Identifying R13e (2-Cent Proprietary Ultramarine)

This is one of the most misidentified stamps on the part of dealers and collectors, compounded by a lack of specificity on the part of the Scott catalog.

Like R97, R13 comes in the same 3 distinct shades: blue, milky blue, and ultramarine. However, unlike the former, Scott does not have a listing for all 3 colors of the latter. Personally, I think this needs to change, but that's a tough sell with the editors.

With R13c, the blue and milky blue shades occur in approximately the same frequency; neither one is more valuable than the other. Only the ultramarine is scarce.

Since Scott does not list a milky blue shade for R13c, many people think they have an R13e when they encounter the milky blue shade.

When you see the 3 shades side by side, the difference jumps off the sheet. Ultramarine has a magenta component that pushes the hue towards the purple/red end of the color spectrum.

Here is an image that I frequently send to sellers on ebay. It is a scan of all 3 stamps together on a card.

From left to right:

1. R13e ultramarine
2. R13c milky blue
3. R13c blue

Very helpful - thanks!

Would you say this R97 is ultramarine? I got it for such a bargain price that I have never been fully confident that the color was right (although I wouldn't think the CV difference was great enough to justify fakery).

Probably, although I dislike using scans for shades unless there is a comparison made at the same time like the first post. That so called milky blue proprietary is caused almost as much by the very worn plate as by the shade of ink used to print it.