Penny Black Pasted On Used Mulready?

It looks like the stamp was pasted on the used Mulready and there is no cancellation tying the stamp to the cover. A bit of the Maltese cross under the penny black has been revealed to the right of the stamp. I suspect that a faulty penny black was stuck onto the cover for the purposes of covering the flaws in the stamp and enhancing the value of the cover, what do you guys think?

It's not 100% convincing but it's something you'd have to see with your own eyes I'd say.

A number of people watching this item, but no one dares to commit to buying.

Anyone know the letter rate 1840, England to Ireland?

1d per 1/2 oz.
2d per oz

You have to examine it closely. Odd that the penny black was pasted over Britania's image that way. If the Mulready went through previous to the stamp being applied, it would have received a MX cancellation that would likely be peaking out from under the stamp. On the other hand, the MX usually ties the stamp to the cover.

I wouldn't buy it without the ability to return it if a certificate came back negative.
C.

The best one can say is that it cannot be verified as a genuine uprated usage. The right lobe of the MC should tie the PB to the cover but is missing, and as a prior post suggests, the position of the stamp over Britannia is wrong.

I found another Mulready sent to Ireland without additional postage, so there is no reason for a penny stamp to be pasted on the Mulready unless the weight exceeded 1/2 oz.

The most telling sign that the stamp was posted after use is the red on Britannia's arm. There must be a Maltese cross cancellation under the stamp. There is also a crease running down the middle of the cover, so the stamp should by right have a crease line.

Thanks Chip, looked through my letter rates, and dashed if I could see it confirmed.
That was a fabulous letter rate for distance / terrain covered.

It looks contrived to my eye, likely as Penyblackie suggests in his original post. Perhaps by some unknowledgeable collector in the past who did not know that a Mulready does not need a stamp.