Just Stray Ink Or Double Transfer On This #120

Title pretty much says it all. I'm thinking just stray ink but I've never seen an example of the Scott 120 double transfer listed in Scott's catalogue. I'm referring to the markings in "TWEN" of Twenty. Opinions please.

This stamp looks very small, and the perfs look pretty funny. Also the impression is very strong. I think it might well be a proof with added perfs, possibly used. Also possibly a fake cancel in an attempt to disguise it. The ink is probably extraneous.

Thanks Rev. The perfs did look doctored. Was just curious about that ink.

Looks like ink (smear - poor wiping)) which is also present in the design above and below the "TWE" of the "TWEN" you mention. The enlarged image here on SCF shows it well. The color areas would be a bit sharper if a DT, but here the color is diffuse or spread.

I also lean towards a perfed proof. I have no comment on the validity or non-validity of the cancel.

If someone doctored a proof they could have centered it better. Just saying.

They could have, but too much better and more people would be looking at it. This way, it is just nice enough for many collectors without being so good that the collectors who go for serious centering would get interested. Those collectors tend to examine stamps more closely, and might ask very knowledgeable people for an opinion.

I just am not buying somebody taking a $140 proof, shaving it, adding perfs while ensuring that the centering is so-so and applying a cork cancel. It would be easier (and likely cheaper) to just take a damaged 120 and doctor it up.

Need to see the back.

It's $140 TODAY. Things like this were being done 100+ years ago, and every year since. We don't know when it was done.

To address the original question, it looks like stray ink to me. The older practice of printing stamps was pretty messy and there was a need to wipe off excess ink all the time, but it didn't always get done soon enough. This looks to me like a little excess ink got on this stamp.

As for "proof" vs. "stamp" I'll leave that to more knowledgeable people, but it doesn't scream "PROOF!" to me, anyway. If it is, it falls under the interesting category of "Let's make this stamp look so much like a typical stamp no one will likely guess it was once a proof". If you really, really care, you can run it by an expertizing service but it'll cost you. I wouldn't bother. It just looks nice, and that's good enough for me.

Do some comparisons. Look at the difference in the perfs.....

http://pfsearch.org/pfsearch/pf_grd...lledfrom=lkp