New Guy With A Question.

Hello to get started I have not takin any pictures yet. I will soon though. Since I know nothing about stamps here it goes. I have a post card with a 2 cent stamp..red with george washington. the post mark is 1917 dec. 21. In 1917 if my info is right there were 2 different stamps...#499 and #500 of the red 2c george washington stamp. what is the difference between these 2 stamps. And should I leave this stamp on the post card? What does #499 and #500 stand for?

thank you much!
code AKA new guy

First off. Welcome. It is usually better to leave a stamp on cover (envelope or postcard). I would do so just because it is an older classic issue. #499 is a rose color and #500 is a deep rose color. The earliest known usage for #500 is 12/15/1917 according to my 2006 Scotts specialized. I'll have to dig deeper to find the exact details which differ between the 2 stamps. I hope this helps.

to the SCF new guy!

Just remember that

Hi Sorcecode, depending on which web site you saw those numbers on, they are usually stamp catalog numbers. In the USA and Canada we generally use Scott's Standard Catalog, or Scott, which is numbered from the first printed stamp issued for postal use, #1 being the first stamp issued, etc.

So, if on ebay US (dot com) then the #'s are usually Scott (if the seller is in Great Britain (United Kingdom) the numbers are from the Stanley Gibbon's Catalog or SG). Other countries and regions use different catalogs and numbering systems.

Check on here before buying a used catalog as certain years are better than others.

I do not have a US catalog so I will let others describe the difference between the chaeper stamp and the way expensive one.

Doug