Cape Of Good Hope 4d Triangular Identification

Could someone identify these stamps? They probably are #15 (1864), but I am not sure. I have a SACC 26th edition.

I would like to add that there are many varieties of this stamp. 12 in total.

1. 1853 (1855) and 1864 prints
2. White and blue paper
3. Differently aligned watermark
4. Different shades of blue

So it is a little difficult to say which variety you have.

SACC prices it from R600 to R7 500.

Could we please see the backs in the same positions shown?

What is it that makes you think these are the 1864 De La Rue prints?

It was just a guess.

Thanks for the scans. It shows that these are on white paper.

So that's a good guess based on the white paper. But the 1855 Perkins Bacon printing is also on white paper, which I am pretty sure all of these are. The 1864 De La Rue printing used their old plates which show wear. That can be detected as many breaks in the lines behind "CAPE OF GOOD HOPE" and the other tablets where the backgrounds are starting to turn white. There are often minor to major white patches in the background behind the figure.

I would say all the colors are blue, though the lower left one is a bit darker. Dark blues are typically very much darker.

Note the upper right stamp has an expert mark by Dr. Knobke and that's his pencil catalog number noted. I don't know what catalog that might be, perhaps Michel.

I really like the upper left stamp; nice margins and very light cancel.

I agree, that UL stamp is a beauty.

Thanks for the information. So they are #6a in SACC..? The catalog gives 1855 for #6, but there is no year for #6a. There is only 1855-1858 for stamps having white paper.

Now it is 2023, so they are 168 years old...

Stanley Gibbons has been more detailed than SACC even for South Africa (at least in the past) and is also used more in the rest of the world. SG catalog numbers for the blue stamps are #6a, too. No specific date is given in Gibbons either, likely meaning it can be from anywhere in the year range for the issue.

The paper of that time is much higher quality than that of the 1890s through today. Who knows how much longer Cape Triangles will last compared to more modern stamps?