CANCELLED - 1d imperf "Lake-Red" shades at SG Evening 14th December

[admin]

Unfortunately, due to the rail strike that has been announced for 14th December, SG have had to cancel this evening, as they cannot guarantee that they will be able to be sufficiently staffed. They hope that it can be rescheduled for the New Year.


Calling collectors of Imperforate Penny Reds!

We have agreed with Stanley Gibbons that, at the forthcoming evening meeting, we will take a closer look at one of the most difficult shades of this issue, the "Lake-red" shade. If you are unsure as to exactly what this shade looks like, you are most certainly not alone. It seems that even some experts have differing views -- two of the stamps below are certified as ‘Lake-red’ and the others not -- can you tell which ones are the ‘Lake-reds’?

We hope that several examples of this scarce shade will be on show on the evening, including some certified copies and the SG reference example, so that we might clarify how best to define the shade for future reference. We have a list of questions prepared that we will try to answer (see below), but we need to see as many examples of the shade as possible.

All GBPS members are invited to the meeting, which will begin at 6pm at SG’s shop at 399, The Strand, and we hope to see as many examples of ‘Lake-reds’ as possible, whether certified or not, so please, if you have any examples, please bring them along or allow a friend to bring them along to show us!

(If you do come along, please remember to notify SG in advance so they know how many to cater for.)

Questions

1. What does the Lake-red shade on the 1d Imperf look like?
2. Does it occur on Alphabet I and/or Alphabet II plates?
3. Is there a period in time that the shade can be attributed to?
4. Can we produce a list of plates recorded with the shade?
5. How rare is the shade?
6. Does the shade bear any resemblance to the lake-red of the 'Penny Plate number' series?
7. Does it bear any resemblance to lake-red in the SG colour chart?
8. Does it bear any resemblance to lake-red in the Methuen handbook of colour?
9. Is 'Lake-red' the best description for the shade?
10. How confident are we that the shade -- or any shade on these stamps -- is original and consistent?
11. If it is/they are, is it significantly rarer than other possible unlisted shades and thus worth listing at a high price?
12. Are there any extant older certificates for lake-red shades (or ones for stamps submitted as something else but identified as lake-red) that will show how the shade was regarded over time?
13. Likewise, are there any identifiable stamps from adverts/articles in older magazines that were sold as lake-red?
14. Was there ever an original reference example (or set of examples), or was it originally listed as just a general "category" shade and subsequently been something largely in the eye of the beholder?