Eye Of The Beholder?

Getting ready for my annual shopping trip to my local stamp show next week and I recall something that always puzzles me. Let's say I'm looking for a Columbian or Trans Mississippi stamp for example. I love the pictorals on those and other stamps. Yet often I see my favorite dealer is selling a stamp that a significant part of the picture is just smudged out by cancellation- but it is centered well! I prefer to buy a nice clean looking picture with little or no cancellation but with limited margins. I pay less for mine - but is that a bad investment. I just don't see the point in a splendid stamp that you can't see the full image. Anybody with me on this?

I always go by image. It is presentation that counts. What is in the margins is irrelevant. Just my humble contrary opinion.

EDIT -- But then I also don't mind tears and thins as long as they don't spoil the image and they come at a discount.

Scouter, stamp collecting for me is a hobby not an investment. I try to buy stamps that are pleasing to me at a reasonable price. Some stamps I buy are very lightly cancelled while in other instances I buy the stamp because I want a nice cancellation. Margins may or may not be a consideration for me. If it is a quite expensive stamp that I couldn't afford with VF or better centering, I will consider buying with F centering.

But then this little gem earned me a post, so you never know what combination will succeed in being of value for you.

This block of Poonch 1887 2 Anna Service stamps



cost me considerably over full catalogue at auction, and I was happy to pay it.

Perfect centring? Who needs it? It's all in the eye of the beholder

For me personally, I like to be able to see the design of the stamp and find the beauty of the stamp primarily right here. That said, I do shop for the best centering I can find/afford.

Well, young Tony,
maybe the Poonch Authorities needed it!

You will notice he gets 8 stamps to the line early
then drops back to seven a line.

(Print a few off for yourself, and snip 'em off after)
nice work if you can get it :)