Lot 328 Lagos SG#49, 49s (SC#45) 6d Dull Purple and Purple King Edward VII, 1903-1904 Crown CA Watermarked Issue, Fine and VFOG Examples With and Without Specimen, Net Est. $62.50, Click on Listing to See ALL Pictures

fine and VFOG examples of the 6d dull purple and purple King Edward VII De La Rue Keyplate stamps from the 1903-1904 Crown CA watermarked issue, with and without the specimen overprint. According to J.F Ince in his definitive work, there were a total of 12,000 stamps printed, or which 300-400 were specimens. There is a small surface scuff on the specimen overprint, which reduces its grade to fine.

2022 Scott Classic values a VF-75 mint OG example without the overprint at $40. Gibbons lists the specimen sets at what would be about $22.50 per stamp in the set, so our estimate of the value of these two stamps is $62.50.

I have written a blog post which reviews the points of interest with this issue. You can access it here.

The stamps offered here grade F-70 and VF-80 as follows:

Margins/centering: 80/70

Paper freshness: 5/5

Colour: 5/5

Impression: 5/5

Absence of visible paper flaws: 5/5

Perforations: 10/10

Adjustment for small surface scuff: -10 points