233ii 3 Cent King George VI Mufti - Variety Of Cracked Ear?

This is a close up scan of the cracked ear variety.
To me, it appears as a thin-edged circle with a solid blob in the top half and just a partial outline of the bottom arc of the circle.


This is a second stamp with what appears to be a complete thin-edged circle without the solid blob in the top half and a more complete bottom arc.


Both marks are in the same area of the ear and both have a single dot in the centre of the circle.

Is it possible that mine is a variation of the true variety?

Any comments would be appreciated.

Knowing nothing at all about this stamp, I have to say that the difference is dramatic.

This is something that Dr. Jim Watt would be interested in. He does have great knowledge of the more modern varieties, as opposed to the Victorian era stamps.

I don't kmow who Dr. Jim Watt is.

SOe people on this site know him. I will try to ask him about this variety.

BlackJag,

Well, I knew he would be interested. His immediate response was:

Well........fascinating, potentially a "corrected cracked ear" variety.
Never seen another one. Now the hunt is on.
Most plate blocks of plate 3 are not blocks of ten just four so of course PP#18 is torn off.
Jim

If you can post a scan of the complete stamp with just the outline of the Cracked Ear, I'd like to send this to him.

Further email from Dr Jim Watt -

There were so many mufti plates that it's conceivable we missed a retouched variey. But we need a confirming one. Until you find two
It's just a $5 variety.

Thanks, Jim

interesting BlackJag...I will be seeing Jim at our stamp club...will ask him more about it.
Will have to check mine now.

Robert