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Washington Head: Denomination in Numerals: 10 Cents Stamps  

Scott 338 - 10c Washington Perf 12 D/L Wmk

Washington Head
10 CENTS


Watermark Check - You will need to check the watermark on this stamp. These stamps were printed by the flat plate method and there is no need to check printing method.

Watermark Scott Number Cautions
double-line 338  
double-line (blue paper) 364 (see below)
double-line (coil stamp) 356 can be manufactured by trimming the top and bottom perforations from either Scott 338 or Scott 381
single-line 381  


Caution

Scott 356, the 10¢ coil stamp, can be easily faked by trimming the top and bottom margins from the Scott 338 sheet stamps, or simply the top or bottom margin if the sheet stamp has an existing straight-edge. The altered straight-edge stamps are particularly dangerous since they can approach the proper size for this coil stamp, that is 25.0mm or larger, measured top edge to bottom edge. This stamp is known as short as 24.2mm, but these shorter examples are rare. Any 10¢ Washington head coil stamp under 25mm tall should be considered suspect. The coil can also be manufactured by trimming the single-line watermarked stamp, but the lack of a double-line watermark would be a dead give-away for anyone willing to check. 

Scott 356 is usually found with yellow or light yellow color. Dark yellow or orange yellow copies are unusual and therefore suspect.

Interestingly, guide-line pairs are a different matter. If the stamp has a genuine guideline it must be a genuine 356, since there is no imperforate stock from which this coil can be manufactured. A piece of thin foil pressed gently over the guideline will reveal if the guideline is genuine (see: printing methods).

We would highly recommend purchasing examples of 356 only with certification or from a reputable seller.

This stamp also comes in the famous "blue paper" variety; it is quite rare and unlikely to show up in an unchecked mixture of Washington Franklins. The "blue" is actually a "gray color", not really "blue", although it may take on a slightly bluish tint. The stamp was made with a higher percentage of rag content (about 30%) resulting in a grayish tinge to the stamp. As a first check, be certain the stamp is double-line watermarked, all "blue papers" are double-line watermarked. Fortunately, double-line watermarks are hard to miss, if you don't see one the stamp is suspect. If you think your stamp is the "blue paper" variety, you MUST have this stamp certified. Even faulty, poorly centered examples of this stamp command a premium far in excess of the certification fee. If the stamp is genuine, it will retrieve a far higher price when certified. Conversely, do not purchase a non-certified copy of this stamp. If the seller is unwilling to pre-certify the stamp, there is a high likelihood that the genuineness of the stamp is in question.


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