Pos 7L4

1¢ Franklin Issue of 1851-1857, PLATE 4
Pos 7L4, (Scott #20)

Scott #20 Blue,
Type II, Relief A
Issued both imperforate and perforate.
Had this been an imperforate copy then it would be Scott Number 7.

Plate 4 changed it's appearance as many plating marks faded away due to plate wear, and new plating marks developed over the life of the plate. One of the most annoying aspects of trying to identify Plate 4 positions is the appearance and disappearance of these plating marks.

Note: A dramatic vertical plate scratch in the left margin as illustrated on the Ashbrook/Neinken plating diagrams. The violet arrows indicate other marks of interest which may or may not be consistent and are not illustrated in the plating diagrams.

Figure 1. (BELOW) Guide dot at the upper right corner. Note the faint horizontal and vertical guide lines touching the guide dot.

Figure 2. (BELOW) The plating diagrams illustrate a plating mark in the C of CENT which cannot be seen on this patient. The blur below the scroll and right plume is illustrated in the plating diagrams and similar blurs appear on most Plate 4 top row stamps.

Figure 3. (BELOW) The strong dot in the left scroll (South of N of ONE) occurs on six consecutive Plate 4 top row positions, 6-10L4 and 1R4, and is very useful in telling similar top row positions apart. This plating mark is only illustrated for 1R4 on the Ashbrook/Neinken plating diagrams.

DISCLAIMER and COPYRIGHT INFORMATION:
Thanks for visiting this site. I hope you learn something new as we are making new discoveries all the time. You, the visitor, have my permission to link to my pages and to share the INFORMATION with others. The images themselves fall under the fair use guidelines established by the United States Congress and Copyright law. Basically contact us before using. I also ask in return that you send me an e-mail if I have made a mistake, or have made some other technical blunder that in my rush to put these pages up would cause the visitor confusion. Please also visit my other website at www.slingshotvenus.com. and support the live music arts. While your there, be sure to purchase our music. There are not many philatelic rock stars around and we need all the help we can get. :-)