Not What They Seem III

This is the third in a series of posts that explore postal history items with the 24 cent 1861 stamp that are not entirely genuine.  This post last edited Nov 8, 2019.

A reduced Clerk of Court cover.

This time we have a domestic use, but without the twist of registry fees. Without the fees, we are looking at a 12 times rate cover. This would be extremely heavy, but there is a chance for it given that the weight of a deposition could be sizable.

Is this a 12 times the 3 cent rate per half ounce domestic mail item?

Stamps, front, verso

After having the experience of one domestic cover 'go bad' on me, I was more cautious with this cover. I made sure to purchase the item on extension and held my anticipation in check until I had a chance to view the cover in person. Once I received the item, I was pretty well convinced that this one was also a fabrication.

The motivation for making a fake like this one is fairly simple.  You don't see many intact items that are domestic uses bearing higher value stamps in the 1860's.  You DO find lots of low value (1 cent up to 10 cent) stamps on domestic mail.  You also find that there are many, many pieces in poor repair and several others missing stamps.  Sometimes, there were many items in large correspondences that were not stored particularly well.  These often had stamps loose from the covers and those who processed the pile didn't always know where they came from.    In the end, there are plenty of stamps and covers in poor condition that have little to no value as is.  There are some in the world who use these to 'create' something of more value - which is why it is good to take the time to learn what you are dealing with.

Note untied marking left and tears right

1. Lack of a strong tie for either stamp

• The closest we can get is a smudge at the right of the 12 cent stamp, which was inconclusive at best. On the negative, there is a circular cancel on the left side of the 24 cent stamp that should make an appearance on the cover, but does not. There does appear to be a smudge that MIGHT tie the two stamps together.

2. Reduction in the cover at the right.

• This cover has been reduced a fair amount on the right hand side. With the propensity of many to put the stamps in the far right corner, it is very possible/and likely that stamps were affixed on parts of the cover that are now gone. 

3. Major repair of the envelope under the stamps

• An attempt to rebuild the top right corner is evident by the tear that shows at the bottom right of the 12 cent stamp. Upon looking inside the cover, one could see that a piece of envelope (probably from the reduced portion) had been pasted to build up the corner. It is obvious that these stamps could not have originated in this position - this still does not indicate that they couldn't have originated on the cover. Also, one can note a different shade to the envelope in the top right corner in the scan.

4. Both stamps were damaged.

• The 24 cent had a major tear and the 12 cent had a scuff and other damage not readily apparent in a scan. With the tears apparent on the cover, it would have made sense for the 12 cent to have had a tear, but it did not - further indicating that it did not originate (at least in the spot it is now in).

Conclusion: This cover may have originally had these stamps on it, but there is no longer a way of knowing. The stamps have, at the least, been moved to a new position on the envelope. At the worst, two filler stamps were pasted onto a decimated cover that had some ugly lower denomination stamps on it.