Here's another result from the recent Spink Shreves sale of rare stamps.
In 1875, President Ulysses S Grant endorsed a move to issue reprints of certain stamps from previous years. This ruling resulted in 1847 Reproductions, 1857-60 Reprints, 1861-66 and 1869 Re-issues, and the Bank Note Special Printings of 1875 and 1880-83.
The recreations were printed on hard paper and issued without gum, typically making them relatively easy to distinguish from the originals.
Some are rarer than others, and one of the key factors is that only a minority were issued with perforations. Most required scissor cutting, and stamps from that time with perforations all round are rare.
One example of an 1875 reprint which was perforated all the way round was a key lot in the Spink Shreve sale.
 15c orange 1875 Reprint |
The 15 cent bright orange special printing with perforations all round - though separated with scissors as is the case for all known examples of this stamp - was put up for auction as part of a selection of reprints of the 1873 issue.
It is a fantastically well-coloured and centred example, and as one of just 35-40 examples still know to be in existence; an excellent investment for the buyer who took it away for $13,500.
