Washington 24c Gray - Is It?

Looking up this stamp on the 'net, there are a lot of them but all I seem to find when I put in 37 for Gray is the Gray-Lilac titled (37a, according to Scott) but marked 37.
I never thought I was color-blind, is this really a gray-lilac?

Also, what is the significance the straight edge?

Forgot to ask - is this just plain forged or is it just reperfed and 'worked on'?

This stamp appears to be an authentic 37 (or 37a) but has numerous problems. You are correct in that it has been reperfed. It also looks unused, but it is possibly, if not likely, a used stamp that has been washed.

As for the color, I can't help you - I'm color blind. However, the distinction in catalogue numbers is often overlooked or ignored on this stamp simply because there is no difference in catalogue values between the two colors. For collectors with limitations like myself, it will never matter.

Brian

Rileysan - Thank you for your comments. I'm learning to recognize the faults in some of the stamps, perhaps slowly, but at least learning. Why would it have the straight edge? Shouldn't only imperfs have one? I can fully appreciate your color-blindness, I'm tone-deaf. People ask how I can enjoy music. Just fine, thank you - I just don't hear it the same they do. Funny thing, though. They never ask me to sing twice. >;>

lol!




This stamp, like all of the others from the 1851-1857 series, was printed in sheets of 200 stamps with 2 (side-by-side) panes of 100 stamps. The sheets were cut down the middle leaving no perforations on the stamps between the 2 panes. The left pane would have ten stamps (to the right side) with a straight-edge, and the right pane would have ten stamps (to the left side) with a straight edge.

The only photo I can find is from Lester Brookman's books "The United States Postage stamps of the 19th Century". He has a short write-up on the stamp on page 257 of this PDF (available for free on the USPCS website) http://www.uspcs.org/resource-cente...nic-library/






And just for kicks, here's a copy of a 37 "Gray Lilac" from my digital reference library. Fortunately, my wife is tolerant of my collecting and an ace with colors :)




Brian

Rileysan, Your post above is vague. Which sides do you feel are reperfed and why?

It is gray (37a) and it is not a straightedge on the left, the perfs are cut off.

Bill, why would someone cut off the perfs?

littleriverphil - Just a guess or two - because they messed up reperfing? Or, maybe because they trimmed off the excess of the straight-edge?

Or to fake a pane gutter example, that is, faking a stamp that is adjacent to the center gutter that separates the two panes. It would be done if such an example was, at the time of the alteration, actually valued more or perceived to have greater value.

Thanks guys!

John Becker - my turn to guess - top and bottom - the perf holes are different sizes. That would explain a possible reason for it being cut off on the one side - they didn't match them up right. Hey, I know, I'm way over my head, but have to learn to tread water some time.

Rileysan - Thank you for the explanation. I gave up serious reading some years ago, but I'm really going to have to relearn how so I can read the things at the USPCS site, if nothing else. The links from you and dudley have proven that.

Isn't great having someone who's a champ on colors. I know it's very good to have someone to elbow me when I start to hum!