Is This Scott 10A Or 11A?

Is this scott 10a orange brown or 11a orange red? Also any idea of what the black Xs represent? Was the postage due since it was forwarded? Are there recut lines in the triangles? Like one in upper left?

Nice cover.
The stamp would be an 11A likely from plate 1 Late.

I say it's an 11A not based on color but on the worn plate appearance and the recut frame lines that look to me like plate 1 late.
The June postmark gives a good indication that's it's the late plate also.

Stamp is top row plate 1L, 11A.
1 line recut upper left triangle.

Cover was forwarded with 3c due from addressee.

No opinion on Xs. Doodle?

Thanks for all the help guys!! The color is very orange but faded.

I could plate it to confirm but it looks like it is probably one of the positions with the short "TA" of POSTAGE.

Sinclair you state recut frame lines.... do you mean the upper line in the left triangle? or something else?

Winston it sure is, it's 6R1L

SO 6R1L is only found on 11a?

yes, plating is the surest way to identify these

thanks again!

So the mark above the upper right diamond is a characteristic of that position?

I assume you are talking about the guide dot? Almost every top row stamp of the 1851-61 issues have guide dots located near the upper right corner of the stamp. They are all unique in their own way, being put there by hand, even if some seem to be virtually identical. Most are quite distinctive and are very reliable plating marks.

One exception that I better mention is the 10c 1855 stamp. It appears the plate was entered in an upside down orientation and the guide dots are below the lower left corner!

Thanks Sinclair! I was just checking if that is used as an identifier.

From the creases caused by the contents, I'd think that it was over weight. Looks like there were multiple pages. Wonder how long the PM held the cover before the forwarding began?

There was no free forwarding in this era. This is a single weight cover, 3 cents per half ounce. Forwarding required a new postage payment.

From 1851 to April 1, 1855, prepaid was 3 cents and 5 cents collect when due (often see as forwardings). This was to encourage prepaying letters.

For April 1, 1855 and after, prepayment became mandatory, yet there is considerable postage due mail, like this cover, where the rate for forwarding (and mail found to be overweight) was only the 3 cents, thus this cover was mailed in 1855 or later based on the 3 cent rate of the forwarding alone, which should of course match the plating history already discussed.

It would have been forwarded immediately upon knowing to do so.

John, it is almost certainly an 1855 cover.