Help Request For France Peace And Commerce Stamp

It appears to me to be Scott #83, 75c car. rose issue of 1876-77. It appears to be unused. A couple of things concern me. First is the heavy hinge on the back. I wonder what it might hide and as you can see in the scan there is some wrinkling, maybe caused by the hinge. I am tempted to just soak off the hinge and press to remove the wrinkles but there is some gum that would be destroyed. I also wonder if someone in the past has cleaned a cancel since there is so much difference in catalog value. viewing the front of the stamp you will notice what looks like smudges at the mans waist and thigh area. That is from the wrinkles. Comments please and what would do? Soak, leave as is???

This a type II. Issued in 1885.
Looks like it has a postmark trace.
I would soak off that heavy old time hinge.
You won't be able to remove those wrinkles.

Scott shows a dp vio. on org 75c issue of 1879-90. Scott #102. Is that what this is? That is the only other typeII I see in Scott. Thanks for your reply...

See here

https://www.timbres-francais.net/ti...te-1885.html

Sounds like I need a new catalog. So what is the value of my stamp? The only reason I was so concerned about not soaking the hinge ( to save gum) was because of the $1700 price tag. Is Yvert & Tellier the go-to for France. Do they have an english version?

The stamp image on the site that GeoffHa provides seems to match your stamp well. Note that Yvert & Tellier identifies the color as rose: much better than Scott's "deep violet."

As for hinge removal: To preserve the gum, consider a sweat box. Alternatively, you can use a small artist's brush to apply water only to the hinge, wait a few moments as the water penetrates, then with tongs or a small pen knife, lift and remove the hinge. Paper hinges may take repeated applications of water and a longer wait for penetration. Good luck!

And yes, for France Yvert & Tellier is the principal authority. Doubt whether there's an English version.

Yvert is fine, but Maury is better. Neither has an English translation. Perhaps your "violet" reference was to the 75c violet on orange.

I concur with the small brush and water to loosen and remove the hinge. As long as you wait long enough for the hinge to loosen completely before lifting it, it won't disturb the paper, and the gum elsewhere on the stamp will also be left. Don't over soak the hinge though, just enough to cover and repeat only if it doesn't get all the way through.

Yes. My reference to violet was the 75c deep violet on orange Scott #102 or deep violet on yellow, Scott #102a. The only other choice for a 75c type II, according to Scott is the 1876-77 issue that I thought I had. I'll bet there a lot of collectors in Scott catalog land that have that stamp in the wrong slot in the album. Thanks for the education.

Since I've never seen a copy of Maury, I'm in no position to question that judgment. But what makes it better? Perhaps it's something that I too should be using.

Maury produces beautiful catalogues, with greater detail than Yvert (which you may or may not want, of course) at a comparable price, at least for mainland France. Its France catalogue is now published by Spink.

For the old French stamps (part1) Maury gives detailed information about usage, cancels that have been used (with prices) etc. So for stamp collectors who want to go deep into french stamps, it's great.
But if you don't speak french, it can be difficult (translate software often doesn't know the philatelistic & impression words)

Thanks to you both. I'll look out for a used copy of Maury. It makes such a difference when one feels that one has the right reference books.