Need Help With 2 Cent Washington

Been going through these things the past 2 days. Not sure but, Is this a 595? I have a 599 for rotary comparison. I found a lot of the 634s 11x10.5. This one appears to be 11 all the way around. What do you think?

To use this as a learning experience:
What characteristics do you see that lean you toward 595?
Why not a 554 instead?
What catalog/webpage are you using to ID your stamps?

The right hand stamp looks like a booklet pane single. The design would not be as wide as the coil design, but it would be slightly wider than a regular 554 sheet stamp design. Also, the quality and appearance of the printing is different.

John, thanks. The books I have are the Mystic and Kenmore catalogs. The reason I didn't think the 554 is that it's a flat plate printed stamp. The one I have is wider like the 599. I'm learning slowly and stuggle often. But this is a lot of fun! I really love this forum. You and others like you help so much. What am I missing on this stamp? All of the knowledge you share is appreciated.

I have no idea what level of information the Mystic or Kenmore catalogs contain. I have not seen either. Getting a Scott US Specialized is a must for doing U.S.

Ok, let's take another step or two. A picture of the reverse side would be helpful. As cfrphoto alludes to, 554's from a sheet and 554's from a booklet are slightly different in the size of the stamp image due to the grain of the paper being turned 90 degrees for printing. 554 sheet stamps are taller and narrower than the 554 booklet stamps which are shorter and wider.

These links might be of some assistance.

http://www.stampsmarter.com/1847usa...ntifier.html

http://www.stampsmarter.com/1847usa...4vs634A.html

Don

Now I see. Flat plate sheets would leave traces of ink on the back of stamps as they were stacked to dry. Lol, still learning.

Bingo! The ink on the back means flat plate - now you are looking at the wider picture.
You have already measured it as perf 11, thus it can only be 554 from a sheet or a booklet.
Neither Scott nor the Stampsmarter site help much with the grain/size difference on sheet vs booklet stamps.

Continuing on, the right side is not straight - it is clearly trimmed from a sheet or booklet. The easiest way to determine which is to compare it against a known 554 or similar flat plate sheet stamp and see if the dimensions are the same or not. This is where making some templates is handy.