Classical Stamps

Denmark:

Issued April 1st,1851
Value expressed as word "FIRE" (four)
Two types exist,Type I the burelage is printed by recess (engraved).
Type II,issued 1852/54 the burelage is typographed.
One can see the burelage on the margins only.
They are clear on the upper stamp = engraved.
They are faint on the lower stamp = typographed.

There is a 2 RIGSBANK SKILLING stamp,issued April 28th,1851.
Same stamp,with burelage typographed,was issued Aug.5th,1852.
Both are to expensive for me.

 

issued 1854 (4 S.),1855 (2 S.),1857 (8 S. and 16 S.)
Values expressed by numbers.
The 4 S. exists in two types:
Type I: a small 4 above the lower left posthorn and no point
between R M.
Type II (shown): a small 2 above the lower left posthorn and
a point between R.M.
Sorry,no 16 S.

 

issued 1858
Background wave-lines,instead of dotting as in the previous issue.
Upper stamp with watermark 111 (Scott),lower stamp with
watermark 112.(If I am correct !!)

 

Dotted and wavy-line backgrounds for comparison.
8 S.with wavy backrgound I do not have.

 

issued 1863, rouletted
The 4 S. rouletted I do not have.

 

issued 1864/68 perf.13 x 12,5 comb perforation,
1870 perf.12,5 line perforation.
The latter are pretty expensive.
Three more values exist: 2 S.,3 S.,8 S.

One might add the following numerals issue from 1870/71 to
the classical stamps,because it is the last issue in Skilling denomination.But I don´t.Maybe simply because I do not
have any of the set.

 

The Herzogtum Braunschweig (Duchy of Brunswick),founded by
Heinrich dem Löwen (Henry the Lion) in the 12th century had a
changeable history,till the monarchy was abolished after WW I.
It then became a free-state and was after WW II incorporated
into the state of Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony).
In it stamp-issuing time 1852-1867 Braunschweig was ruled
by Duke Wilhelm (William) the last man of the Welfen-Dynasty,
what was closely linked to the House of Hannover.
Braunschweig has a historical connection to England:
From 1815 till 1823 Georg(e) IV,King of Hannover and
Great Britain was regent of Braunschweig for the juvenil
Duke Karl II till he came to full age.
The first stamp series was issued on Jan. 1st, 1852.

There are two more values: 1 and 2 Silbergroschen.
There were two different currencies in Braunschweig.
For internal use: 1 Thaler = 24 Gute Groschen (Gr.) = 288 Gute
Pfennig.
For use in the German-Austrian Postal Union stamps were
sold for 1 Thaler = 30 Silbergroschen (SILB.GR.) =
360 Silberpfennig,the money of Prussia.
From 1858 on the Thaler (for internal use) was dived into
30 (new) Groschen,each (new) Groschen was 10 (new) Pfennig.
The first issue had a brownish-red gum.Stamps with some partial
or even original gum a rare and very expensive.

 

Second series,printed in black on coloured paper.
Issued March 1st,1853 (1 Silb.Gr.).2 Silb.Gr. 1855,3 Silb.Gr. 1856.
Two more values in this set were issued March 1st,1856:
1/4 gute Gr. = 3 pfg. and 1/3 Silb.Gr. = 4 Silb.Pfg.

 

Upper stamp issued March 1st 1857.
Each quarter was valid on it´s own
The lower stamp was not put in use.

 

changed colours,issued 1861/63

 

Rouletted,issued 1864
Three more values of this set: 1/2,2,3 Silb.Gr.
The previous set from 1861/63 also exists rouletted,either in curved
or in straight lines,rouletted 16,17 and 12.Scott gives them full
numbering (14,15,20,22),while Michel calls them experimental,
allocating subnumbers only.They were experimental indeed,only
that they were sold nevertheless,for the sake of economizing !
Scott 16 and 21 (1 Silb.Gr. yellow) are Michel 14A and 14B.
The rouletting was mostly not made well,so stamps often were
cut apart with scissors.Such scissor-cut stamps are (much) cheaper.

 

No such problems with poor rouletting in this,the last stamp series of Braunschweig,issued Oct.1st,1965.Used the stamps of this set are worth about ten to twenty times more,than mint ones.
All stamps of Brunswick remained valid till Dec.31st,1967.
From Jan.1st,1968 stamps of the Nordeutscher Postbezirk (North-
German Confederation) were used.These were replaced by stamps
of the German Impire on Jan.1st,1872.

 

Brazil introduced postage stamps very early: 1843
The first issue,the "Ox-Eyes" were always one of the "dream-stamps" of my younger years.

issued Aug.1st,1843
Two more values exist: 30 and 90 Reis.

 

The second series,the "Goats-Eyes" has 7 stamps.
My only one:

issued July 1st,1844
Poor centering is normal for this issue.

 

The third issue,the "Cat-Eyes":

Issued Jan.1st,1850
Five more values exist: 20 R.,issued Sept.1849,10,90,300 u.600 R.,
all from Jan.1st 1850.

 

10 and 30 Reis were issued on Feb.27th,1854
The 280 Reis and a 430 Reis (I do not have) in a new design were
issued June 9th,1861.
In 1866 all stamps from 1849 - 1861 were re-issued perforated 13,5.

 

With the following series end the classical issues,i.e. stamps issued
before 1870:

Issued July 1st,1866 all stamps show Emperor Dom Pedro II.
Four more stamps,10,50,80,100 Reis exist,all in different designs.
Ten years later the set was re-issued,this time rouletted.

 

Another of my "one of a kind countries",Western Australia:

issue 1872/78

 

Very difficult issues are the stamps of the "Erste kaiserlich und
königliche private Donau-Dampfschiffahrst-Gesellschaft".
(first k.u.k. private danube steam-ship company).
As the name indicates the company provided transport services
on the river Danube from Austria down to the Black Sea.
They also had their own mail-service from1840 till 1880.
Four stamps (six with varieties) were issued between 1866 and
1870.
I have one of the stamps only,the 17 Kreuzer perf. 9.5 from
1867.

I would not take bets,whether the stamp is genuine (as I bought it),
or a rather cheap re-print from the 1880´s.
In Germany,especially in the south,they like to build very long
words.One of these is the:
"Donaudampfschiffahrtsgesellschaftskapitän"