Lot 380 Canada #996ii, 997var, 998var 32c Multicoloured Josiah Henson, Antoine Labelle & View of Sudbury, 1983 Discovery of Nickel - Canadian Pioneers, 4 VFNH Singles, Scarcer Paper Varieties, Including MF8/F5-fl, NF/DF2, and NF/NF-fl

4 VFNH singles of the 32c multicoloured Josiah Henson, Antoine Labelle & View of Sudbury from the 1983 Discovery of Nickel - Canadian Pioneers. Scarcer paper varieties, including MF8/F5-fl, NF/DF2, and NF/NF-fl. The Canadian Pioneers issue is the first commemorative issue to be printed on Clark paper, and while this paper is generally always NF on the front, the back can be either DF or NF. In this lot both stamps are on paper that is DF2 on the back, which makes it appear much brighter under UV than the NF or DF1 papers. There is also a version of this paper that does contain a very sparse concentration of MF fibres, and one of the Antoine Labelle stamps is on this paper. The other Nickel sets is on Harrison paper. The Nickel issue is problematic because Unitrade lists the basic stamp as dull, which is only correct on the back. The front of this paper is nearly always at least F5 level of fluorescence, and often MF8. It is primarily the back that shows the variation. This lot includes the listed MF8/F5-fl paper.

Unitrade does not list any paper varieties on the Canadian Pioneers issue, even though there are at least 2 types of Clark paper. Not all are equally common. These ones are particularly scarce, based on how few we have seen. Our best estimate of the value, based on what similar listed paper varieties sell for is $15. The stamps offered here grade 75-80 as follows:

Centering/Margins: 45/70 and 50/70

Paper Freshness: 5/5

Colour: 5/5

Impression: 5/5

Absence of Visible Paper Flaws: 5/5

Perforations: 10/10