Color Issues Scott #269 And Scott #280 (1894-1903)

My biggest problem in identifying stamps is by color only. I don't want to use color palettes since "Carmine Rose" for example will be a different shade depending on which time period the stamp is in. Besides, stamps with finger oil or those which have faded cause more problems. Actually I consider it impossible. If a stamp fades just right, it might take a good expertizer to tell a rare stamp from the more common twin. And like baseball umpires, their word is it.

My current solution is to seek out collectors who have already identified these stamps in their collections and match colors to their stamps. Since some of you guys are on the other side of the world, I thought I'd do it here. These are the scans where the colors match the scanned stamps about perfectly.

Don't worry about the quality of the scan, the color matches the scanned stamp and the color is what's important here. I used the solid areas around the "4" and "United States Postage" to check.

Both stamps are watermarked so these listed cat numbers and colors are the only options.

Scott # 269 Dark Brown, Yellow Brown
Scott # 280 Rose Brown
Scott # 280a Lilac Brown, Brownish Claret
Scott # 280b Orange Brown

This scan is almost certainly Scott #269 (Dark Brown):



But this one ...?



I throw down the gauntlet of challenge. Please help.


Thanks
-IBFS

Comparative colors of the 280/208a/280b from the same scanner.

Russ-- ...Thanks...Do you have a scan of Scott #269 from that scanner?

Does anyone know of a book that discusses stamp colors in detail? Internet link? ...?


-IBFS