Korean Air Postage? Need Help Identifying?

Hi,

I'm new here and I've got some stamps I hope you might be able to help me identify. They have a plan flying over the top of the globe, they are blue, have 'KOREA POSTAGE' written on the bottom, 150Wn in the bottom right corner and the rest is in Korean, here at the pictures.



They are about 3 cm long and about 2cm wide.

Any ideas? Thank you in advance!

Hello! Welcome!
They are Scott # C2, issued in 1949 and catalog for 50 cents (Scott 2006 catalog), but probably hasn't changed much. They were redrawn at one point, but Scott doesn't give much details except designs differ a bit. If you can find them on cover (used on an envelope) there is demand for them.
Will

I believe these used to be on an envelope but have been taken off

So you think they are of value?

They are not used as they do not have a cancel. Usually, the mint (unused) stamps are more common than postally used. Again, they only catalog for about 50 cents each. Even those that have cancels and off cover are probably CTO (canceled to order) and never seen actually postal use. Those of any real value have to be on the envelope.
Will

Oh really? I wasn't expecting used stamps to be worth more than unused!

Thanks for your help! :)

There are many cases where used stamps are worth more than unused, but usually it's best to have them on cover (tied to the envelope by a cancel). In many cases it's because the stamps saw little actual use as postage for sending mail. Another example, German inflation stamps of the 1920's are largely dead common unused (mint), but more desirable on cover as more often than not they were not used due to hyperinflation which made the lower values unusable. Also after a change in currency, older mint stamps are deemed unusable (devalued) and the stocks may be larger in supply than used. There's many scenarios why a used stamp can be worth more than unused, but sometimes it's just because of how it's used on cover - the rate it covered for a particular type of mail service, origin, destination, sender, receiver, cancel (date, type, town, color, etc) and several other factors. The latter is the field of postal history which can be fascinating once you start researching.
Will

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Hi All

With all due respect, I think you have to be careful with the term 'unused'. As a rule, as far as some dealers lists and auctions are concerned, a stamp that is 'unused' is usually a stamp that has gone through the mailing system, been cancelled and does not have any gum.

Some dealers try to sell unused at a higher price than used but not as much as mint. To me, they are nothing more than a stamp that has not been cancelled.

I always try to make a point to describe a stamp as mint, full gum lightly hinged (M) or mint never hinged (MNH), post office fresh so that there are no discrepancies.

Airmail stamps on cover are usually quite desirable

Cheers

Bujutsu

I'm going to assume that there is a typo somewhere in there, because you described a USED stamp.

Semantics aside, the stamps above have not been through the mail as far as I can tell. When it comes to gum, you have to check with a stamp catalog to see if it was issued without gum before determining if it passed through the mail without a cancel. Even then, sometimes mint stamps with gum get stuck together over time if stored improperly or in a humid environment. These stamps are then soaked apart which can make it trickier to determine if it is unused (defined by never passing through a postal system) versus mint no gum as issued by a postal system . Again, catalogs will give you that information. In some cases stamps can be issued with and without gum, i.e. National Park stamps of the 1930's from the U.S. Then there's different types of gum as not all gum is shiny and obvious. There's dry gum on some stamps from some of the 1980's U.S. commemoratives and postage dues that some folks mistake as having no gum or soaked off paper. As KHJ mentioned above, any stamp above that bears a cancel is used, but again what kind of used? Postally used, canceled to order or precanceled are three types. The latter can exist as a mint stamp too just to add to the confusion.
Will
p.s. I sold that stamp above on cover back in 2003 on ebay. Started at 99 cents, ended at $1300. I cannot really explain why.

There are a couple of known plate flaws for that stamp, the cheapest plate flaw is the KORFA variety (about 5x-10x value). The other plate flaws are less obvious to English-language collectors, but are worth much more. Maybe you had one on cover with genuine postal usage? Maybe the sender/recipient, maybe the postmark date/place? Who knows?

All I can say is, belated congratulations! Would you still happen to have a scan of that cover?

k

I should have a scan somewhere on a CD and will search for it. The buyer was from South Korea and never gave me a reason why he/she was willing to go so high.
Will



edit...found it! It was actually Scott C3 and two other definitive stamps on the cover. It's been eight years since I've last seen it. I still don't know why it went so high. While it was running on ebay someone offered me $100 and I refused as one it's against the rules to take offers on the sign and two it's a sure sign that's it was probably worth more.

Ah, C3, that's different.

The Scott used price for C3 is somewhat misleading. While not uncommon, it is also not that easy to find with genuine postal cancellation. There's an empty space waiting for one in my album.

My KPC has a blank spot in the catalog value, so apparently it is quite difficult to find on cover.

Glad that you were able to find the "right" buyer back then!

k

I agree, gun is a topic by itself.

If Korea issued stamps w/o gum, as the country of Communist China did, then yes, it is mint.

I was referring to a broader scale when you know that a stamp is issued 'with' gum', has been sent through the mail and was NOT cancelled. That to me, is a 'used' stamp and the point I tried to make was that SOME dealers try to pass off such stamps as 'unused' -which they are not.

Sorry for any confusion in here and semantics not intended

Bujutsu

I figured something was amiss -- either a typo or I misunderstood. Thank you for the clarification, Bujutsu!

Yes, that is a problem. As I mentioned in the other thread -- if you know the stamp has gone through the mail but failed to get a cancellation, then it should be presented as used by not cancelled.

Many dealers, unfortunately, when they do not know the history of the stamp, will claim unused no gum as a default in their listing -- that is not a proper claim unless they know the history of the stamp (e.g., some mint stamps that had to be soaked because they stuck together or got stuck to the album page).

In the example of the Korea C2 shown at the top of the thread, that particular stamp was issued WITH gum. The owner believes the stamps were soaked off an envelope -- I assume that means the gum is gone.

There are no apparent cancels on the stamp -- I assume that means the cancel missed the mark.

Since we know the history, it should be stated as used with no cancel.

How it is priced, is a different story. The retail value of a properly cancelled used C2 is higher than for a mint C2. However, without the cancel, the retail value of the stamp will be considerably less than of the mint stamp. The lesser of the 2 catalog values should be used as a pricing reference, even though you know it is a used stamp (you can't prove it without the cancel and without it being on cover). Hence, the equivalent retail price you should compare to is a ruffled unused no gum stamp (even though it is NOT unused).

I just wanted to make the distinction between how the stamp should be described, and how the stamp should be priced.

Did I thoroughly confuse everybody? My opinion, of course!

k

Hi khj

I agree with your points 100%.

A lot of countries are worth more used, particulary in the classic period, though not all, and some of the more modern tend to be that way too. Examples would be the German States. I collect those and a great deal of them are worth more used than mint. Heck, Germany proper in the early period is that way too <G>. I just named one area and there are more I am sure.

Maybe we should start another thread on the topic of some dealers using the word "RARE" all too often and loosely

Cheers

Bujutsu