Russia W/ Overprint: Please Identify

Hello,
I saw this stamp online and would like to know more about it please.

Is it early 1900's?
Semi-Postal?
What is the overprint?
Scott Number?
Thank you so much,
SueStamps

I would say it is a revenue stamp "Foreign Exchange". Not in my Scott.

This is an uneducated guess, but some of the text under the overprint resembles text on stamps of Azerbiajan. But it doesn't appear in my Scott's under that either. Could this be a BOB Azerbaijan overprinted for Russian occupation?
Shot in the dark.

SueStamps,

the basic (unoverprinted) stamp is from the imperial-period War Charity semi-postals of 1914. These were overprinted in 1925 to convert them into "philatelic exchange" stamps. They were attached to the back of envelopes with philatelic sendings, the charge being levied depending on the catalogue value of the material being sent (the Yvert & Tellier French catalogue being used for this value estimation).

They are unlisted in Scott, but listed in Michel and in Russian catalogues. Below is the relevant page from the Russian Lyapin catalogue (prices in Euros):



Here is an example (from my collection) of how these stamps were used:

Thank you all for your replies!
Especial thanks to vasia! ! !



I must say I am bummed and excited all at once, bummed because Scott did not have this stamp listed, but excited at the thought of purchasing more stamp catalogs.

Does Michel catalogs have many volumes?
And, what is the name of the Russian catalog?

Thank you soooooooo much!
I am thrilled with this information.
SueStamps

SueStamps,

Michel publishes many specialized catalogues, including ones for Eastern Europe or even just for Russia / Soviet Union. Here is a list of their catalogues from the Lindner site (it is in English, so I thought it would be easier to navigate):

http://www.lindner-original.de/shop...-michel.html

The Russian catalogue I was quoting from is the Lyapin (Liapin) "The catalogue of the postage stamps of Russia, 1856-1991"). You can find hard copy or digital (PDF) versions on ebay.

Thank you so much for the information and link vasia.
I will check it out for sure!


Thanks again,
SueStamps