tps.org.au

In Craig & Ingles 1978 a 1s on 3d is listed as;

a; 1909 perf 11.5x11

b; 1917 perf 12x11

When Craig released his update in 1997 nothing had changed.

I have a group of this issue [shown below], one has a clear date of 1917 but all are perf 11.8x11.
After talking to Bill Lloyd Smith we now have to query the existence of perf 12x11, does anybody have such a beast?

It would be unlikely remainders of the 1907 issue were put in storage and in 1917 taken from stock and reissued….any thoughts?

You will note dated copies of 1907 does anybody have an earlier date?

Dave

Is not "perf 12 x 11" catalogue shorthand for "perf 11.8 x 11"? i.e. aren't they one and the same?

I doubt Craig & Ingles were using a decimal perf gauge when producing the catalogue.

error

John It is catalogued in Craig & Ingles [1978] 11.5 x 11 & 12 x 11.

Remember Craig & Ingles perfed the Dragons out correctly i.e. 10, 11.2-11.4, 11.6, 11.8 etc.

The correct perf on the 1s on 3d is 11.8 x 11. As per the 'Instanta' perf gauge.

The base 3d stamp is on the Crown A watermark paper, and thus from the Sydney printings. Were the stamps perforated in Sydney as well? -- If so, then it should be the same as the New South Wales postal perforations. Is that correct?

Here is a belated response on the 1/- on 3d numeral surcharge.

Yes, the basic stamps are perf 11.8 x 11. The Craig and Ingles shorthand is 12 x 11 as
explained in their perforation notes in the George and Dragon section. Most likely, they
were using an Instanta gauge when measuring the perfs but they opted for 12 x 11 when
they wrote the catalogue. This gauge is what I have seen on these stamps (which are far
from common).

The paper is New South Wales Crown A as per Stanley Gibbons. Basset Hull stated in his
articles of circa 1930 in "The Australian Stamp Monthly" entitled "Fiscal Philately" that
permission was obtained to use this paper. I think there are a couple of references in
the Australian Archives about this, most likely published by Max Hooper.

The perforations are Sydney perforations as well. The archives in Hobart point to these
stamps being printed in Sydney from circa 1907 so the printer in Sydney might as well
use the perforating machines in his possession to complete the job. Basset Hull's book
on New South Wales has information on the perforations of the early Federal era but it
is a hard book to obtain. The Commonwealth Specialists' catalogue on postage dues has
information on these perforations and is much easier to get.

I hope this helps.

I thought the perfs for the Crown A's were done in Hobart thanks for this Bill, i had better polish up on my Bassett Hull.

Just picked another 1917 date out of a rev collection untouched since 1940's - The very same date as the above copy....Dave

Is this the same perf as the 1907 issue of 1/- on 3d?

Best to grab your Instanta and tell us!

WIth two examples (or more) used in 1917, it could be either a
new printing (quantitity unknown) or a reissue of old stock.

Yes Bill same perfs.

Two with the same date may only be coincidence but it may also lead to an assumption that the printer was in fact having a clean out of the strong room in 1917 due to war paper shortage and used up any or all he could find.

Thanks, Dave, for checking.

It is more than likely that the printer was trying to use up old stock,
due to wartime shortages of paper, ink and much else.

It may be doubtful if this provisional exists with perf 11.5 x 11 unless
the basic 3d stamp turns up with that perf.

Arriving in todays mail a rather spectacular promise note with a joined pair of the provisional usage on, this is the first piece of usage to surface.

As it stands all known examples have been stripped from documents.

A powerful and important revenue item for Tasmania.

Perf 11.8x11

Dave