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Standing Helvetia 1fr Stamp

 
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Valued Member
United States
98 Posts
Posted 11/22/2025   11:28 pm  Show Profile Bookmark this topic Add Paid to your friends list Get a Link to this Message
Hello

This standing helvetia stamp is dated 1887 but has 14 holes on the vertical side instead of the normal 12(?) It also has the smaller outlined circle of the oval watermark instead of the larger one. Don't have the proper tool to gauge perforations and don't have a printer. Any help please.
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Valued Member
United States
76 Posts
Posted 12/02/2025   1:51 pm  Show Profile Bookmark this reply Add RuckusCollector to your friends list  Get a Link to this Reply
There are 4 sizes of the Stehende (Standing) Helvetia stamp. When I'm identifying them, I start with vertical perforations as a means to quickly narrow down which series they are from. In the Zumstein guide (they refer to the perforations as zahne or teeth).
11 3/4 x 11 3/4 - 14 teeth
9 1/2 - 9 1/4 - 11 teeth
11 1/2 x 11 - 13 teeth
11 1/2 x 12 - 14 teeth

If it's not clear when looking at an image which of the two versions with 14 teeth I see and I really have to know, I'll copy the image, and then copy just the teeth portion from the side and paste it back on the image but rotate it to see if the teeth line up. If they due it's 11 3/4. If they don't it's 11 1/2 x 12.
The post date is an immediate give away on this, as the the beginning of the run of Stehende Helvetia's was 1882 and they were 14 zahne versions. They did not issue 14 zahne versions again until 1901.
For a more in-depth discussion of Stehende Helvetia's, you might look at this thread I started here where I was trying to get information about watermarks - https://goscf.com/t/81495 .
It's definitely easier to identify those with a postmark than mint versions and the paper type and watermarks add complexity for sure. There are 67 main versions of the stamp in the Zumstein catalog with 6 of them being very rare. I have a spreadsheet that helps me quickly filter by teeth, value, paper and watermark. It definitely helps narrow things down quickly.
BTW this would be Zum - 72A, Mich - 63XA, and Scott 87.

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Valued Member
United States
98 Posts
Posted 12/06/2025   5:49 pm  Show Profile Bookmark this reply Add Paid to your friends list  Get a Link to this Reply
Thank you for the information this also helps with my other standing helvetia stamps.
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Valued Member
United States
11 Posts
Posted 12/12/2025   8:25 pm  Show Profile Bookmark this reply Add Matterhorn17 to your friends list  Get a Link to this Reply
Just look at the date 1887 and the 14 teeth on the vertical and you know it is the A kind in Zumstein.
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