What's Going On With This #563? A Case Of Overinking?

I have a number of these stamps in an array of various colors in the blue and green and blue green hues, but never have I seen a copy as "rough" as this...and on a Cincinnati Bureau precancel, too.



The image appears blurred. The fine line engraved details of the stamp appear all but lost (because of over-inking?)

It looks as if it could almost be that there was too much moisture content in the paper when the stamp was printed.

Is this a common occurrence?

Probably and it is quite common in older stamp production. You are correct about the paper's moisture content. High moisture makes it more absorbent. The 1954 Liberty series had several of the issues printed both wet and dry.

BTW check your 4-29 back of book perfin posting.

On the wet and dry issues, I was just about to post --

I notice that a lot of my 2c Liberty in both coil and sheet have two different "looks" in the coloring. Some are really red / rose all over and others have a lot of white in them. Is this anything to do with wet and dry or is it just a normal color variation?

If the stamps all count as the same, is one coloring type more desirable to keep than the other?? I have a lot of Bureau precancels that I could dispose of if I only kept one or other and I am trying only to keep one example for each stamp unless they are truly different (eg I may ultimately keep 2 copies of the 11c Hayes, shown above, because some are really blue, not green).

Thanks.

The wet/dry printing difference is most noticeable in the margines and over color tone. Dry printing produces stampswith whiter margines and stamp images. Faint tinting in the margines stamp image "white" areas are indications of wet printing.

Liberty issues printed both wet and dry are: 1/2, 1, 3, 4, 6, 30, 40, 50, & $1.

The 2¢ coil was also printed by both wet and dry processes.

Thanks for the comments. It amazes me how many "varieties" (cataloged or uncataloged) there can be for one stamp issue, especially when comparing colors and printing anomalies. May not have much of any value, but certainly makes for an interesting collectible sub-specialty.

Oops. I overlooked the coils. It was indeed printed wet and dry. There is also a silk paper variety of the regular issue, though I have never seen one.