Lot 473 Canada #673avar 8c Multicoloured 1975 Coastal Vessels, A VFNH Se-tenant Block of 4 on Unlisted F/MF Paper, Showing Rightward Shifts of Engraving and Slate Colour

A VFNH se-tenant block of 4 from the 1975 Coastal Vessels Issue, printed on unlisted F/MF paper, showing a slight rightward shift of all the engraving, as well as the slate colour of Neptune. Normally on this issue, the engraving lines outlining the bow and stern of each ship lie more or less on the outline of the coloured hull. Minor shifts in either the colours, the engraving, or both, that are under 0.5 mm are not that uncommon, but shifts 0.5 mm or greater are scarcer. The nature of the shifts are interesting, because they give some clues as to how the issue was printed. For example, the engraving was printed separately from the colour, and was done all at once, as evidenced by the fact that a shift of the engraving usually affects all stamps equally. Where this is not the case, it is usually because one of more of the colours has shifted in the opposite direction. In this lot, Neptune shows a gap between the outer hull-lines and the hull body at the left side, while the other three stamps show this gap to the right. This suggests that the engraving shifted to the right, but then the slate also shifted, making it appear as though the engraving has shifted both leftward and rightward, when that is not the case.

Unitrade does not list colour shifts and this paper type is at least as scarce as the HB paper. So our estimate of a reasonable value is $15. The block offered here grades 80 as follows:

Centering/Margins: 50/70

Paper Freshness: 5/5

Colour: 5/5

Impression: 5/5

Absence of Visible Paper Flaws: 5/5

Perforations: 10/10