Great Britain Philatelic Society

AB1961

Hi NBH RH2 I agree that the correct watermark is helpful but not absolute proof of authenticity. The GBPS surface printed consultant may know more . There is a managing director of a auction house who is a provenance researcher but I don't know if I'm allowed to provide you with his contact details....

AB1961

Hi Neil
I have a very small amount of info about him.
Frank Jesser Wadham, Merchant, 1880-1949, his guides to plating the Penny Black were in at least two editions. I think he was American .

AB1961

Hi Galveston
Many Thanks for your prompt reply. I did attempt to classify the examples.Red is a very difficult colour to reproduce faithfully over the internet or with any camera. I did find this very interesting and enjoyable despite the difficulties.

AB1961

Hi NBHRH2 The stamp you are looking for is available for purchase. The web site is www.mercator.direct. The price has been reduced twice, eventually to £2,100. I do not know the seller or agent. I also don't know why there appears to be no bids Please be wary because it is a very rare stamp, only el...

AB1961

Hi
I would be very interested to know which of these have been certified as Lake Red as I really would like this shade in my collection, but I've seen many examples in very different colours.Many thanks

AB1961

Hi Winston
Many thanks for your reply.
I got a second opinion concerning my certificate from an experienced dealer and he said that it was a mistake when issued and should be returned and reappraised. I hope that this is a rare occurance.

AB1961

I don't know where the difference lies between the blued paper from whatever period. I am wary of any expert certificate they are not always correct.

AB1961

Has any of us got a certificate that has a major error in it, apart from me? I know it is so easy to criticize, but I have found many errors over the years . New Information has made many of the older reference books obsolete. I cannot help but notice the new shade listings in the line engraved issu...

AB1961

Hi The late use of the Maltese cross has been recorded by many publications including the cancellations of the 1841 Penny Red by Goldsmith and Danzig. Many examples have been discovered some as late as 1859, it is not that rare. Some offices didn't receive a numeral cancellor, so they continued with...

AB1961

Hi Nielss, This is a very good question . I cannot say I know the answer, but I assume that it is blued paper from a period that is not generally accepted to have been issued to the public. It is a fact that in the line engraved Victorian Great Britain stamps this bluing is reversable. Some collecto...

AB1961

Hi Nielss, This is a very good question . I cannot say I know the answer, but I assume that it is blued paper from a period that is not generally accepted to have been issued to the public. It is a fact that in the line engraved Victorian Great Britain stamps this bluing is reversable. Some collecto...

AB1961

Hi Jimw Galveston is correct , it is the way the punch was held which caused this . It is not actually recognised as a true inverted letter, I read this a long time ago in one of the old reference books. I believe that many of these old books are charming to read but can be very misleading and somet...

AB1961

Many thanks Mike

AB1961

Hi Galveston, I have reason to believe that not all the early One Penny Red imperf stamps were double gummed, it was only done when the first application was unsuccessful as the gum could lose its adhesion quite quickly.The gum did need to be thick but did not always adhere evenly so there was insta...

AB1961

Hi Galveston, Had a look at some of my early Queen Victoria with original gum , mid 1840s. The gum appears to have a greenish tinge, especially when on paper that is less blued. Most of these issues have strong bluing and this shows through the gum and gives a misleading impression .The sheets were ...

AB1961

Could anybody be kind enough to give me any information concerning this shade. I have never been happy with this classification as no example I have looks yellow or brown.They all appear to be red.I'm sure that members have this shade in their collections.Any information would be appreciated.

AB1961

Hi Mike, Many thanks for your very honest reply, it would be nice for Stanley Gibbons to accept that revisions are necessary and to listen to common sense. I suppose that they believe that they have the right to choose what they publish but in this case I think they have made a mistake. I have found...

AB1961

Could anyone give any information about the so called toned paper , yellowish , and cream that have been listed by Stanley Gibbons on C9. Is it still accepted that this paper exists or was it a misconception that should be ignored now that the pre fire and after the fire shades have been acknowledge...

AB1961

Many thanks Mike , it will be interesting to see if this gets members opinions .

AB1961

High PhilW, Many thanks for your quick reply. I agree that shades can be a challenge, and that scans of red stamps are very unreliable. One of our members sent a plum 1d stamp to two expert committees , one gave a good certificate and the other a bad one .I don't allow these complications to deter m...

AB1961

Can anyone give me any information concerning how to identify this unusual shade ? The reason I ask is that there is a very wide range of shades that are supposedly Lake Red. Ranging from a strong red, without a brown element, on white or blued paper to a bright cherry red, and even a very dirty red...

AB1961

Hi Ian, thanks for your reply, i hope others can input any suggestions, there must be many members who have bought albums over the years. I bought some of mine second hand at a very good discount. My collection is really for study so i didnt want to go overboard with the cost. I have noticed a luxur...

AB1961

Hi Ian, I use ringbound loose leaf albums with Hagner or Prinz acid free sheets. I prefer pages that lay flat when opened. I would not recommend Stanley Gibbons Avon, or the Davo range because they are plastic and will tear and distort over time. There is a company called SAFE Albums (UK) Ltd. who c...

AB1961

Hi, fellow collectors, I am curious to know how any of our members feel about the image that is sometimes portrayed or stated regarding Philatelists in general. There are many reasons that i dont usually tell anyone about my interest in this area unless i am asked to look over a collection or some c...

AB1961

Hi Skilo54, i may have a possible answer, the original duty plates for this value on the QV issues was continued on the Edward 7th stamps The new head of the king replaced the old one. So in theory the same faults on the duty plates may be detected, but with even more wear. It is known that these ol...

AB1961

Hi Everyone, I have been reading the listings of this stamp from the various catalogues and it came to a total of twenty one. I understand that the original listings were produced by five experts in consultation and that this sufficed for many years. So are the additions really neccessary? I would b...

AB1961

Hi John i have found a possible answer from Stamp Magazine august 1992. There is a very good article concerning the Penny Lilac .W A.Wiseman stated that the wording on the stamp was considered to be too small, and for that reason a second die was begun. Die proofs exist with the annotation Backgroun...

AB1961

Hi Seahorse, My general contents insurance premium has recently been increased for the first time in years. I have only a modest accumulation of stamps, that to me does not merit extra costs so i have no separate cover. This has saved me a considerable amount of money over nearly 40 years. I asked m...

AB1961

Hi KHM, Plate 11, is one of the easy plates to determine.There are many decent publications to help you.I have used Stanley Gibbons Specialised , the Penny Black Plates by Edward B Proud,amongst many others. The main feature of this plate is the very short or missing ray at the 7 0 clock position on...

AB1961

Hi Wine963 Many thanks for your reply, my SG Catalogue is about 30 years old. I havent updated it because i no longer use Gibbons as a source of information, over the years it has contained errors and misleading infomation in some areas. I know that Gibbons can be reluctant to alter the listings bec...

AB1961

Hi Wilding Mad,
Im choosing the Chalons i think it was a very imaginative design, rather than just
a sideways profile, also it was a fuller representation with the clothing and necklace.

AB1961

Hi Bosworth,
I think that it is worth researching and recording these early dates of usage, i would be interested to know how many you have discovered.

AB1961

Hi Tony,
I have found some information regarding your postmark, i cannot locate the post office
concerned but on the Philatelic Web , an F in a diamond was designated as City of London, or Foreign Branch.
Let me know if you do locate the post office.
Regards Andy.

AB1961

Does anyone have an example of the one penny Lake Brown 1855 C3 (4), which has been removed from the Gibbons catalogue , and how do you write up a stamp which is no longer classified, is there any justification for Gibbons doing this? I believe that some form of explanation is required, if they have...

AB1961

Hi Railwaynut ,

Over many years i have acquired similar items . One explanation is that some sellers
like to add provenance to items they are selling. Auction Houses are a good example of this.

AB1961

Hi Peter, I've been interested in all the Victorian shades for many years, I've wrote to all the Consultants , and I have filed all their replies. There is still a lot we don't know, and all the line engraved shades are speculative. Especially the perforated issues. I find it fascinating despite the...

AB1961

Been looking at some "Plum" stamps on ebay, i dont think these are dealers. The colour
range has to be seen , some dont even look like they were ever Plum. Also keep seeing
fake high face value GB Queen Victoria, sold as fakes. This is wrong and should not be allowed.

AB1961

Hi Petrod, I have been a plater for many years , ive heard that many stamps have been mis plated in many collections by private collectors. You would expect dealers to be better. I know that dealers do use experienced collectors to plate for them, saving them a lot of time. Both my local dealers do ...

AB1961

Many thanks Tony, i suspected this .Course, i will need to find many examples.

AB1961

Thanks for your reply, it was mentioned on a well known dealers web site, so he must
have considered it relevant. Just wanted to know why.

AB1961

Hi Petrod, thanks for the new scan, it looks more like the distinctive lavender, i wonder if there is a small range of shades within this classification. Dont want to complicate things but some long time dealers who have handled many examples must have some opinion .It is an interesting area to get ...

AB1961

Hit Peter, Many thanks for sending your attachment, its a very nice item. It must look even better in real life. It really is a very interesting block, especially with the original gum. It appears to have a lavender tint from here, the colour reproduction may not be 100% accurate as you stated. I st...

AB1961

Hi Seahorse , i understand that it is very easy to fake blued paper , also it is easy to remove the bluing. Some specialists believe that the term blued paper should be removed from the Stanley Gibbons Specialised Catalogue. I am referring to higher face value Surface Printed issues. As regarding th...

AB1961

Hi Petrod, I have been looking at a few specialist dealers websites for lavender tinted paper. There could be a range of lavender. I have also noticed that in every example the queens head on the reverse has less ink and is never completely lavender I have yet to see any example that is completely c...

AB1961

Hi Petrod To further my answer to your question. It appears that on average on the stamps before the lavender period measure .05 mm in depth. On stamps within the lavender period .06 After the lavender period ,completely random ranging from 0.01 to 0.12. Seven stamps with readings 0.01 to 0.04 Five ...

AB1961

.Hi Petrod, I have taken many measurements concerning paper thickness of both normal paper and lavender tinted paper from plates 119 to 144. I examined seven lavender papered examples they are virtually all outside of the range stated by the Gibbons Specialised Catalogue. Some of these examples did ...

AB1961

Hi Orchidman, just seen a Plum stamp described as a soft Plum shade. Recently bought a much darker Plum from a very experienced specialist dealer. It is a shade i have not seen before. It really is distinctive, having trouble with my computer, hope to be able to send an image when its sorted if this...

AB1961

Hi Petrod, This is an interesting topic, i believe that more research is needed .I am not alone in being sceptical about the set in stone statement that this paper appears only on these plates . Was it experimental, and what was the reason for the apparent abrupt change in paper thickness and shade?...

AB1961

Hi Winston W, many thanks for your reply. There was one on the back page of the last GB
Journal. This is a particularly nice example and the dealer is asking nearly £900 for it. So it appears that dealers can ask more for a first day of issue.
Nice to hear from fellow members.

AB1961

Would a Victorian stamp off cover, postmarked on the first day of issue command a
premium.In over 30 years of collecting i cannot recall ever seeing one offered for sale
as such.

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