Canada Imperial Penny Postage (Xmas Map)

Quite a while ago I acquired the stamps (below) from various dealers whom I no longer remember.
#85 (lavender) & #85i (grey)


#86 (blue) & #86b (deep blue)



In previewing them I'd say the colours are pretty accurate.

However, they are NOT the same colours as when I bought them!
The second looks coppery, the last is grey. No lavender. No blue.
They have been sitting in an album for years.
What happened? Is this normal?

Apparently the colours in this issue were somewhat unstable - hence the colour varieties. And BTW it is not an Xmas stamp *]

Really..??...What would you call it..??

Wert, Wert, don't distract from the topic at hand, please. (It says "Xmas 1898" right on it.)

If these colours are unstable, how does one collect them? I mean, that last one was a lovely deep blue when I bought it. It had been deep blue since 1898 - 116 years! Five years in my album and - poof!
And how could I ever sell a "gold" variety?

Help!

This study entitled "Oxidation of the Map Stamp" may be helpful reading:

http://www.philatelicspecialistssoc...z_f1p1.shtml

sak...Sorry my friend...Isnt there only 4 shades of this particular stamp..??

Maybe a bit of oxidization thrown into the mix..?

The great things about 'conversations' is the different directions they can take.
Re: the Xmas issue, our friend jarnick recently posted on the 'What's Canada's best looking stamp?' thread,

"According to legend, when the design for the Imperial Penny Postage issue of 1898 was shown to Queen Victoria for her approval, the comment was made that the stamp would be issued on the Prince's birthday, i.e. the Prince of Wales with whom the Queen was having difficulties. Her icy reply was "And what prince would that be?"
Quick thinking resulted in a reply "Why, the Prince of Peace, of course." Thus, the addition of XMAS 1898 to the design."

Just thought is was timely to add that to this discussion. This stamp has sparked numerous debates on this forum before, for just that reason.
Back to the discussion at hand, great examples of oxidation. They would make a distinctive page in an album, with the pertinent information.

Peroxide will remove gum. What you buy in a store is mostly water. The concentration of hydrogen peroxide is 3% in a fresh bottle. It looses potency over time especially if not properly stored.

Okay, so... my #85i (grey) MNH VF has a CV of $60 plus 150% = $150.
If I peroxide it, the CV plummets to, what? $20-30?
However, it must be useless as "copper", right?

wt1's link shows these stamps nicely restored (on the front).

So I'll peroxide them - unless I hear some strenuous objections.
(and post the results.)

Can you try peroxide the front only? (with a brush) This way, you may be able to save the gum?

Gilles le timbre..Dont think that is a good idea...The peroxide would bleed through to the back of the stamp and gum and might lift off..Know what I mean..?

Sak
There is varieties called muddy waters as well as golden pond which your copper seems to exhibit. Granted the varieties are most likely from oxidation . If yours are MNH I would leave alone with the peroxide. If anything I could see a getting a premium on that copper example. Now that they are changelings that doesnt help filling the 4 standard colors from the catalog though. If you pick up more examples of the standard colors maybe hingeless mounts will keep them from changing.
Anyone have a good explanation why these would change this much sealed in an album?

Nitrolures... thanks very much for your thoughts.
After a hundred years they suddenly oxidize within five years
I'm sure I'm not the only one keeping the stamps in a blank stock page (black with plastic fronts.)
And my 3¢ carmine VR numeral looks a lot like Wert's dog (above)

Further ideas:
I collect for the beauty of the stamps, not the value.
If the peroxide works, only I will know there's no gum until somebody gets them in my will!
(Then I won't care!)
But I can't keep them in my album looking like that.

I do appreciate everyone's opinion.

Environment plays a part in keeping stamp safe. If you have high humidity in your storage area it can have all kinds of affects on stamps. Clean hands also help when handling stamps. Sun light or high ultra violet exposure from flourescent lighting for long periods of time will fade stamps. There are fungi and microscopic animals that can grow on or eat the materials stamps are made of. Opening and examining your stamp albums and paging through them on a regular basis might help prevent some storage problems. If you buy new stamps you might want to quarantine them for a short time before mounting them in an album. I have seen several horror stories over the years where someone mounted a stamp in an album just to see there stamps slowly disappear because a small microscopic organism started eating them. Not sure what is causing your problem with color change but if you find it spreading I would isolate those stamps in case it might be spreading through your album. Just a thought and a word of caution.

Let me know what you might want for those versions if you decide to replace. The fact they only change colors in the water make them interesting and odd and I like odd. The peroxide will work but would be a shame to wash away that tone. Try one of the laveneder/blue shades first and the color should come back. The only thing I would be concerned with is if the red spots may bleed so maybe a test on a used less desirable one first. Keep us posted with pics as these experiments are fun to follow.

Rats, Nitrolures! Another consideration!

Well... to replace would be... value around $200 VF H.
I would need to find a deal. I've looked a bit on ebay. It might be the place to try.

(I see that the "lavenders" are all grey - like my #17a violet mentioned before.)

If you (all) had to replace the four, where would you look?

Thanks for your opinions.