Please Help With Info On Five German Stamps.

Hello All,

I have completed the categorizing of my German stamps.
But five of these still present some questions for me.
Please help with any info you may have.

#1. is a Scott #30. It has a normal black cancel but it also has a red cancel or circular overprint. What is the red lettering?

#2. I think this is a Scott A39a #O43. Perfs and watermark match up. My 1989 catalog value has it listed as $70.00 Have I identified this stamp correctly?

#3. This may be a Scott # 393. The upper left cancel resembles that of a CTO type. Is it?
And, is the horn; part of a cancel or an overprint?

#4. I have this stamp listed as German Scott # 416. But part of the cancel says Baden.
This stamp is not listed under Baden. So have I listed this #416 correctly?

#5. is from Upper Silesia, Scott # O40. The overprint is suppose to be C.G.H.S.
But the C is missing. What would be the proper term to use in describing this stamp?

Thanks for any input,
HTx

Htx: The first stamp has a US receiving cancel PAID ALL NEW YORK..
The second stamp is Michel catalog n..327A with DIENSTMARKE or "official"overprint,1923.

Stamp # 3. The posthorn is part of the cancel, and I do not believe it is a CTO.
Stamp # 4. Looks like the word "Baden" is also part of a cancel, just like # 3.
I am not familiar with the last stamp, but I would call it a shifted overprint.


Peter

For any German stamp valued higher in used condition than mint, such as the official stamp in your pictures, the postmark is automatically considered suspect. Used inflation issues with a significant catalog value are only worth that much if the postmarks are authenticated. Without authentication the stamps are basically worth the same as mint hinged. At least it's that way in Germany, but I do see collectors buying un-authenticated issues like that on ebay USA at times. Unless they're knowledgeable enough to "self-expertize", they'll be in for a rude awakening when it's time to sell.

The last stamp is for official use in Prussia. SC# OL10 issued 1920

I saw the red text but it didn't click until it was pointed out to me. WOW..I should've had a V8.
Those clarifications on the 'Baden and horn' cancellations helped confirm my thoughts.
And I appreciate the possibility of a suspect cancel and the proper terminology of shifted overprint.
At least now I am assured that I have identified and can list them correctly.

I have read many times on this forum about the need for certification on stamps.
What I do not know and what I have never read on these forums is how much a cert may cost or how to go about getting one.
I need the book "Certifications for Dummies".
If the average certification cost is more than the value of the stamp not much sense in further investigation.
Just as around about figure on average what does a cert for a stamp, or a cancel cost ?

Anyway
Thank-you All for your helpful and insightful information.
HTx

Certification costs are usually based on catalog value and vary from a minimum of $25 or so on up to hundreds of dollars for high ticket items. It's probably not worth it for middling-value issues such as the used German inflation issue, as even expertized issues probably won't bring full catalog value in most cases. Also keep in mind that if you're finding such stamps randomly, there's a pretty good chance the cancel is fake (though not necessarily so), in which case you'd be left with a worthless stamp and you're out the fee.

Edited to add the last item is actually from Upper Silesia. There's a partial C.G.H.S. (Commission de Gouvernement Haute Silesie) overprint which was printed on official stamps of that territory.

http://www.stamp-collecting-world.c...fficial.html

@TheArtfulHinge
Thanks for the follow-up answer and link.

HTx

As a follow-up to TheArtfulHinger's information on the last stamp, these overprinted stamps were used in Upper Silesia ( an area of Germany...part of the province of Silesia) following World War I. The stamps were overprinted because Upper Silesia was required by the victorious allies to hold a plebiscite (vote) to see whether areas would be retained by Germany, or lost to Poland. Germany lost some areas of Upper Silesia to the new Polish state.

You can find these overprints inverted, sideways, and misprinted, such as yours is. These varieties are not valuable or rare, but are interesting to the specialist.

Following World War II, Germany lost all of Upper Silesia, and almost all of Silesia.

Regarding your first stamp (the violet 5 pfennige), That is nice receiving cancel on this stamp. You are much more likely to see a red French receiving cancel placed directly on an early German stamp. I don't remember ever having seen a New York receiving cancel placed on top of the stamp in this manner. Condition is an issue, but this is a "keeper" regardless.

Sorry I'm late to the party...

1. Scott 30 / Michel 32. Cancel is Chemnitz I / Sachs 1.

2. Scott O43 / Michel 85. Cancel is from Wurzen, but based on the date of use and postage rates in effect at that time, it's probably not a legitimate cancel.

3. Based on the color, probably not Scott 393 / Michel 469. That issue is more orange. Could be Scott 406 / Michel 487 or Scott 422 / Michel 519 X depending on the watermark.

Cancel is Bochmann MS 112, a common machine cancel from the mid-1930s. Translates as "Get your postal traveler's checks in time!"



4. Could be Scott 401 / Michel 482 or Scott 416 / Michel 513 X, depending on the watermark.

Cancel is Bochmann Wiesbaden 27. It was used in Wiesbaden from 1934-1936. The text translates as "Wiesbaden against rheumatism and gout. The beautiful living and bathing town".



5. Upper Silesia Scott O40 / Michel 24.

@PostmasterGS

The color of my
stamp #393 is much more orange than my scan shows.
I have an older Canon printer/scanner so the color is definitely off.
The color of my stamp looks very much the same color orange that you show on your cancel example.

I looked for a watermark on what I think is a scott #393.
There is no watermark of any kind on the back that I can see.
My book shows that stamp #393 should have a watermark #126 but my stamp has none. Is it still a #393 ?

It is. That particular issue is often found with weak, almost non-existant watermarks due to a defect in the watermark drum during certain production runs.

Thank you very much for your help and quick reply.

Htx