Post by thegubman on Apr 12, 2020 7:11:55 GMT
This is one I purchased last year from an overseas auction house. They described it as being plate 3 penny black. Now penny blacks with numeral postmarks are quite rare, so I bid on the item and won it for around £100. The stamp arrived and looked OK to me, so listed it on eBay. Here someone informed me that it was a fake, it was in fact an 1850's penny red which had been discoloured by chemical treatment. So I thanked the guy for the information and withdrew the listing and sought expert advise from a couple of QV dealers specialising in line engraved issues. They did indeed confirm that it was a fake, and plated it as plate 100. I find plating extremely difficult and do not have the patience, skill or expertise to do so, unless there are obvious signs. Fortunately I was able to return to the auction house for a full refund along with the information from the experts. A few months later the same stamp was for sale BUT they clearly described it as a fake that had been chemically treated. Personally I would have preferred if it had been destroyed. A good lesson learnt though, aways be careful often a "cheap" price should ring the alarm bells. It is amazing how good some of the fakers are. Another time I brought a penny black that was a combination of two stamps skilfully put back together. So please be careful and be aware that these are out there. Graham
Expert opinion
Fake (or at least colour changeling), I'm afraid, Graham. Could be deliberate chemical treatment, but also accidental/environmental or chemical damage. It's Die I Plate 100 i.e. a 1d Red from 1850, which of course also explains the postmark and the blueing (which is not seen to that extent on any 1d black that I have ever seen). Whoever 'plated' it as Plate 3 clearly did not have access to the imprimatur sheet or any other modern image of 1d black plates (such as Nissen) - it's miles off! No 'B's on any of the black plates are that low right. All recut corners immediately suggests Plates 87-131, and the short cX puts it firmly as 100.
