Great Britain SG#F53 2/6d Dull Green & Black Cover 1956-1959 Wilding Issue, A Complete Booklet With Upright St. Edward's Crown, Panes of 6, Type B GPO Cypher, April 1957

A well centered and very fine example of this 2/6d booklet from the 1956-1959 Wilding Issue With the upright St. Edward's Crown watermark. The contents have the following characteristics:

Paper type: Vertical cream wove paper, watermarked upright St. Edward's Crown watermark.

Printing method: Photogravure

Rate page features: April 1957 in lower left corner.

Printer: Harrison and Sons.

Perforation or die cut: 15 x 14 comb (Type I)

Stamp colours: 1/2d orange, 2d light red brown, 2.5d carmine-red.

Gum Type: smooth cream coloured gum Arabic (dextrine gum) with a satin sheen

The covers display the following characteristics:

Cover fluorescence: Dull fluorescent on front and back

Cover seal type: unsealed

Cover design: Type B GPO cypher

Cover binding type: stitched with black thread

Interleaving inside? Yes - four double sided pages of text with adverts.

Cover Colours: dull green with black writing

Counting mark on cover?:Yes

The Gibbons catalogue value for a F-65 mint example of this booklet is £35. This translates to $70. The booklet offered here grades VF-78 as follows:

Cover freshness: 10/10

Centering of the panes: 50/70 (average of both panes)

Condition of cover edges: 5/5

Freshness of the panes: 5/5

Absence of visible cover flaws or stains: 5/5

Condition of interleaving and contents: 3/5 (perfs trimmed on 1 edge of two panes)

The white papers of the panes do exhibit variations under long-wave ultraviolet light, starting with the multiple crown watermark. Generally they vary from low fluorescent to hibrite, as well as various flecked papers.

The perforators used also vary, and the differences lie in whether the vertical perforations extend into the selvage:

• Type I - vertical perforations do not extend into the selvage, so that selvage is fully imperforate at the vertical sides.
• Type I(1/2v) - as above, but one corner of the selvage is skimmed off.
• Type AP - Side perfs extend all the way through the selvage, but the middle row of perforations do not.
• Type P - all perforations extend all the way through the selvage.