US Inter. Rev. 2c With Grill??

Hello,
I found this curiosity and wanted to know whether revenue stamps like this were ever given a grill like this?
Or is this a type of cancellation?
It looks unused otherwise.

It is an embossed cancel.
Don

This type of embossing was frequently used over signatures on checks. If the stamp happened to be placed near that area, it got embossed as well.

I've always called this style a "waffle" cancel.

I am dying to find an illegally used RB23 battleship proprietary revenue with a "waffle"/"embossed" cancel or some sort of "cut" cancel on it... most unlikely that I will ever find one due to the RB23 being a 5/8 cent denomination... much more likely that an ill-used 1 or 2 cent or higher denominated proprietary battle have had such a cancel bestowed on them.

BattleshipRB23, that is going to be very, very tough. You can find the documentary battleships used illegally as postage on covers relatively easily. The proprietary battleships are much, much less common, and the fractional denominations are virtually impossible to find. Add to that the requirement that it be waffle canceled, and I would say it doesn't exist, as the waffle cancel was used exclusively on checks, where the 5/8 cent denomination wouldn't make sense to have been affixed... actually ANY illegal use of RB23 would be scarce as hen's teeth.

Regarding illegal use of proprietary battleships, in totality I have seven: RB21 used as postage on cover, RB24 on cover, RB24p on cover, two examples of RB27 on cover, a first-day-of-tax usage of RB27p on a check, and a block of 4 of RB28 used as documentaries paying 10 cents tax on a marriage license.

@revenuecollector
Concur, a total pipe dream for sure! But one loves to hope... LOL.

Thank you for sharing that info. How about cut aka "paper penetrating" cancels (perfin; punch; herringbone; concentric circle; parallel line) on a RB23... possible?

I have been told that some bisects of RB23 have been seen which I find really puzzling if at all true. What is half of 5/8ths? LOL. Split up into eighths then?

Ron or Bart would be better qualified to answer that question than I, but IMO very unlikely, as RB23 was used on proprietary merchandise rather than documents (I believe), so handstamp, printed, and manuscript cancels presumably would have been the norm.

@revenuecollector - I just viewed that illegal use cover with the 1/4 cent proprietary (RB21) on your webpage, neat! Very strange that a fractional made it that far!

Half of 5/8 would have been slightly over 1/4 cent. So in theory it is possible it was used in that manner. Just as in theory a block of four 5/8 cent stamps could have been used to slightly overpay 2 cents, or 9 could pay a 5 cent rate.

@revcollector - apologies good sir, I didn't communicate that very well. This was/is in regards to an illegal "postage" usage of RB21 (1/4 cent) on a cover displayed on revenuecollector's website; please see here https://revenue-collector.com/pages/4147.html

So now that I know perfin cancellations on RB23 DO exist...


And this before mentioned RB21 illegal usage cover (belonging to and in the care of revenuecollector) has fueled hopes of my too finding a RB23 5/8 cent on cover... one can dream.