The Mystery Of Irish Stamps (Wrong Colour Or What?)

Hello!
Here are two stamps from Ireland, the one on the left still on piece, the other one is lying next for comparison. This yellow one looks strange to me. Any info?



*** Moved by Staff to a more appropriate forum. ***

Sunshine plus red equals colour fading. I think these designs have been repeated from previous years but I cannot remember a 28c in yellow. I believe most philatelists would think "colour-fade" (especially as it is a used stamp) before going down the road of stamp error.
Other opinions may differ?

Actually I thought about fading too, but the yellow is quite fresh (is is not seen in the photo, I might try a better shot) and very even.

Here is one more attempt to show the same stamp. Looks a better photo to me. The paper does not seem to have been affected by anything.

This is almost certainly some kind of chemical alteration, either by sunlight or a physical application of some product. Putting both stamps under UV might show what occurred.

I'll try to do so.

UV check did not help much. The yellow stamp is on fluorescent paper, the orange is not. Just in case I looked in UV light at some other denominations in the same set: some more stamps clearly respond to UV. A quick look in the catalogs (Scott and Michel)resulted in UV not mentioned. Yet I have no access to the Irish catalog, maybe there is something there. Can someone tell me?

At least three other stamps were printed in yellow in that series. Here is a 50 and a 28 for comparison.



Perhaps it is the way it was posted, but your 28 yellow seems a bit pale which might indicate fading. You could get another value yellow and compare it to your 28c. If it is a genuine error it means there is at least one sheet of stamps out there and maybe another will turn up or at least be reported

The UV check actually told you everything you need to know. The florescence is what tells you that it was chemically altered. The basic stamp in the normal colors is NOT on florescent paper and according to the Scott listings, none of the set are. The yellow one fluoresces because some chemical was applied to it; most modern chemicals fluoresce. That chemical changed the color of the stamp to yellow.

to scotzm
Here is a picture to show that other yellow stamps are not so very far away. Important to note is also the fact that there are two different backgrounds mentioned in catalogs (larger raster, I think it is bleaker, and smoother raster, seems brighter).
Now as to more in existance, not necessarily a full sheet...
Whether someone else owns or at least has seen similar is exactly what I'd like to find out.

revcollector
In fact the UV solution does not seem convincing, as some other denominations in the same set show even stronger fluorescence, including one mint which I incidentally have (I collect used). The absence of UV info in Scott does not mean anything either, as it is

not so detailed, outside of the US stamps. My UV thing is small and not poweful, that is why the photos I enclose do not look impressive enough. I am sure lots of people have better devices and can check these stamps independently.

Here is one more shot with the stamp in question posing in the centre.

Look at the obvious difference between the center stamp and the other two! It's clearly been cleaned with something. Put that stamp in between two 28p stamps and it will be even more obvious.

I tried to photograph the yellow 28p stamps with three 28p orange, they look nearly the same in the shot, though in reality the yellow one does get shinier in UV. Meanwhile I checked all the yellow ones in the set, they shine exactly the same. Also please look again at the shot above where the lilac (mint) shows similar response.
And what is the point of chemical treatment? This stamp I found in a bulk purchase of worldwide cut-outs bought some 4-5 years ago. It must be something else which might come clear if more people check their own stocks.

Who knows. Something spilled on it accidentally and was wiped up before the stamp soaked off the envelope. Someone playing games because they felt like it.

It's a 22 year old stamp from a large set issued by a popularly collected country. A major color error would almost certainly have been discovered by now if it existed in such a generally popular country.

If you want think "it must be something else", go right ahead.

I only want to find information which is objective and unbiased. I make no statements. On the other hand even now some folks find flaws in stamps issued 100 years ago, which have remained unnoticed by most collectors.
Did you have a look at your own stamps using UV? You'd see, things are not so simple.