The PF Didn't Like My Amonette-Identified "Intense Ob" 10A.

This stamp is from an Amonette color chart identified as "Intense Orange Brown." Folks here pointed out that the lightened pen cancel makes this a dubious choice as an example of a premium shade. The PF agreed and returned a cert stating that it is just a normal Orange Brown. All my other Chase or Amonette-identified premium shades of this issue received corroborating PF certs. So.. .does anyone know where I can get an "Intense Orange Brown?"

FWIW, I think this is an "Intense OB," but a bad example - the shade is distinct from my other couple dozen 10/10As.

Sorry to hear that.

At a 10,000 foot level, it sounds like maybe the PF is doing an ok job of expertising 3c colors. I say this empirically, based upon everything working out, except for a rare color, that may have been bleached to lighten the cancel, thus altering its nature a bit.

Then you get to the point of, 'where is the end of the spectrum' for this color variety?

Anyway, good luck finding one. The only two significant imperforate colors I could just not get were: Intense OB, and Pinkish.
I'm sure you will fare better.

Perhaps the peroxide treatments done on these stamps has altered the pen cancel. Like txstamp, I am seeking just the Intense OB and the pinkish. I have examples of all the other shades, including Plum. I'm now looking at the 1861 3c shades, and it is much more difficult to find verified shades. I sent 8 interesting "shades" to the PF, and 7 of them were "rose" despite the clear color differences in them.

yes, and it would be interesting to know if any certification company does expertise the rare 3c 1861 colors, or in other words if McClung does any expertising for any of them (...of the colors and of the companies). I did not find, for example, a lavender pink in the PF search. So if PF and PSE just certify as pink, pigeon blood pink and rose, no need to send some other rare colors.

The PF and PSE (and probably the others) definitely offer shade opinions on the 1861 3c. Jan Hofmeyr's awesome exhibit showcases the shades and explains that the expertizing agencies often disagree on the shades with PSE more often listing "standard" shades than the PF.

Philazilla - ever heard or a medium deep orange brown 10A? Is it the same as an intense orange brown? I have one with an Amonette cert (of sorts) listed as "med-deep orange brown" on cover with cert dated 7/13/99. Will add scan later when I get a chance if you'd like.

Able to squeeze it in now... here it is. There was a note with the cert which you'll see below also. Not sure who wrote it.

Nice stamp - the note is Amonette's - looks like it is "almost" Intense OB. I have a "Medium Deep OB" as identified by Amonette:

Here after a dip in peroxide:



And here before:

Amonette meant that the color was somewhere between medium OB and deep OB.

Phillazilla's stamp is I think from Plate 1E/i... 46R sticks in my head as one of the few C-relief positions. Since the gash probably couldn't survive re-entry, early state is a good guess.

I thought it interesting the description Amonette gave it - "med-deep orange brown". Scott lists an 'orange' and a 'deep orange' brown but no 'medium' deep. Sort of leaves you hanging in between...

Not really a head scratcher. My opinion is that 99%+ of all 3c stamps are in-betweeners.

Chase/Amonette characterized colors in ranges in the spectrum. They used:

Pale to Deep

and

Dull to Bright


"Intense", would be beyond "Deep", so to speak, and is reserved for the Intense OB in terminology.

So on a color chart, you get a whole montage of Orange Browns, progressing from left to right starting with Pale, and progressing to Deep. It is interesting to see each color presented this way, as you can see a full progression of different saturations of the same color.

Many, if not most color charts don't show these full progressions. The Chase, and some of Bill's fancier charts have that, and are very fun to study.