Finished Plate 8R Top Row!

Not a great copy, but it is 10R8, a double transfer, and completes the right side of the top row of Plate 8 of the 1857 1c for me. You can see the double transfer well here, with the vertical scribe marks in the far upper left corner, and the doubling of Ornament "S" in the extreme upper left corner. You can tell that it's a double transfer in the scribe line, because there are only supposed to be 2 lines, and there are plainly 3 very heavy lines here:


Enjoy....Ray

Congratulations on finding all of the top row of plate 8R!

I find very little enjoyment in obtaining a "high quality" copy of any particular stamp. I truly enjoy identifying a difficult to find stamp using what I have learned.

Congrats again!

Well done, lad!

Congratulations! What's the next challenge?

Over 50% completing the top row of all of the Type V and Va plates....and would love to complete Plate 5 in my lifetime... :)

If anyone on the board has extra copies of A relief Type V/Va's, I do have positions to trade, including some Va dups...please feel free to send me a list of what you have!

Thanks, Ray

I don't have any to trade that you need, but your endeavor intrigues me.

I know that Winston Sinclair is trying to recreate plate 5.

I am not a heavily invested student in this stamp so I wonder, what are the "holy grails" of current research into it? Are current efforts intended to assist in identification beyond Neinken's illustrations? I know that Richard Doporto http://www.slingshotvenus.com/Frank...hv_Main.html has set up a database of images that are nearly invaluable to help identify plate positions. Richard's database of images is not complete, so I understand the great need to complete it for philately's sake.

Beyond those measures, what aspect of these stamps needs further research?

I absolutely understand the satisfaction of the personal accomplishment of plate recreation. I wish to know more about other aspects of this stamp that need further research.

Probably the current Great Unknown of this stamp issue would be Plate 11--there has been very little progress toward plating here. There is also room for research on how certain well-known varieties were created, with implications for greater understanding of stamp production methods of the time. David Zlowe has begun what promises to be a series of intriguing articles in the Chronicle regarding plate bruises and other irregular features that can be used to identify these stamps.

Still room after all these years to add to the body of knowledge here.

Agree with Dudley on Plate 11 for sure, but I might add that Plate 3 isn't 100% complete yet, and no one has ever positively ID'd stamps from Plate 6.

And, there are always many different plate positions on some of the plates that Neinken does not list and states that they do not have plating marks. Many of these positions have been found and do have plating marks, as shown on Richard Doporto's site. So there is always room for improvement.

Plate 11 is the great abyss, and with a lack of pairs, strips and blocks needed to recreate the plate, it may never be completed.

All in all, just a fascinating stamp to study and get to know. Can devote all of one's efforts to this stamp, and still never learn everything about it....

Ray

I think it has been ascertained definitively that no plate numbered 6 was ever put into production. Probably was prepared but defective.

One can assume that there are still discoveries to be made in the postal history realm as well, such as the unique bisect paying the one-half cent intrastate newspaper rate that came to light just a few years ago.