Can You Precisely Identify This 15c Webster Without Seeing The Real Stamp, Please?

At this point, I don't have access to any color calibrated scanner or digital camera, until next week. So, can you accurately identify the stamp without being sure about the color shade, please?

My best guess is Scott 189, American Banknote Company printing.

Looks like soft paper to me too. I'm with Bill on this one.

Yes, it is soft paper and this oval grid cancellation with a numeral or a letter was introduced in 1876, I believe.
The question would be how to differentiate this design between the common Scott#189 and the Special Print Scott#199 without being sure about the color, please?

Is this a game where you pose questions and already know the answer? So unless you already have a certificate stating the stamp is #189, then see if you can guess the answer to your new question.

Hy-brasil, the problem I have is to find an accurate way to differentiate between #189 and #199 without establishing what shade of orange the stamp is.
If you are in anyway uncomfortable with my post, then you can simply ignore it, of course

Nope, you don't get away that easily.

There is no accurate way for you to determine what stamp this is without establishing the color. Suggest you send this in for certification to convince yourself. However, from what I can see here, it is a #189.

Oh, I will send it at a certain point. But only after I manage to find myself the 'Encyclopedia of Colors ...' by Roy White
No way for me to send a stamp for certification without being reasonably sure about what exactly it really is

Hy-brasil, I live in UK and here no private collection seems to include a certified #199. ... The only one would be the Royal Collection, apparently, but the direct number of Her Majesty THE Queen doesn't appear in my personal phonebook, unfortunately

Aug:

199 is special printing, less than 40 certified copies in world?
It is not known to ever been used, so I believe cancellation alone disqualifies it.
Otherwise you have the only known used copy in existence I think.
Don't waste your time, or money.

Rg

if I saw it correctly, no soft paper special printing (of any denomination) has ever been certified as genuine used.

my opinion is that it can't be certified as there is no or too small difference between the special printings and the normal issue, so the certifications for the unused items is much more easy as it's just to check that there is no trace of cancel and no trace of gum, nice centering and good (not proof-like) impression, and of course a color that is at least not totally wrong. colors change over 100 years, so I can't imagine being color the only relevant difference here.

could anyone with more knowledge about the special printings confirm this?

after all, what always helps in these cases, aug-stamps, is truth here :):
https://goscf.com/t/59325#521932

Stamperix, so far I read very carefully about a dozen materials (including classic works of Luff, Brookman, Waterhouse, Weiss etc.).
My point is that these Special Prints series were, at the time of their issue, presenting themselves as their common counterparts - with little or no warning to the public about them being special. Corroborated with the 'secret marks' which might have not really been intentional (but rather the result of natural fatigue of the dies) I believe it is reasonable to consider that some of them were, actually, used as regular stamps, on mail.
If I have a good memory, a 24c of an earlier Special was certified by PF. So, the precedent exists.

If it was issued without gum (which it was-NGAI) are you making theory that somebody added gum to it or taped it to an envelope to allow it to be used. Interesting hypothesis, tough to prove.

Have you read William Mooz on The 1875 Special Printing Program? In this USPCS Chronile atticle, figure 3 is the Initial Post Office Department notice of 1875 offering specimens for sale to the public. Which includes instructions on the purchace of the stamps and where to apply, namely the office of the 3rd Postmaster General in Washington DC.
"Appcicants will also suffient amout for return postage and registry fee." (10c)

http://chronicle.uspcs.org/PDF/Chro...01/12518.pdf

In this article Mr Mooz writes of the 1880 Special Printing.

There is an index for the Chroicle in the middle of this article that you'll need to scroll past to get to the 1879 series.

http://chronicle.uspcs.org/pdf/Chro...81/11878.pdf

In these two article it will be seen that as these stamps were created for Collectors (Stamp Catherers)and that there was ample press of their avaibility.

No question 189...Deeper orange, "fuzzy "perfs...soft paper!

Littleriverphil, yes, I did. And there was supposed to be a carefully kept record of all the buyers, apparently. Unfortunately, none of the publicly available information seems to confirm those facts - invoices, bookkeeping data, entry books, internal correspondence of Post Department etc.
Given the blanket under which occurred the contracting and the collaboration with external suppliers, everything is possible ...