Can You Help. Is This For Real?

I've just started looking through inherited stamps and I've come across this strange stamp with an image on both sides. Any ideas, please?

Printed on both sides, interesting. Now for comments about the stamp itself.

Hello and welcome to the forum! Your stamp is from Italy, from, 1863. There's two different types of this stamp: Type I, described as ''First C nearly closed'' and Type II described as ''C'' open. Line broken below ''Q''.

As I can see, there's no broken line below Q, and the first C is nearly closed, can you spot that?

As I saw in my old catalogue, the Type I example (yours) is way more expensive unused (yours), but this is not a reference, because my catalogue is more than 30 years old and the prices may have changed. Also, beware of the fake examples, so that would be nice someone confirms it's genuine or a forgery.

If genuine, I think it would be a really interesting stamp and so a nice philatelic example. As Parcelpostguy. said, it's printed on both sides, I guess it can be considered as an error, or an EFO (error, freak, or oddity).

Hope this helps a little.

There appear to be quite a few differences between the stamp on the front and the stamps on the back. Maybe, each position on the plate was engraved individually and not transferred from a single die.

But if genuine, this may be printer's waste.

This stamp is shown in a display here:
http://expo.fsfi.it/bergamofil2021/...anVJdzZR.pdf
(It's an Italian display, I think it says proof sheets were made passing the printer multiple times on the back side)..

Exactly

I have had a LOT of these which came out of large lots I have processed over the years. Always Type I which this is. Reminds me of Russia where there are endless "varieties" and "EFO's" that were created and released to the collectors market.

Many thanks to all who answered. So basically it's not unusual and not worth much. Never mind, it was a bit excitement for me anyway!

I never understood the definition of printer's waste vs. double impression or printed on reverse.

There are many US classic stamps sold for thousands of dollars which are for example printed on reverse. Who can tell if that was once printer's waste? Is this only defined by how many exist?

Not exactly what was said. Cherrystone auctions sold an example in the past for $160. At the right time, in the right place with the right people it is desirable.

Thanks for that, rodgcam and littbarski. It may be worth hanging onto after all or a might try a stamp auction.