HI Folks Is The Year 1854? Is This Stamp USA #11?

Please see if anyone can id the year and the stamp. Thanks

This is Scott #11, probably plate position 10R7, "Gash on Shoulder" variety, almost certainly used in 1856 or 1857 (definitely not earlier). Nice margins!

It looks like an 11, though I`m no expert.

What is a "Gash on Shoulder" variety? I was trying to read the year on the postmark, maybe its 1856 then?

Was the year identified on postmarks at this time?

The "Gash on Shoulder" resulted from damage to the transfer roll used to make impressions on the printing plate. It is the curved line on the top of the button on Washington's shoulder. This is also known as relief C, and it appears on more than 80 of the 2600 total 3-cent imperforate positions.

Plate 7 wasn't put to use until about February of 1856. Philadelphia switched from blue to black cancel ink on about January 14th, 1854.

At the bottom of the postmark, where it looks like "1854," is Pa (Pennsylvania).

http://www.uspcs.org/the-1851-1860-...t-10-and-11/

Year dates in the postmark are known for all years of the 1851 to 1857 3-cent imperforate issue. 1857 year-date postmarks are pretty common on #11, but not #11A. Catalog premiums start to rise significantly for year dates of 1855 and earlier.

There is no year in the postmark on the first stamp.
It reads "Philadelphia Pa" and "Mar 18"

I don't have the references to tell you what years that particular postmark was in use, but there is no year date to discern from the postmark, itself. You can probably find a copy of the reference on Philadelphia postmarks if you dig a bit. (A Catalog of Philadelphia Postmarks 18th Century to the Present, by Tom Clarke)

It looks like May 19 to me.

Thanks for the Clarke reference.

Post-1857 year-date postmarks are known on the 1851 to 1857 3-cent imperforates. Here are 1858 and 1859 examples from Janesville, Wisconsin and Montpelier, Vermont:

You're right.
I was thinking more about the Philadelphia Pa and the reference, and barely gave a glance at the center, other than to note that there was no year date.

Good luck tracking down the books.
C.

Thanks all, fantastic infos. I can now see as per stated in replies the bottom of the CDS is PA and not a year marking. Here is the link to the item its now on sale with a couple of other washingtons

http://www.ebay.com/itm/c1856-USA-C...STRK:MESE:IT