 4½¢ coil
  • 14¢
  • 10¢ coil
  • 2¢ vertical coil
  • 11¢
  • 3¢ vertical coil
The prexies were the series with the greatest number of values represented, since they ran from ½¢ straight through 22¢, with non-presidents featured on the values that weren’t whole numbers. They are a quick and easy way to learn the sequence of presidents—since James Knox Polk is on the 11¢ stamp he was the 11th president. (After 22¢ however you were on your own…)


Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 15:21:32 PDT   Listings
Generally a stamp with this type of use(a logbook would probably be certified daily, weekly, or at most monthly), and with a serial number as high as this is (2322302) is likely to be pretty common. It could be Federal, Provincial, or Local, depending on who had jurisdiction for this particular tax.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 14:33:29 PDT   Listings
I don't know anything about Spanish revenues.
But there must have been some sort of fee, for which the stamp shows evidence of being paid.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 14:33:08 PDT   Listings
Nomad55
On the backside it has been rubber stamped Registered 1 Nov. 1920
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 14:28:07 PDT   Listings
Nomad55
Thanks, kind of had that much figured out. Any info on the stamp would be appreciated??
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 14:18:52 PDT   Listings
sneeky...a legal document, appears to be a certification of record in a municipal logbook (city of Sitges, in Barcelona province).
Dated 20 May 1920
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 14:06:09 PDT   Listings
Can anyone give me some info on this Spanish Document, also about the stamp that is afixed to it.
Posted by   ( ) on Jul-23-10 at 13:59:02 PDT   Listings

roger - in addition to Jimbo's posts, I certainly enjoy your esoteric Swiss posts.

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