Knowing Cancels Can Help Win The Battle...

Knowing how and when specific cancels were used can be very handy when trying to confirm a particular stamp's authenticity. While not the sole determiner, it can certainly be another data point in the equation.

Take for example, the stamp below that I purchased at COMPEX this weekend. The dealer had it marked as "R22c trimmed top and bottom". As soon as I saw the cancel though, I immediately snapped it up. Upon close examination, as I suspected, there is no evidence of trimming. I believe it to be a genuine R22b, not a trimmed R22c. Why? This cancel is well known and is found exclusively on R22b with a date this early (I've never seen this cancel with an 1863 date on an R22c).

See another example in my collection here (note the exact same cancel date):

http://www.revenue-collector.com/pages/752.html

While this weekend's acquisiton does have some wrinkles and is a bit schmutzy, it was still worth the purchase price of $1.50, given that an R22b catalogs $475.00.

I've always said that there's no schmutz like cheap schmutz -- great find!

Nice find. Compare it to this one (Lot 671) at a realized price of $198:

http://64.60.141.198/php/chap_auc.p...er=28&page=1

That one's a bit nicer. I would estimate the value of the one I found to be in the $50-75 range. Perhaps with a rinse, if the schmutz comes off, it might go a bit higher. It's no award winner, but at the price offered it was a no-brainer.

Rev-- just curious, is the paper the thinner type from the earlier printings? Did that also help ID the stamp, or do you usually find the thinner paper only on imperfs and not partial perfs?

Thanks, Ray

Interestingly I have a Spooner cancel on one of my R22b's as well. Slightly better right to left centering, not by much however!

Dan,
I did some reaching out on whe origin of this Co. I was told to contact the Niles District Library as they have an extensive Local History research collection. If you are interested I will send you the contact info.
Eric

revenuecollector, I'm curious about the two straight edges on your stamp. You don't think it was trimmed. Did revenues come in coils?

First issue revenues were issued in 3 types: imperforate, perforated, and part perforate (imperf either horizontally or vertically). Not all denominations were issued in all 3 types.

What I mean by "not trimmed" is that I do not believe it is a perforated stamp that has been trimmed down to fake a part perf, which happens a LOT out there, since the part perfs tend to be worth a lot more.

That is why imperfs and part perfs need extensive scrutiny:

1. Ideally you buy them in multiples or on document

2. The imperf margins need to be large enough to preclude trimming

3. The color, impression, and paper need to be appropriate for the period in which the part perfs or imperfs were printed, as opposed to later printings which where primarily perforated only.

4. The cancel date can be used to (usually exclude, but in this case include) a stamp as being genuinely imperforate or part perforate.


Some of the differences between a perforated stamp and a part perf or imperf of the same design can be ASTRONOMICAL, e.g., R84c (the perforated variety) which catalogs $20 and R84a (the imperforate) which catalogs $8,000.

Here's a good example... the document I showcased in this thread:

https://goscf.com/t/16655

The reason it's so desirable is that it is an absolutely genuine example of R83a, the imperforate $2 Probate of Will. It catalogs $6,000. The perforated stamp catalogs $80.

Here's an example of a long part perf strip from top of sheet to bottom of sheet. Note the incredibly poor quality control as the perforations shift across the design. Part perf stamps are notoriously poorly centered left-to-right. Some types are virtually unknown with VF or XF centering. Off-center is by far the norm.