Input On Early US

Hi, I am looking for some input on a stamp collection I inherited. I am new to stamps, but I did some research and it seems to be a well put together collection.

I want to share some of the early US I have found and see if there is anything special in the albums or one of the many boxes. If anything jumps out in the pictures let me know, and I can get a better picture of the specific stamp.

This is a big collection (6 big boxes + trunk) but I will stick to early US in this section.

Any input is appreciated, I have had these for years and finally decided to start seeing what I have. It would be nice to find out if I have anything of value. Thanks for looking.

I have have a lot more I can take pictures of, and more images already in my photobucket but I will wait for some feedback if there is anything jumping out.

Wowsa wowsa.

And that is from one who doesn't (read is trying not to but can't seem to help it anyway) collect US stamps.

Those are all, or most, some nice looking stamps. Nicely centered, nice colour, nice light cancels on the used ones. And the one heavy cancelled stamp at the end of a row there is a nice cancel too, if you ever get around to zooming in on that one. hint hint. For us cancel lovers.

I am not sure on the actual money value of these but if you looked at a catalogue the prices in there are usually for stamps that are in good condition and have nice things happening about them. Most of yours are in this category. A lot of other stamps are not.

When selling, keep in mind that selling as a large lot of stamps gets you a smaller price each, but takes less time. If you have the time, or someone does, to sell these individually or as small lots then you will realize more in return for them.

People pay better prices for better items.

A buyer still would need to have a close-up scan (gives better info and a picture of a flat object like a stamp than a camera, unless you are a pro photographer) and probably examine the back of the stamps too, good scans again.

The more trusted you are as a seller, the higher price you can charge because your judgement and trust-worthiness are being trusted.

Selling as a lot (all together) to a stamp dealer will get you 10-25% of catalog price as he/she will have to turn the stamps over and sell them to customers and make a profit at it, in order to stay in business.

I personally have been going through (slowly mind you) a small tiny collection in my family that I have been at for 3-4 years now with breaks in between. It can take a long time.

However, there is great joy in studying stamps and their history and related ideas and facts and in collecting them for those reasons also. If you are at all interested in any of them, even as keepsakes of those who have passed them down, please keep them, start reading on this forum and after a while see what you think.

The amount of experience and knowledge available on here ( with references to elsewhere also) is vast and more than you could ever need. You are most welcome to stay a while, share your collection , your discoveries, knowledge, stamp pictures from everywhere and generally have a good time.

Kthrasher, First it is impossible to determine if all the stamps are properly identified from the scans. assuming that they are properly identified and that there are no hidden faults (thins, creases, sealed tears or other fault that cannot be seen in the scans) there are several nicer issues. There are several issues that are $100+ range. Some/many (hard to tell exactly from scan) of the stamps have minor to moderate faults. Many look very good. The 90 cent Scott 155 is a nice stamp looks like straight edge on right, but still looks nice. the 24 cent Scott 153 looks well centered, particularly for that issue.The two 15 cent 1867 grill Lincolns coild be very nice value depending on what grill they have. I notice that the grilled stamps were not identified by grill type. They could range from a few dollars to several thousand.
Overall it looks like some pretty nice stamps.

Kthrasher, perhaps there is a local stamp club where you live. You could get some very good advice there. Or maybe one nearby. You do need someone knowledgeable to help you.

Since you are new to stamps, don't know your degree of interest, but you can learn a lot here at SCF. As said in the earlier posts, detailed scans are a must. Anyway, welcome here and perhaps we can be of assistance.

You do have some very desirable stamps, assuming they are sound.

Positive identification would be needed first. The first stamp shown (Washington 10¢) is not a #7. There are a few different types and it is either a 31, 32, 33 or 34 depending on the design. Your local Library should have a set of Scott's catalogs which show how to determine which types you have. All Stamps are valued by condition of the Stamp, centering, Perforations, etc. Are you looking to sell ? or are you looking to further your collection (Recommended)if you are looking to further it, you have a fantastic start. If you want to scan some of the earlier ones in High resolution we should be able to identify their types and conditions, but scans would be needed of both the front and back of the Stamp, US collectors for some reason put as much emphasis on the back of the Stamp as the Front.

Yeah #7 was imperf.

Thanks for the all the information.

I have been using this site to help with identification - http://www.theswedishtiger.com/

I have only found a few that seem to be in the wrong places, there are 2 albums that are early US. I have found a few interesting things I am going to keep out of the collection, but I would like to see the rest appreciated by a collector. I don't want to sell it as a lot because I am interested in learning about what it contains and then "parting it out" you could say.

Another cool find was a set of Federal Duck Stamps. 1934 - 1996, doubles of most unused. Once I googled "duck stamps" I realized what I found.

I will go ahead and post some more pictures today showing more stamps instead of an overview. Thanks again for any input.

Try this site..

www.1847USA.com

Go to your local Public Library and find the Scott Catalogs in the Reference section. Scott Catalogs will help you identify your stamps and give you a rough idea of their worth,





Butch