Canada #601 (SG#708) $2 Quebec 1972-1978 Caricature Issue Paper Type 3 Blank UL VF-80 NH

A well centered and very fine mint NH blank field stock upper left block of 4 of the $2 multicoloured Quebec City definitive from the 1972-1977 Caricature and Landscapes Issue, perf. 11. Vertical wove paper, with no ribbing. Smooth creamy PVA gum with a satin sheen. Under ultraviolet light, the paper gives a dull fluorescent greyish white reaction, with a sparse concentration of low fluorescent fibres, a very sparse concentration of medium fluorescent fibres, very few high fluorescent fibres and 1-2 hibrite fibres visible in the paper. Unitrade does not specify the paper fluorescence of stamp, and asserts that it is not possible to differentiate singles from plates 1 and 2. This is not correct in my opinion. There are in fact, at least 10 different varieties of paper on this stamp. The stamps of plate 1 tend to have more of a dull appearance with fluorescent fibres, while the plate 2 stamps appear more low fluorescent overall. In my opinion, this block is from plate 1. Unitrade lists a VF-75 NH plate block of the basic stamp at $30. Unitrade does not price field stock blocks of this stamp, but they are scarcer than the plate blocks and should be worth just as much. The block offered here grades VF-80 NH as follows: Margins/centering: 50/70 Paper freshness: 5/5 Colour: 5/5 Impression: 5/5 Absence of visible paper flaws: 5/5 Perforations: 10/10 Note any vertical or horizontal line shown in the scan is the edge of the acetate strip that the stamp was resting inside on the stockcard. Note: the above scan is a stock photo as are all my scans for material after 1952.The item (s) you will receive has (have) been carefully checked to adhere to the above grading standards, so while it (they) may not be exactly the same, it (they) will be of the same quality. Also, I do not provide back scans of NH stamps or blocks after 1952 unless they are required to illustrate some attribute of the paper or gum.