What Could Have Made The ''3'' Of This #25 Look Like This?

Hi Darth, Not every variation of ink on a stamp constitutes a re-entry. Ralph Trimble has a part of his web site dedicated to images and terms of various inking flaws. These are at: http://www.re-entries.com/terms.html . The terms describe various inking anomalies and many are not considered re-entries. At the magnification you are looking at these stamps almost everything will have an odd inking bulge or uneven line. These could be caused by a re-entry if they are a separate and defined line mimicking a design element. Other anomalies could be ink bleed in the paper, ink pulls, actual small design flaws. Many of the early stamps were done with hand engraving so the cutting of the die was not precise. Plate damage and wear also occur. This is just a short list of what might be found. Just remember every small inking anomaly is not necessarily a re-entry. Keep posting your finds as you are bound to find other re-entries. New plate flaws and re-entries are being found fairly often especially with the tools we have today to examine stamps with.

Mike

I read these threads on occasion, not much. I have to remind myself it is a chatboard for show-and-tell and fun discussion. I have known there are some cool retouches to the #25 for years, it is interesting to see a bit of the subject emerging. Most of them are minor, of academic interest, because you have to look hard for them.

May I suggest:

1) any cancel information should be recorded that helps identify period of use.

2) paper type and shade will help narrow printing period. There were at least three plates used, possibly more. This is important. Has anyone ever seen a goatee on a #33? There is a reason. It may or may not exist.

3) extreme blow-up scans with the variety drawn-in with a Sharpie - please do not do that. If I cannot see it with my eye, I doubt it will be of interest to many collectors.

4) a dot is just a dot until it is proven to be reproduced on many stamps.

Anyway, have fun, just be careful in reporting new finds. Not every anomaly is a re-entry, in fact very few are.

Well said ArcherG.