Classical Stamps

Hi Werner.
Can you please explain the difference. I did not understand your line posted above

 

Hello zevrap99,
I´m not sure,what exactly you do not understand.
Is it about the St.Andrews Crosses ?
A print-sheet of the first (and the 1858 second definitives as well)
contained 4 counter-sheets of 60 stamps each.They were arranged
into 8 by 8 (64) fields.60 fields were stamps and on each of the
last 4 fields an Andreas-Cross was printed.It is not so uncommon
that stamp sheets contain empty or decorative fields.
However it is unique,that such extra fields are collected seperately.
So loose St.Andrews Crosses are not rare,but still not cheap.
Pairs,strips of 3 and 4 ar rare and expensive to very expensive.
Of course stamp with an attached St.Andrews exist as well.The
combinations can be stamp with cross to the right,to the left
and under the stamp,but never cross above the stamp.
However stamps with a complete cross,let alone with a pair or
strip are very rare.We are talking about prices from about
$ 10.000.- up to $ 100.000.-.
Even stamps attached to a part of a cross are evalued in
specialized catalogues,like with 1 mm $ 200.-,two mm $ 500.-,
three mm $ 1200.-.
Loose crosses are much cheaper and start with about $ 30.-
for an ungummed red cross (from the 3 Kreuzer) to about
$ 500.- for a gummed yellow cross from the 1 Kreuzer.

 

A freak-variety:
6 Kreuzer front-side
same stamp backside: a nice offset.
HP: hand-made paper,Type I,colour brown
Expert-mark Hübner

 

My last entry of the first Austrian stamp set:

9 Kr. Machine-Made Paper,cancellation Pesth.
Pesth (Pest) was the administrative centre of Hungary.In 1873 it
was united with Buda to Budapest.About two thirds of Budapest
belong to Pest.
Units of the first issue are much sought after and pricey.
If you take a single stamp with the price of 1.-,a pair will be
about 7.- and a strip of three 40.-.(according to Michel)
Mine is a strip of 4 only,a bloc would be around 800 times
the price of a single stamp.A strip however,is much cheaper.

 

The Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia in the north of Italy,- the Emperor of Austria was also the king there -,had a different
(silver-based) currency than Austria. One Lira made up by 100 Centesimo was eqivalent 20 Kreuzer.
So they needed different stamps:

Also issued on June 1st,1850 the stamps were sold in Lombardy-Venetia only,but were valid in the whole of Austria.While the
stamps in Kreuzer denomination were not valid in Lombardy-Venetia.
All particulars of the first series of Austria apply also here.
Although the Lira-currency was decimal,the stamps were printed
in four counter-sheets of 64 stamps each and four St.Andrew´s
Crosses.

 

The 10 Centes. in two types:

Left: Type I on handmade Paper
Right: Type II Machine-made Paper

The main differences:
Type I: the lower crossbeam of the second E in CENTES. is broken.The frame of the coat of arms is one thick line.
Type II: The E is undamaged.The frame of the coat of arms
shows two seperate lines.

 

The second issue of Austria,issued Jan.1st 1851
Newspaper-stamps are listed in Scott seperately.
This stamp is Type II by Michel and listed as Type IIa with
Scott.
Mine is a rather poor specimen,but it is one of the stamps
a purchased as a scoolboy.
There are three more stamps in this set.
The blue Mercury had a value of 0.6 Kreuzer
Yellow Mercury is 6 Kreuzer
Rose Mercury is 30 Kreuzer
On March 21st,1856 the zinnober-roter (scarlet) Mercury
was issued,sold for 6 Kreuzer.
The Newspaper-stamps were also valued in Lombardy-Venetia.

 

The Yellow and the Rose Mercury are very expensive stamps.
The Scarlet (zinnober-rot) Mercury is one of the greatest
stamp-rarities.For a nice specimen you have to think of about
US $ 100.000.- at least.
There was little use of the 6 and 30 Kreuzer stamps.So reminders
of the Rose Mercury were sold as 0.6 Kreuzer stamps from Oct.
1852 onwards and also the Yellow Mercury was used as 0.6
Kreuzer from March 1856 onwards.
Mine are no originals,but reprints from 1894.
Reprints were made from the original plates and are all of a better
printing quality than the originals.Eight different reprints were
made.
It is amazing how few Mercury stamps have survived.Probably
only one in a thousand.From the Blue Mercury probably
even less: I guess no more than one in tenthousand.
They were used on newspaper-wrappers and most were thrown
into to the wastebins.
The cheapest the Blue Mercury has a Scott (2009) value of
$ 110.-.The print-quantity of this stamp was 135.790.000
stamps.

 

Series of 1858:

missing both 3 Kreuzer
There are two types of this series,all shown here are of Type II.
Although the currency was reformed (the new Gulden was made
up by 100 Kreuzer) in 1858,the stamps again were printed in counter-sheets of 8 x 8 = 60 stamps + 4 St.Andrews Crosses.
Two different types of crosses exist.This time the crosses are
white on a coloured field.Again stamps attached to a cross are
rare and expensive to very expensive.

 

I have one stamp only of type I.Here 15 Kr. of both types
side by side:

left type I right type II

Quite easy to see:the ribbon of type I is more like a 3,
thinner and more curled.Type II,the ribbon is like an 8,
thicker and more straight down.
There are many other differences,but the ribbons are the
most obvious.
The 2 Kr. is different,but the two types show a different 2.
But difficult to see,because the print is not very clear.

 

Lombardy-Venetia got a new currency on Nov.1st,1858:
One Florin (Gulden) = 100 Soldi
Again issued in two types,the same as in Austria.
I have type II only,issued in 1859/62.

3 Soldi black is missing,3 Soldi green is folded,5 Soldi is
damaged.

 

issued 1860/61

 

Here from the same set the 3 Kr. with a nice red cancellation:

 

Two stamps only were issued in Soldi-currency for Venetia.
Lombardy had been annexed by Sardinia in 1859.

I have the 5 Soldi only;the 10 Soldi,issued in 1862,is missing.

 

Issued July 1st.1863.2 and 3 Kreuzer (the pricey ones) I do not have.This series is perforated 14 !

 

Same issue for Venetia,2,3,5 and 10 Soldi missing.
The Soldi-currency stamps were also used by the Austrian Post
Offices in the Levante.Austria had up to 81 post offices in the
Levante (Ottoman Empire) from Alexandria in Egypt to
Belgrade in Serbia,at the time all parts of the Ottoman Empire.

 

Hallo Milan,

it is from the series of 1858/1859 15 Kreuzer Type II,issued in
1859.Michel no.15 II.
Cancel "Alt-Orsova" is a place in todays Romania,close to the
border with Serbia.
The stamp looks nice,with a good embossing,but a little stained.
There are no forgeries of this stamp.

 

Difficult to say,whether the nose is unusually large,because it
is partially covered by the cancellation.
Anyway the sure way to seperate the two types is to look at the
ribbons.
The second choice is the hair-curles above the forehead:
small in type I,more prominent in type II.
However the 2 Kreuzer is different:
Both types have the same head,like type II.The difference is
is with the foot of the 2.However that difference is so tiny
and the yellow print,like with all other classical austrian yellow
stamps,is so poor in contrast,that I cannot spot,of what type my
stamp is.But as type I is approximately ten times as expensive
as type II,I am quite sure,that mine is type II.