Plate Number of Penny Black
Norin Grancell
Thanks in advance!
NTG
Jay T. Carrigan
Step 2. Get a good magnifier.
Step 3. Buy a bunch of Penny Blacks.
Step 4. Get a good plating book such as P. C. Litchfield's "Guide
Lines to the Penny Black", also available as Vol. 44 of
Billig's Philatelic Handbook.
Good luck, have fun and don't forget that early printings of the
Penny Red were made from black plates.
--
Jay Carrigan change domain to erols
In article <HHiE2.3069$Oa3.26...@nnrp2.ni.net>, gran...@ni.net says...
Michael Simons
issues of SG 48 1/2 d red, SG 43 1d red, SG 51 11/2d red and SG 46 2d blue.
These are the 4 traditional plated stamps of this time.
If you obtain a copy (or an old copy) of SG's "Collect British Stamps" then
a full listing of plate numbers can be found - with values - and an
illustration of how to locate the plate number.
There are collectors who try to re-create a whole sheet of the same plate
number showing all combinations of the corner letters as a specialised
interest.
If you really mean 1d black then I will be interested in how to find the
plate number in the stamp as I thought it was printed on the selvedge.
Michael
Norin Grancell wrote in message ...
Richard Masters
>
snip
> If you really mean 1d black then I will be interested in how to find the
> plate number in the stamp as I thought it was printed on the selvedge.
>
> Michael
> Norin Grancell wrote in message ...
> >Can someone tell me how to identify the plate number of a Penny Black?
> >Thanks in advance!
> >NTG
There are plates 1 to 11 of the penny black. Plate 1 divided into 1a and
1b.
The numbers are not engraved on the plate and they are recognised by
"plate characteristics". There were some penny reds printed using "black
" plates.
Details in Stanley Gibbons specialised GB Queen Victoria.
regards
J.A. McCulloch
>
> Step 1. Get your eyes checked.
> Step 2. Get a good magnifier.
> Step 3. Buy a bunch of Penny Blacks.
> Step 4. Get a good plating book such as P. C. Litchfield's "Guide
> Lines to the Penny Black", also available as Vol. 44 of
> Billig's Philatelic Handbook.
>
> Good luck, have fun and don't forget that early printings of the
> Penny Red were made from black plates.
>
> --
> Jay Carrigan change domain to erols
>
Other useful books are the Brown-Fisher works, using a gauge to measure
the position of individual check letters as well as a list of the
characteristics of that impression. Vol. I is out of print, but can be
found at auctions.
Dr. Statham has 're-visited' the 1d series and Volumes I & II (combined
in a slip case) handle the 1d Blacks and Reds, Plates 1-11. (Eric Paul,
Ltd.)
Proud's "Penny Black Plates" also is a comparitive work on the 1d
stamps, where each stamp is partly illustrated showing the checkletters
and the lower frames. A bit more visual than Litchfield's word
descriptions.
HTH
John
> In article <HHiE2.3069$Oa3.26...@nnrp2.ni.net>, gran...@ni.net says...
> >
Ray McNaughton
<gran...@ni.net> writes
>Can someone tell me how to identify the plate number of a Penny Black?
>Thanks in advance!
>NTG
>
>
released "limited edition" reprint of "The Plating of the Penny Black
Postage Stamp of Great Britain", originally published by Charles Nissen
and Co Ltd, in 1922. The new version is available leather bound at 205
pounds and cloth bound at 135 pounds.
I'm not familiar with this work (not having many Penny Blacks to plate),
but it sounds expensive. Apparently the originals sell for 600 pounds
and as S.G. are only producing 400 copies, the new edition may prove an
investment in itself.
--
Ray McNaughton
(England)