Lot 189 Lagos SG#3 (SC#3) 3d Red Brown & Chestnut, Queen Victoria, 1874-1876 Perf. 12.5 Watermarked Crown CC Issue, 2nd Printing, A VG Used Example, March 17, 1875 Lagos CDS, 2022 Scott Classic Cat. $45 USD, Click on Listing to See ALL Pictures

A well centered and very fine appearing, but VG CDS used example of the 3d red brown and chestnut Queen Victoria De La Rue Keyplate stamp from the 1874-1876 Perf. 12.5 Crown CC issue. According to J.F Ince in his definitive work, there were a total of 15,780 stamps issued across 4 different printings between November 18, 1874 and May 13, 1875. This example is from the second printing from December 14, 1874, of which 3,300 stamps were printed. Vertical wove paper showing fine vertical mesh and watermarked crown CC. Cancelled with a clear strike of Proud type D6 CDS with timecode B, dated March 17, 1875. There is a severe thin at the top, which reduces the grade to VG.

2022 Scott Classic values a VF-75 used example of the more common fourth printing example at $45 USD. VG Should be worth about $15. The other three printings are each twice as scarce as the fourth printing, so this example should be worth at least a small premium.

I have written a blog post which explains the differences between the printings, which you can access here.

The stamp offered here grades VG-58 as follows:

Margins/centering: 40/60

Paper freshness: 5/5

Colour: 5/5

Impression: 5/5

Absence of visible paper flaws: 5/5

Perforations: 8/10

Cancellation: 10/10

, Adjustment for thin: -20 points