Preview of Stamps Catalogue CD : VOLUME 1

GREAT BRITAIN, Queen Victoria 1855-1886 (Small size), part 1

Return To Catalogue - Great Britain Overview - Queen Victoria 1855-1886, part 2 - Queen Victoria, Large sized stamps - Queen Victoria 1887 issue - Penny Black and similar types

Note: on my website many of the pictures can not be seen! They are of course present in the cd's;
contact me if you want to purchase them: .

Inscription 'Postage', No letters in the corners

1855 No letters in the corners

  4 Pence red
  6 Pence violet
  1 Shilling green

For the specialist, the 4 p stamp has watermark 'Chain' (3 types). The 6 p and 1 Sh have watermark 'Flowers in the four corners'. All stamps are perforated 14.

(Watermark 'Flowers in four corners')
Value of the stamps
vc = very common c = common * = not so common ** = uncommon
*** = very uncommon R = rare RR = very rare RRR = extremely rare
Value Unused Used Remarks
4 p RR **
6 p RR ***
1 Sh RR R

1880 No letters in the corners, inscription 'POSTAGE'

1 1/2 p brown

  Halfpenny blue
  Halfpenny green (1883)
  1 1/2 Penny brown
  2 Pence red
  5 Pence blue

These stamps have watermark 'Crown' and are perforated 14.
Value of the stamps
vc = very common c = common * = not so common ** = uncommon
*** = very uncommon R = rare RR = very rare RRR = extremely rare
Value Unused Used Remarks
1/2 p green * *
1/2 p blue * c
1 1/2 p *** *
2 p R ***
5 p RR ***

Inscription 'Postage', White letters in the corners

1862 Small white letters in the four corners

  3 Pence red
  4 Pence red
  6 Pence violet
  9 Pence brown
  1 Shilling green

The 4 p has watermark 'Chain'. All other values have watermark 'Flowers in the four corners'. All stamps are perforated 14.

(Watermark 'Flowers in the four corners')
Value of the stamps
vc = very common c = common * = not so common ** = uncommon
*** = very uncommon R = rare RR = very rare RRR = extremely rare
Value Unused Used Remarks
3 p RR R
4 p RR *
6 p RR ***
9 p RR RR
1 Sh RR *** Plate 1

1867 Large white letters in the four corners

  3 Pence red
  4 Pence red
  6 Pence violet
  6 Pence brown (different type, 1872)
  6 Pence grey (different type, 1872)
  9 Pence yellow
  10 Pence brown
  1 Shilling green
  2 Shillings blue
  2 Shillings brown

All stamps are perforated 14. Plate numbers are now included in the design. Various watermarks were used.

(4 p, plate number '13')
Value of the stamps
vc = very common c = common * = not so common ** = uncommon
*** = very uncommon R = rare RR = very rare RRR = extremely rare
Value Unused Used Remarks
Watermark 'Flowers in four corners'
3 p RR *** Plate 4
6 p violet RR *** Plates 5 and 6
9 p RRR RR Plates 4 and 5
1 Sh RR *** Plate 4
Watermark 'Chain'
4 p RR **
Watermark 'Rose'
3 p RR ** Plates 4 to 10
6 p violet R *** Plates 6 to 10
6 p brown RR *** Plate 11
6 p grey RR *** Plate 12
9 p RR R Plate 4
10 p RR R Plates 1 and 2
1 Sh RR ** Plates 4 to 7
2 Sh blue RR R Plates 1 and 3
2 Sh brown RRR RRR Plate 1

The famous 'Stock Exchange' forgery:

A collaborator of the Stock Exchange in London used these forgeries on telegraph forms in 1872 and 1873 (he then could resell the genuine stamps for his own profit). The forms were stored for the next 20 years and the forgeries were only discovered in 1898 when the forms were sold to a stamp dealer! Most, if not all, of these forgeries have the cancel 'STOCK EXCHANGE' in a circle with a date somewhere between 1872 and 1873 (these cancels are genuine of course). Many hundreds of these forgeries could have been used in a single day (according to Album Weeds). There are two types of these forgeries, one with plate number 5 and another with plate number 6 (with many corner letter combinations, even impossible ones). They are both lithographed instead of engraved, they bear no watermark (the genuine stamps do). The distinghuishing characteristics were found in 'Postal Forgeries of the World' by H.G. Leslie Fletcher.

Stock exchange forgery of plate 5:

(Left genuine stamp, right forgery)

(Stock-Exchange forgery)

The first type (plate 5) is has the corner letters large and ragged. The corner squares seem to be rounded at the angles. The line pattern just to the right of the 'E' of 'POSTAGE' is different in this forgery. Furthermore, there is a large white space besides the nose. These forgeries were used from June 1872 to October 1872.

The second type (plate 6) has the white rectangle around the plate number too thick and the '6' larger than the genuine. These forgeries were used from October 1872 to June 1873. Sorry, no picture available yet.

The 2 Sh brown has been forged by another forger:

This forgery is made on watermarked paper. The 'S' of 'POSTAGE' is different from a genuine stamp.

A Senf forgery with overprint 'FACSIMILE'

The forger Sperati has also made forgeries of the 2 Sh brown. I have no further information right now. Pictures of these forgeries can be found at: http://www.seymourfamily.com/rfrajola/Sperati/speratiindex.htm (Richard Frajola's Sperati website).

For more stamps of Great Britain with Queen Victoria, issued from 1870 to 1886, click here. For stamps with Queen Victoria, but larger sized click here, Queen Victoria 1887 jubilee issue click here or Penny Black and similar stamps click here.

Stamps - Timbres - Briefmarken - Postzegels

Copyright by Evert Klaseboer

Preview of Stamps Catalogue CD : VOLUME 1

Value of the stamps
vc = very common c = common * = not so common ** = uncommon		*** = very uncommon R = rare RR = very rare RRR = extremely rare
Value	Unused	Used	Remarks
4 p	RR	**
6 p	RR	***
1 Sh	RR	R