Plate # And Salvage Edge?

Is there a hard and fast rule regarding value of stamps with plate # and salvage edge? I have several 4 blocks corners with plate # and salvage. Thanks in advance to all who can bring me up to speed on this.

I do not know the correct answer, I think that the value must change with the stamp's value itself. The plate block collecting was big years ago when all stamps were printed this way but has fallen by the wayside somewhat over the years of losing the plate numbers.

People who do collect corner blocks do appreciate have the plate blocks. Much better than an ordinary block of four or six or ?. More info, added eye appeal to some.

A normal corner block of 4 is usually valued at 5 x the rate of a single stamp I think. Plate blocks may not be much above this.

All depends on the market demand too and on how you sell it, your salesmanship skills and all that.

I collect them. I believe that they're easier to handle/place and perhaps hold their value a little better than just singles. Also maybe (to me) they are more eye appealing. Don't know if that helps any, but that's my take on the subject anyway.

In the US (and Canada I think) these are referred to as plate blocks. I collect them (though I have stopped collecting self-stick ones). Suffice to say the premium for these is directly related to how old they are and how scarce the stamp is, with modern (say post-1940) blocks going for face value or less (and usually less).

Sad to say but, I often buy the 30's-40's plate blocks to use for postage. Makes for intersting covers sent to the power company... Maybe someone there will enjoy them.

From a purely catalog value perspective, unused plate # blocks (and sometimes other margin blocks) carry a premium over blocks without such selvage.

To answer the initial question, "is there a hard and fast rule" about the valuation of a plate block, the answer is "no". As alluded to in previous posts, the common plate blocks from the 1940's forward command very little value. In fact, using stamps from the early to mid 1960's as an example, Scott shows a single stamp is worth $0.20; a plate block from $0.40 to $0.60. That's not even 3x the value of a single stamp. Of course, Scott qualifies the "catalog value" as calculating what a stamp dealer would pay to keep the stamp in stock and sell it to collectors on demand. Most often, the stamp sells for much less, and because of the fact that plate blocks of that generation command very little (if any) premium and often sell for a fraction of face value, former collectors have resorted to using them as postage, only because the postage value is higher than any resale value in the stamp collecting market.

Thanks for your input. I have a lot of plate blocks and interested in selling extras. Your info will help me.