1840 Penny Black (Kb) Mounted With Certificate

Hi,

I have had this stamp 1840 Penny Black (KB), one of many, I inherited from my Father and thought I'd have it checked. Can anyone tell meanything about this stamp and its value and how to understand what to look for please?

Thanks for the help

Hello. A good 1d black with four clear margins - i.e., clear around the design - will, in general, fetch around £100. This would fetch less than that because of the way the stamp has been cut from the sheet at the bottom left-hand corner, which impinges on the design, and the cancellation isn't an attractive one. Nice to have, though.

You can tell what plate these come from fairly easily (often). Here are the choices for KB:

http://maltesex.com/cgi-bin/doctarr...4948.JPG~~~~

Without studying it, Plate 4 might be a possibility, but someone who knows what they're talking about will be along shortly to weigh in.

The certificate is more a promotional item than a true certificate issued by an expert.

I agree with GeoffHa.

The certificate has no value at all.
The cancellation is very strange for the period the Penny Black was in use.
Is the stamp as yellowish as it appears or is it just the picture?
It looks like a stamp from plate 4. I wonder if the spots at the foor of the 'N' in 'ONE' and to the lower left of 'NY' are damage to the paper.

It is from plate 4, unfortunately the imprimatur sheet for this plate has not survived, but there is sufficient information to confirm the plate from which it was printed.

the 'certificate' is not an expert view, just a bit of advertising.

The cancellation may be a Maltese cross in very watery ink. Hard to say. That is the cancel you would expect.

I doubt it, once again we are faced with a sub standard scan trying to identify,
otherwise, we could throw it through "reveal"

I know of no other Maltese Cross with a straight line, other than the Norwich Cross, or the London Cross. ("small 1 in centre")

These were suggested as maybe staples, holding the central device, after repair.

CERTIFICATE OF PROVENANCE

a record of ownership of a work of art or an antique, used as a guide to authenticity or quality.

Did you get that, in other papers with the stamp?

The black cancellation is not a Maltese Cross. It looks like there was a red cancellation (probably a Maltese Cross) that is vaguely visible to the lower right of what appears a circle.