Sometimes The Catalog Value Is Utterly Meaningless...

In the world of cancel collecting, frequently the stamp that the cancel is on doesn't factor into the overall scarcity or value. Take the R22c below. On its face, nothing that exceptional about the stamp itself, other than being a nice green shade of the fugitive violet ink.



In this case, the cancel makes ALL the difference in the world. The stamp itself catalogs for $7.50. When the stamp appeared on ebay earlier this week with a $90.00 Buy-It-Now, I couldn't hit the button fast enough.

This is another proprietary fancy cancel that is as scarce as hen's teeth. I've been looking for one for over 3 years. Richard has been trying to sell me one for about 2 years now from the Morrisey collection... that is badly damaged on one side... at a firm price of $275. Now you see why this one is a comparative bargain.

It's not only the price that made this an exceptional find, but also the condition. Believe it or not, this stamp is finer than any examples that I have ever seen pictures of. It absolutely blows away the example from the Morton Dean Joyce collection auction in 1991.

If this had shown up with a Buy-It-Now of $500, I probably would have paid it... although I would have thought long and hard about it.

The cancel is attributed to "Poland's White Pine Compound" sold by Dr. G. W. Swett of Boston Mass. I've never seen or heard of one actually on bottle or document though in order to verify this.

I feel educated. Thanks for the expose. :o)

Fantastic cancellation, Rev! Does this cancel only appear on revenues? I've certainly never seen one on a standard postage stamp ...

Fantastic find Dan! This is my Jealous face! I am Green with envy. I don't know about $500 but at $250-300 I would have jumped as well.

It just goes to show that if you know your collecting area well, you can occasionally snag a real deal. I've had some luck buying some rare cancels off of ebay dealers who didn't realize the stamps were anything special.

On a related note, at a German Colonies auction this week, a used German New Guinea stamp that is ordinarily worth a few bucks used went for about $14K because of the rare cancel. If only I could spot that one in the hands of an unknowing dealer!

Well done on the cancel. Thanks for the post, fascinating stuff!

I posted this link on another thread relating to Dr. Swett and his White Pine Compound. The historical information presented is quite interesting:

http://swett-genealogy.com/gws/DrGWSwett.html

Wow I'm blown away by that cancel! And the patent medicine stamp & label is off the charts cool! CONGRATS!
P.S.
The active ingredient in the White Pine would be a turpin and deadly in a large dose. Like turpentine.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terpene

Thanks, folks. To be clear, only the stamp at the top is mine. The rest of the pictures are ones I pulled via Google to add context.

Very interesting stamp and story.

Thanks for sharing,
KirkS

ah - revenuecollector, those are the stamps and the stories that make this hobby all worthwhile!

"Fantastic find Dan! This is my Jealous face! I am Green with envy. I don't know about $500 but at $250-300 I would have jumped as well."

Jump being the operative word... I actually did when I saw it. Then came the tortured days waiting for it to arrive... I hope it doesn't get lost in the mail... I hope this isn't a scam...

It's still not my favorite cancel in my collection though. That honor goes to this Walker & Taylor cancel:




It is somewhat unique in several respects:

1. This particular Walker & Taylor cancel is hyper-scarce. The one usually found makes no reference ot "Extract of Fireweed" and is in much smaller type, designed to fit the size of the 2c revenue stamp. It usually sells for $100-150:



2. Walker & Taylor printed cancels are found almost exclusively on 1c and 2c revenues. I bought it from Richard, who says that this is only the second example of a Walker & Taylor cancel he's seen on the 4c denomination in 40 years.

3. The term "Extract of Fireweed" is just way too cool. It sounds like it came from the world of Harry Potter. :)

Here is an article on what I presume they're referring to as "FIREWEED"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epilob...ngustifolium
USES:
"The young shoots were often collected in the spring by Native American people and mixed with other greens. They are best when young and tender; as the plant matures the leaves become tough and somewhat bitter. The southeast Native Americans use the stems in the stage. They are peeled and eaten raw. When properly prepared soon after picking they are a good source of vitamin C and pro-vitamin A. The Dena'ina add fireweed to their dogs' food. Fireweed is also a medicine of the Upper Inlet Dena'ina, who treat pus-filled boils or cuts by placing a piece of the raw stem on the afflicted area. This is said to draw the pus out of the cut or boil and prevents a cut with pus in it from healing over too quickly.
A flowering fireweed plant

The root can be roasted after scraping off the outside, but often tastes bitter. To mitigate this, the root is collected before the plant flowers and the brown thread in the middle removed.

In Alaska, candies, syrups, jellies, and even ice cream are made from fireweed. Monofloral honey made primarily from fireweed nectar has a distinctive, spiced flavor.

In Russia, its leaves were often used as tea substitute and were even exported, known in Western Europe as Kapor tea. Fireweed leaves can undergo fermentation, much like real tea. Today, Kapor tea is still occasionally consumed though not commercially important."

I've tried the jelly, myself. When I visited Denali, it was in full bloom and growing everywhere.

nice cancel! is there a proprietary fancy cancel catalog that has been published? Thanks.

Not that I'm aware of. Mike Morrissey has done much research on the subject and occasionally threatens to actually publish it someday. :)

[I really hope he does eventually publish. It would be a travesty to lose all that knowledge.]