Cracked Plate Or Ink Smear?

Hi

The Scott Catalog for R65, the 70 cent first issue revenue series stamp, also lists a plate variety as a crack plate.

I searched this website, what little I could find, if I read it correctly (?), most members think this is not a plate variety but is an Ink Smear.

See my camera images, and the arrow(s) pointing to the Area of Interest (AI).

My question to all members, what is your opinion, is the Scott reported plate variety cracked plate, or maybe you believe it is an ink smear, or maybe your opinion is that it is something else?

If your opinion is its something else, what do you think it is and what caused it?

My first camera image is the AI for this item in question, see arrow(s).




My second camera image is the AI for the location without the item in question see arrow(s).




While my camera images are not very clear (difficult to focus), the images are functional.

Bottom line, what is your opinion, is the item in questions a cracked plate, or maybe ink smear, or maybe something else?

Stampmaster

That does not look like any plate crack I have ever seen. My money is on some sort of smear.
The second stamp has something that I do not recognize.
A solution to a camera that is hard to focus: go to the scanner.

Peter

Hi Peter4522, ok you say some sort of smear.

Thanks

Stampmaster

I don't know I'm not much of a fs but I will take a guess on the second stamp. It looks like nothing more than a contaminated plate.

Now on the first one I will shoot from the hip. My guess is probably most of the cracked plate stamps have been identified. If this stamp isn't known for cracked plates I doubt there would only be one stamp with a cracked plate.

I've always assumed this was the cracked plate referred to in the Scott catalogs. Whatever the mark is, it is extremely common. Around 1/2 of all the R65c listed on ebay have this mark in various degrees. It's almost harder to find one without the mark than with.

Revhound, are you referring to the first or the second picture?

Peter

That line shows up very frequently on the 70 cent, far too often to be the cracked plate especially since it never changes. I have never read or heard a satisfactory explanation for the line.

Hi Revhound, I've also noticed this line in various degrees, but doubt it is progressive in nature, would you agree?

Hi revcollector, we agree, I've never heard of a satisfactory explanation either.

Hi all, its interesting, I have 20 of the R65, and 15 shows this line and 5 do not.

Stampmaster

I would argue that the line is present in both pics above. In the second pic, you can clearly see the line. There is just no color ink uptake, but you can definitely make out a "lightened" area where the line is in the first pic. You even have it marked with arrows.

If it isn't progressive, stampmaster, what could it be? It goes from no line, to a line with no color uptake, to progressively darker examples. Seems progressive to me.

Hi RevHound, your eyes are superior to mine. You make an interesting point, but way above my experience level.

A bad joke, I could call it the "Missing Line".

Thanks for you insights.

Stampmaster

The ink at the top of the stamp is fairly constant in the later stamps. The "crack" is at the bottom of the stamp, position 52.

Hi lackemacher, thanks for your information.

You said the crack on your stamp is position 52, what is the reference or book that lists this position 52?

Stampmaster