MANUSCRIPT CANCELLATIONS - ASK YOUR QUESTIONS HERE !

[Revenuer]

Not sure if this fits in here.

RC manuscript from either 8, 13 or 16 Mile Camp in the NE Railway.

As there is no manuscript date on any recorded between 7/09 - 5/11 they can all be grouped in the one bag unless there is one on cover anywhere?

If you have such a beast please post here.

I have recorded this same RC on 1d & 2d values only.

13-mile-camp.jpg (37.45 KiB) Viewed 22672 times

[shatten]

Here's a munscript cancellation that has puzzled me for many years. Clearly it is the letter "N" but is has been applied to the stamp before the stamp wa affixed to the enveleope. Perhaps it has nothing to do with postage at all.

[Ross Ewington]

I think this may be just a "one of" item. Even though you can find used Pictorials from time to time with "squiggle" pen/pencil cancellations (as per first post in this topic), I think in this case that someone may have inadvertently scribbled on a stamp at the Burgess Bros. office and the stamp was subsequently used on outgoing commercial mail ... "waste not, want not"!!!

[Ross Ewington]

Can anyone tell me which office used this "H" mss cancel?
[attachment=0]H cancels.jpg[/attachment]

[David McNamee]

Generally penstrokes on stamps cannot be attributed to a particular office unless the "hand" is so distinctive. Noted in these "H" pattrerns (or crosshatch) that there are 2 and possible 3 different hands. The first two and last look similar to a piece I have from Macquarie Plains (ex-Askeland), but the others are dissimilar. I have seen the same office use different types of strokes (Deloraine) and some use consistent patterns (Hagley), but you can never be certain off cover, despite what some larger auction houses claim.

Macq Plains penstrokes.jpg (370.08 KiB) Viewed 22554 times

[admin]

I would like to think this is a manuscript cancel, but I expect I am overly hopeful. I note various obliterator and cds cancels.
Can anyone decipher the manuscript endorsement ?

Sideface-MS-cancell-mystery.jpg (189.31 KiB) Viewed 22494 times

[David McNamee]

It looks like it says Mrs Hawkes or Hawker.

[Ross Ewington]

Could these similar '311' pen cancels be '36' of Huon .....a stiff nib making it difficult to do the 'rounded bits' perhaps??

mystery mss.jpg (112 KiB) Viewed 22437 times

[admin]

Ross, based on these examples of numeral 31 and 36 from my collection, I think the hypothesis is not quite proven. The 31 looks possibly the same hand as your examples. Perhaps yours are 31, underlined ?

31-and-36.jpg (90.04 KiB) Viewed 22437 times

[David McNamee]

Ross,

Your "311" cancels are one of the known versions of "36."

36.jpg (144.57 KiB) Viewed 22423 times

[Ross Ewington]

mystery mss 2.jpg (107.64 KiB) Viewed 22121 times

Any ideas? ..... the stamp has 'V over Crown' watermarked paper.

The name appears to be 'S. Forema(n)' ...... does anyone know if there was a postmaster or postmistress of that
name in the early 1900s? It could be an invalid use of a 1d Pictorial for fiscal purposes but anybody's thoughts on
this item will be appreciated

[Jerry Weirich]

I recently purchased this partial manuscript from the First Allocation Period (1853-1861) that I believe is from one of the "Bay" towns. The "Bay" towns are Emu Bay, Spring Bay, Barnes Bay, Trumpeter Bay, Peppermint Bay, and Impression Bay. Emu Bay and Spring Bay are both known with manuscript cancels but of the towns' allocated numeral canceller 27 and 56, respectively, and not with town name written out. Barnes Bay and Trumpeter Bay were both closed in 1854 and this example is 1858. That leaves Peppermint Bay and Impression Bay and both of these towns would have used manuscript markings because neither was allocated a canceller during the First Allocation Period.

Does anyone have a manuscript marking from any of these towns that I could compare handwriting? The letter B is quite distinctive and I may be possible to further identify the specific town. (The handwriting does not necessarily have to be on a stamp, but could be an endorsement or on any other postal form.)

Does anyone have any other ideas on what town this may be? Thanks, Jerry

[David McNamee]

Spring Bay endorsement on cover early 1859. Seems plausible.

Spring Bay mss.JPG (141.58 KiB) Viewed 22062 times

Emu Bay for comparison.

EmuBay mss.jpg (77.81 KiB) Viewed 22062 times

Impression Bay had BN48 briefly as well as an unframed circular handstamp with the town name, so they would have no reason to endorse "Impression Bay" on anything.

[Jerry Weirich]

Thanks David. I did not realize that Impression Bay had received any cancellation devices. I didn't see that mentioned in any of the "Green" Books or Tinsley. Good information to know. Thanks, Jerry

[Ross Ewington]

Forged manuscript cancel or illegal re-use (with genuine "Hadspen 1/26/1860" mss cancel)??

hadspen mss.jpg (46.86 KiB) Viewed 21987 times

What do you think?

Has anyone seen a Tasmanian manuscript cancel from this era with the month written before the day?
I can't recall seeing an example!

[Revenuer]

Bought by a Tasmanian dealer [not you Ross] for 118 quid with 16 bids so i am guessing the buyer at least thinks it genuine!!

[Geoff Dane]

I think these are manuscript cancellations for Cullenswood from either end of the colony-state period.

Cullenswood.jpg (197.27 KiB) Viewed 21779 times

[Ross Ewington]

Is this a fiscal or postal cancel ...if the latter, any suggestions as to the post office?

mystery mss 3.jpg (78.32 KiB) Viewed 21470 times

The stamp has the numeral watermark.

Any assistance will be appreciated!

[Ross Ewington]

404small.jpg (300.99 KiB) Viewed 21424 times

......any suggestions....?

[John Hardinge]

This is manuscript 101. A couple of L shapes have been added in an attempt to duplicate the numeral. The numeral was destroyed at about this time.

[Lars Peter Svendsen]

Can anyone help me with this. Is it fiscal or postal cancellation. My best guess is James Jaikins August 1862?

Chalon 2d deep green WK 2

Chalon 2d manuscript James Jaikins August 1862.jpg (74.71 KiB) Viewed 21428 times

[Revenuer]

There was a Commissioner of public works the honourable James. G. Jenkins.
I would say its fiscal.
Dave

[Lars Peter Svendsen]

It must to be correct. Thanks for the answer.

[Ross Ewington]

This is manuscript 101. A couple of L shapes have been added in an attempt to duplicate the numeral. The numeral was destroyed at about this time.

Could this simply be a contrived item, i.e. a 'fantasy' mss postmark? The completely trimmed perfs are a 'bit odd'.

[John Campton]

Allen Shattens post of 1.8.2010 regarding a blue manuscript cancellation on a Burgess Brothers envelope dated 9.10.1911 has had me on the lookout for similar items. Being an old "bankie" I knew there must be some method involved for this practise. I have now a small collection of 1d Pictorials all cancelled with an indelible blue pencil or heavy thick pencil. Some cancellations look like signatures and others are just two lines through the stamp. It was not until I purchased a postcard where the card had gone through the franking machine upside down that it all fell into place.

The franking at Hobart 23 DEC 10 on the postcard has been applied to the bottom of the postcard and two straight lines have been drawn through the stamp to "cancel" it (tied by the line going either side of the stamp), stemming future use.Other 1d Pictorials cancelled in a similar fashion have no cds/franking mark while others have insignificant/minimal cancellation.

It is my conclusion that the stamps were cancelled in pencil, blue or otherwise, at a central office (Hobart or Launceston) by a zealous officer of the postal department ensuring that stamps likely to be reused via floating off were cancelled. While most are two lines varying in style there is a consistency of manner. Some are cancelled with what appears to be an initial or a derivative thereof. I hope this will add light to this issue but given it was over seven years ago Allan has possibly worked this out already. It is here for others who have the same question.