Cut, Fractional Stamps

Can someone tell me whether stamps that are cut to use as a fraction of the face value are collected and if so how one determines the value. This stamp is Scott #65 and I think it has been cut purposefully. Any observations?

Hellooooo Hobbycar and WELCOME to the forum. These stamps are known as bisects and occur with quite a few countries. The common rule for collecting bisects is to have them either on piece (i.e. with the backing paper from the envelope cut around the stamp and the postmark) or best of all on the original cover; these carry quite a premium on price.

Bisects were often officially sanctioned due to a shortage of particular denominations, and some are even surcharged on either half of the stamp thereby creating two stamps out of one. Unofficial bisects crop up in many countries' early postal history, resulting either from local stamp shortages or from enterprising philatelic enthusiasts creating something with the collusion of the local postmaster.

I can't speak spcifically for Scott #65 but if you can upload an image that would help those who know more about these things than I do.

Hope this helps a little. T

Oops,sorry. Just noticed you already have an image uploaded. This didn't show up on my phone for some reason :-(

They are collected; but they need to be collected on piece with the cut side of the stamp tied by postmark to the paper. Otherwise anyone could take a pair of scissors to just about any stamp, and declare it a valuable bisect.

Also the vast majority of bisects are cleanly and precisely cut diagonally from corner to corner (to stop people, in a situation where bisects were being allowed, cutting a half-cancelled stamp so as to liberate an 'unused' half which could then be used as a bisect when sending a letter of the appropriate rate.)

1000% correct.

I have never seen or heard of #65 being used as a bisect.

Just a note (more of a question?): weren't most bisects cut diagonally lower corner to upper opposite corner? I realize that some were HALVED vertically or horizontally. The photo presented depicts a stamp that appears was badly cut along the left margin. Just seems to be too much stamp for a true bisect.

stamp shown is trimmed....damaged

It is better if the cut side of the bisected stamp is tied by the postmark, but the tie does not need to be on the cut side.
This cover brought $52,500 hammer in a Siegel sale in 2013. It is not tied across the cut side, and has a good PF cert.

If may have a good PF cert., but there are still many advanced collectors who have misgivings about this. I believe it was written up in THE CHRONICLE a few months ago.

Glenn -
yes, there are differing opinions about the cover, but (for the most part) the debate is whether the bisect properly paid an obscure rate (half cent rate for in-state newspapers and periodicals) rather than simply being an underpaid cover, and not whether the bisect was genuinely used on cover.