The Canal Zone Philatelist Vol. 38, No.4 Fourth Quarter, 2002 Whole No. 145 Secretary's Report 50 Forged CZ OP on cover 51 Fake OP on CZ 1st Series 54 Auctions 55 2003 Scott's Specialized 59 Incoming Mail to CZ 56 In This issue: Fig. 2. Scott 22a, strip of 2, Imperf between CZSG REGIONAL MEETINGS: ARIPEX 2003, SAT. JAN 25, 1PM; TUCSON CONVENTION CENTER, AZ SANDICAL 2003, SAT. FEB., 8, AL-BAHR SHRINE, SAN DIEGO, CA Scott No. 22 - New Variety by R. H. Salz As there are so many varieties in Canal Zone philately, it is a good idea to browse through your collection from time to time. Youmight have missed some- thing, I did! Recently while looking at an album page of Scott No. 22 (I-cent green) and its many varieties, I saw two items both of which were noted as being Scott No. 22a. This made no sense as the strip of three, Fig. 1, is not a horizontal pair, imperforate between; but instead, is a horizontal pair imperforate verti- cally, and it is not listed in Scott! Fig. 1. Scott 22 var., horz. strip of 3, imperf vertically. Figure 2 is an example of 22a-note the perforations are on all four of the outside edges of the pair while the space between the two stamps is the part that is imperforate between. The conclusion: Fig. 1 is a new variety, and an American Philatelic Society Expert Committee Report (APE 144769) states that it is "Scott No. 22 unlisted variety, unused horizontal strip ofthree, imperf (Continued on page 55) President's Report by Jim Crumpacker Your annual CZSG dues notice for the $8 renewal probably arrived in the mail around the middle of November. Our membership, as reported by CZSG Secretary John C. Smith, stands at 723. Last year at the same time it was 725.The Contributing and Sustaining group, i.e. those who voluntarily make a monetary gift above the $8 mini- mum, consists of245 people,more than one-third ofthe total. My compliments to you all. The organization will use some ofthe funds on your behalf next year when the UPSS volume on Canal Zone postal stationery comes out. AB to the slight membership decline, it is a much much lower percentage of de- crease than in most similar philatelic organizations. We hope you were pleased with the letter opener sent to each individual member as our 50th Anniversary gift. It was the intention ofthe officersand board of directors to send out some- thing that could be used practically every day. Of course, one tends to al- ready own those things which receive daily use, so finding a choice which is both different and useful is nearly im- possible. My thanks to Dick Salz, who ordered the letter openers from a Ca- nadian source. He and his daughter, with help from an even younger gen- eration, stamped, sealed, and mailed the entire 700+ copies. Those of you who like to own at least one example of all the basic Scott inte- gers of Canal Zone stamps are re- minded that you must add a copy of the new Scott JUC to your collec- tions. Refer to my article on the 2003 (continued on page 59) 49
CZSG REGIONAL MEETINGS:ARIPEX 2003, SAT. JAN 25, 1PM;
TUCSON CONVENTION CENTER, AZSANDICAL 2003, SAT. FEB., 8,AL-BAHR SHRINE, SAN DIEGO, CA
Scott No. 22 - New Varietyby R. H. Salz
As there are so many varieties in Canal Zone philately, it is a good idea tobrowse through your collectionfrom time to time. Youmight have missed something, I did!
Recently while looking at an album page of Scott No. 22 (I-cent green) andits many varieties, I saw two items both of which were noted as being ScottNo. 22a. This made no sense as the strip of three, Fig. 1, is not a horizontalpair, imperforate between; but instead, is a horizontal pair imperforate vertically, and it is not listed in Scott!
Fig. 1. Scott 22 var., horz. strip of 3, imperf vertically.Figure 2 is an example of 22a-note the perforations are on all four of theoutside edges of the pair while the space between the two stamps is the partthat is imperforate between. The conclusion: Fig. 1 is a new variety, and anAmerican Philatelic Society Expert Committee Report (APE 144769) statesthat it is "Scott No. 22 unlisted variety, unused horizontal strip ofthree, imperf
(Continued on page 55)
President's Reportby Jim Crumpacker
Your annual CZSG dues notice forthe $8 renewal probably arrived in themail around the middle of November.Our membership, as reported by CZSGSecretary John C. Smith, stands at723. Last year at the same time it was725.The Contributing and Sustaininggroup, i.e. those whovoluntarily makea monetary gift above the $8 minimum, consistsof245 people,more thanone-third ofthe total. My complimentsto you all. The organization will usesome ofthe funds on your behalf nextyear when the UPSS volume on CanalZone postal stationery comes out. AB
to the slight membership decline, it isa much much lower percentage of decrease than in most similar philatelicorganizations.
We hope you were pleased with theletter opener sent to each individualmember as our 50th Anniversary gift.It was the intention ofthe officersandboard of directors to send out something that could be used practicallyevery day. Of course, one tends to already own those things which receivedaily use, so finding a choicewhich isboth different and useful is nearly impossible. My thanks to Dick Salz, whoordered the letter openers from a Canadian source. He and his daughter,with help from an even younger generation, stamped, sealed, and mailedthe entire 700+ copies.
Those ofyou who like to own at leastone example of all the basic Scott integers of Canal Zone stamps are reminded that you must add a copy ofthe new Scott JUC to your collections. Refer to my article on the 2003
X) is published quarterly for $8.00 per year,which includes membership in the Canal ZoneStudy Group, 4112 E Kilmer St., Tucson, AZ85711. Periodical Postage Paid at Tucson, AZ.POSTMASTER: Send address changes andcomplaints of non-delivery to the Canal ZonePhilatelist, c/o Secretary John C. Smith, 408Redwood Lane, Schaumburg, IL 60193.
Display advertising accepted from CZSGmembers only at the following rates per insertion:
One column, two inches $10.00One column, five inches 20.00Two columns, five inches 35.00No larger advertisements are accepted. Re
mittance must accompany copy.Deadline forads, first day of Mar., June, Sept., Dec. Copyshould be sent to the Editor.
Back issues of the journal, handbooks, andother publications can be ordered from Richard F. Murphy, 501 Rosebud Lane, Greer, SC29650.
Articles and information for publicationshould be sent to the Editor. Glossy photographs are desirable for figures of stamps orcovers; however, enlarged high quality photocopies are sometimes acceptable. Illustrationsmust show clearly against black backgrounds.If you need help, write, phone, or FAXthe Editor. The author must advise theEditor if the article has been published or isbeing considered for publication elsewhere.
Copyright 2002Canal Zone Study Group
CZSG Mail Sale #30Mter a lapse of too many months
the 2001 CZSG Mail Sale is almosthistory. Mter paying for the majorcosts of catalog printing and postageand including an expected insuranceclaim and one unsettled billing, wehave cleared a profit of $2001.30.
81% of the 1267 listed items weresold realizing 80% of catalog/estimate. The realized prices are a statement of current market values of awide range of Canal Zone philatelicproperty.
David J. Leeds
50 The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145
it had "forged CANAL ZONE overprints." This opinion was unexpectedand somewhat disillusioning.Acopy ofthe APScertificate and the
cover were sent back to the auctionhouse that had sold it and the purchase price was refunded.
In September 2002 a cover similarto the Toledano cover appeared onEbay. The picture of the cover wasnot a high resolution one, but it appeared to have Canal ZoneScott number 1,2,and 3 on cover.It is dated July14, 1904, and appears to have a genuine CANAL ZONE bar cancel on thestamps and a genuine ANCON receiving cancellation. The address of therecipient was partially erased leaving only a clear letter Mat the beginning of the address and the wordPanama at the end ..
Mter this sale, I wanted to know ifthis coverwas the same one that I hadbought in 1989, but with an erasedaddress. I contacted the buyer whoturned out to be Ted Bailey, a longtime member ofthe Canal ZoneStudyGroup. I told him that I was suspicious this cover was a forgery andwould appreciate a good photo copyof the cover when he received it.
Several days later I received severalemails with scans from Tedstating hewas certain that the stamps were forgeries but the Canal Zonekiller bar andAncon cancellations on the front andback appeared to be genuine.
The front of Ted's cover,Fig. 2, not(Continued on next page)
Forged Overprints of Canal Zone StampsFirst Series on Cover, Part 1
By David T. Zemerfor sale as genuine at premiumprices. Collectors could easily havemistaken these covers as genuinewhen they saw the photographs inauction catalogues. Any first seriesstamp either on or offcover,to be assured ofbeing genuine, should be accompanied by a certificate from anyofthe well-known expertizing organizations in the United States.
No doubt other collectors than myself have been mislead by these covers. In 1989 I bought a cover,Fig. 1,in Germany with what appeared tobe three Canal Zone stamps, Scottnumbers 1, 2 and 3. The Canal Zonebar cancel on the stamps as well asthe Ancon cancellation of July 14,1904 appeared to be genuine but theink used for the Canal Zonehandstamp overprint was black instead ofthe typical dark violet foundon genuine copies of these stamps.It is addressed in pencil to Mr. M.Toledano, Panama.
Besides the genuine postmarks Iwas further mislead by the certificate, number 139820from the RoyalPhilatelic Society of London datedMarch 11,1987, that came with thiscover. The person who submitted itwas listed as F. Soholl and the RPSstated the stamps were genuine.
Tobe certain this cover was genuine it was sent to the AmericanPhilatelic Expertizing Service. It wasreturned with their certificate, number 69675, dated 23 August 1989,stating that it was their opinion that
IntroductionPast issues of the Canal Zone Phi
latelist have discussed both the genuine and forged Canal Zone overprintson the First Series stamps on cover.They mention that forgeries of theCanal Zone overprints on the FirstSeries as well as forgeries ofthe Canal Zone cancellations are known toexist. However little has been written about these forgeries on cover.
Those covers with forged CanalZone overprints on the 2, 5, and 10centavo Panama stamps that wereaccepted by the Canal Zone postalservice are of particular interest tome. As the lOOth anniversary of theFirst Series is fast approaching nowis an appropriate time to examinethem in more detail.
This report on forged overprints ofthe First Series on cover is the firstof two parts and is restricted to covers that have a full set ofthree forgedoverprinted stamps. The second partwill appear later in the Canal ZonePhilatelist and will include those covers that do not have a full set ofstamps.
Dated Covers with aFull Set of Forged Overprints
on First Series StampsAfew covers with forgeries ofthese
stamps that transited the Canal Zonepostal system exist. They have genuine postmarks on them with datesfrom the short period that thesestamps were used in the Canal Zone.In the past some have been offered
Fig. 1 Forgery addressed to Toledano Fig. 2 Front of Bailey's forgery addressed toA. de Lemos
The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145 51
Fig. 3. Blowup of Bailey's cover showing forgery of
CANAL ZONE Imprint on the envelope forged CANAL ZONE imprint from another cover
only had a CANAL ZONE overprint inblack instead of purple but the righthand side of the letter E in the CanalZone handstamp overprint on the fivecentavo stamp was printed on the envelope and not on the stamp, Fig. 3.
Most of the name of the person towhom it was addressed was erased."M.A de" is clearly readable in thescan. The last word of the name begins with an "L".
On the back ofthe envelope are several markings, Fig. 4. The first is aPanama cancellation, which is froma worn hand-stamp and classified asTWN PAN 025 in the Colombia/Panama Philatelic Study GroupHandbook of Panama Postal Markings by Entwistle and Arosemena.This mark also matches several others on the backs of genuine coverswith the Canal Zone First Series sentto Panama City.The second markingis the mirror image of the CANALZONE bar cancel that has also beenseen on the back of a genuine cover.The third marking is a readable mirror image of the CANAL ZONEhandstamp found on the Canal ZoneFirst Series stamps. Near it are somesmall ink markings that could also beparts of letters from other reversedCANAL ZONE handstamp. There arealso two manuscript markings in pencil, ZBAKand 2511. Ted later re-soldthis cover as a forgery on Ebay and itwas bought for $ 77.
The forgery I had bought in 1989and the Bailey cover had similarhandwriting. The large M's are almost identical as is the letter "d" in"Toledano" and "de" on the Baileycover. The word Panama on each
cover also appears to have been written by the same person.
Ted and I believe that this covermaker's modus operandi was to overprint the basic Panama stamps withCANAL ZONE overprints after puttingthe stamps on the cover.He appearedto have done this with at least twocovers -laying the Bailey cover on topof the first cover while the overprintink on the stamps on the first coverwas still wet.
The names on the addresses seemedfamiliar but did not ring a bell untilBob Karrer saw them when reviewing a draft ofthis article. He immediately was able to identify the nameson the addresses as Toledano and deLemos. As most collectors of Panamapicture post cards are aware therewas a series of cards published byToledanoBros. & De Lemosbefore the1920s.
Suspicious that additional forgeriesare in circulation, Dick Salz was contacted and asked ifhe had any recordsof similar covers. He responded bysending four photocopies of coverswith forged overprints of all three ofthe Canal Zone First Series on cover.A photocopy of the de Lemos forgerybought by Ted Bailey was one ofthosein his files. It was marked as a forgery and had been offered for sale asLot 1 by Kaufmann Auction Galleries on June 24, 1977.
The other three forged covers fromSalz are all dated July 14, 1904, andhave what appears to be, at least onthe photocopies, genuine ANCONpostmarks and genuine bar canc:ellations. The backs ofthe coverswere notavailable for inspection so it is not
known ifthey have the same Panamareceiving stamp.
The first of these three additionalcovers from Salz is addressed to Sr.Rafael Alzamora, Panama, Fig 5. Thesecond was addressed to Sr. DonTomas Paredes, Panama, Fig 6. It wasoffered for sale at the Peter KenediAuction, (November 1979). The description mentioned that ... it hadbeen folded, and that it was a spectacular item and a treasure ofZonianphilately with an estimated cash valueof$ 5,000 - $ 7,000. Notes on the photocopy indicate that it also had aPanama receiving mark of July 15.The third cover was addressed to Mr.A. de Lemos, Panama, Fig. 7, and hadbeen offered for sale as Lot 435 byHarmer, March 13, 1984. On the photocopy it was noted that it too had areceiving mark of July 15.
On the Paredes and Harmer "deLemos" covers the P in the wordPanama and Paredes appear to be inthe same hand. The M in the "Mr" onboth Mr. de Lemos coversalso appearsto be similar to each other but the restof the name, "A. de Lemos", is written differently.
From the handwriting on the addresses and the names of the addressI believe that the same person or persons produced the Toledano,Paredes,and two de Lemos covers.
In addition the Alzamora, theToledano, Paredes, and the de Lemos(Harmer sale) covers all have 2centavos stamps that appear to havecome from the same pane. TheirPanama overprints are all facingdown and shifted over to the left with
(Continued on next page)
52 The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145
the leftmost Panama printed outsideof the red area.
Undated Cover with aFull Set of Forged OverprintsGeorge Stilwell has a cover with
forgeries of all three First Series Canal Zone overprints, Fig. 8. It too isaddressed to A. de Lemos but thehandwriting does not seem to matchthat on the other covers. Unlike theother forged covers it does not haveany Canal Zone or Panama cancellations aside from the bar cancellation.This is quite unusual, as both theCanal Zone and Panama City postofficesappear to have been quite diligent in date stamping the First Series covers. It is understandable thatone agency might skip the datestamp. For both to do so on the sameenvelope could mean this cover neverwent through the two postal systems.Perhaps it was taken to the CanalZone post office after 17 July, whenthe stamps were demonetized, andreceived a favor bar cancellation.
SummaryGenuine covers that have the com
plete First Series of Canal Zonestamps are scarce and have beensought after for some time. Theyrarely comeup for sale and when theydo they command high prices.
During the last few days of theirusage in the Canal Zone one or morepeople hand stamped a forged CanalZone overprint onto genuine Panamastamps. In at least one case they didso to Panama stamps after affixingthem to the envelope. On the 14th ofJuly they handed in at least five ofthem to the Ancon post officewherethe stamps were treated as genuine,cancelled and the covers sent toPanama City.
These covers with forged overprintslook like genuine covers and havebeen offered for sale by reputableauction houses. In one case the samecover reappeared 25 years later onEbay.
With the exception of one, the
Stilwell cover, all are dated July 14,1904 at Ancon and were sent toPanama City. The names of the addresses are Toledano, de Lemos,Alzamora, and Paredes and severalare in the same handwriting. Nonehad a certificate from any ofthe qualified organizations in the UnitedStates.
Request for InformationAs little has been published on
these First Series forgeries it is likelythat there are more covers with either the full set, various combinations, or single forged overprints thathave been through the Canal Zonepostal system. I would greatly appreciate receiving photocopies orscans of the front and back sides ofany covers which have forged FirstSeries overprints or are similar to thecovers shown here. I can be reachedby em ail at: [email protected] orwrite to me at: Post Box654 Skoeyen,NO-0214Oslo,Norway. Alternativelycontact me through the editor of theCanal Zone Philatelist.
Fig. 5. Forgery addressed to Alzamora
. '..~.
.•....... .,.
~f" 1
" '~
Fig. 7. Forgery addressed to de Lemos fromHarmer Auction
Fig. 6. Forgery addressed to Paredes
Fig. 8. Forgery addressed to de Lemos
The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145 53
Fig. 1. Upper illustration shows a genuine handstamp on Canal ZoneScott No.3; lower shows a forged overprint from a stamp on the
cover in the accompanying Zemer article.
Fake Overprints onCanal Zone StampsBy Richard D. Bates, Jr.
First Series - Scott Numbers 1-3Toprovide an article to accompany
the one by David Zemer, on a forgedcover with fake Canal Zone Overprints of No. 1,2 and 3 contained inthis issue of the CZP; treatment offake overprints on the first series hasbeen moved ahead of the plannedschedule, with this as the first of several articles that will deal with fakeoverprints of Scott CZ No. 1-3.
Of all the series of Canal Zone issues, the first series is the one withthe most plentiful fakes. Within theseries, fakes ofNo. 1are the most frequently encountered. Generally, examples of Scott 1-3 should be purchased with a certificate, or shouldbe sent for expertization with the purchase conditioned on obtaining a favorable opinion.
This article will focus on featuresof these stamps that identify them asfakes. Features to look for that helpdetermine that a stamp is genuinewill be treated more extensively later.
To be a genuine Scott CZ No. 1-3,the CANAL ZONE overprint has to 1)be applied to the correct Panamastamp, 2) be in the correct color, and3) be ofthe appropriate length. Somedletailsofthe correct Panama stampsthat were overprinted are given inCanal Zone Stamps (CZS) page 20,and will not be repeated here, as thePanama stamps used to generatethese fakes on cover in the accompanying article, appear from the available scan, to be correct.
The correct color of the CANAL
ZONE overprint is described in CZS,as violet to bluish-violet, with thecolor variation as much between theCanal Zone No.1 compared to No.2or No.3 stamps as it is on individualcopies ofthe same Scott number. Theoverprint on genuine examples ofNo.3 seems more violet, with less bluein it, perhaps because of the contrastwith the yellow in the underlyingstamp. On the fakes in the accompanying article, the CANAL ZONE overprint is black. Though there is somevariation of the CANAL ZONE overprint with the heaviness of the ink-
ing and strike, black overprints arenever OK.
Because I was working from aprintout of a computer scan of thecover,the determination ofthe lengthof the overprint was too uncertain tobe reliable, even by using ratios ofvarious dimensions with known copies. (Scanners do not reproduce edgesofletters sufficiently sharp to be ableto make the quality measurementsrequired, especially if the scan is oflow resolution.)
The three requirements are: 1) thatthe stamp overprinted be the correctPanama stamp, 2) the CANAL ZONEoverprint be in the correct range ofviolet to bluish-violet color,and 3) theoverprint should measure 18 mm(with tolerance for the heaviness ofthe overprint) are primary distinguishing characteristics. Withoutthem a No.1, 2, or 3 cannot be genuIne.
In addition to the primary characteristics, there are secondary characteristics that help distinguish examples that are genuine from thosethat pass or comeclose to passing theprimary tests. These are not as definitive as the primary characteristics, because there is considerablevariation on them from example toexample, or often they are not clearenough on all examples to serve as aprimary characteristic. This articlewill identify a couple ofthose characteristics, with additional features tobe identified in subsequent articles.
Figure 1 shows two CANAL ZONEoverprints. Both are from examplesthat seem to be Scott No.3, chosen tobe illustrated in this article because
the overprint stands out best for reproduction. The upper one is from agenuine copy that has an APES certificate; the bottom one is extractedfrom the scan provided to me of thecover from the accompanying Zemerarticle.
Putting aside the clearly distinguishing fact that when viewed incolor, the upper CANAL ZONE is violet, and the lower one is black, oneother feature of the two overprintscan be examined. The fake overprinthas a decidedly flat appearance, withthe ink appearing to be distributedequally over all parts ofthe individualletters. In the genuine example, theoverprint has a ridge ofink in the center of the letters, with the ink becoming less heavy toward the edges oftheindividual letters. This is visible onmost genuine copies of Nos. 1,2, or 3unless the overprint is very light, andis particularly evident on genuine examples of Nos. 2 and 3. The absenceof this feature in the letters of theoverprint does not mean it is fake, butas you run through a series of thesesecondary characteristics, you do askyourself why it is not present.
There are two features of the coverworth discussing that also point to thestamps as likely being fakes. First,the wonderful observation by the authors of the accompanying article, isthat the CANAL ZONE overprint onthe No.2 on the cover extends beyondthe edge ofthe stamp, and part of theE appears on the cover itself. Thissays the stamp was on the cover before the overprint was applied, in conflict with conventional wisdom, asdescribed in CZS, that the overprint-
54 The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145
Fig. 2. Cover face containing Canal Zone Scott No.2 into Panamawith town marking for La Boca where cover entered postal system
and transit marking for Cristobal.
ing was done in Panama and the overprinted stamps brought into the Zonefor use. One hears on occasion the
suggestion, that maybe the experts donot really know, and that an overprintdeemed to be fake with a blackish
overprint might really be good. Mterall, here is a cover with them thatlooks genuine, and that appears tohave genuine markings. Though, theoverprint off the edge of the stampand onto the cover seems to seal thefate of these examples. The observation of the offset of a CANAL ZONEoverprint from some other stamp onthe back ofthe cover is a further feature indicating the stamps were overprinted while already affIxed to thecover.
Second, it would be my expectationthat this cover should include an additional marking that is missing here.The cover front in Fig. 2 shows whatone usually sees. The first is the townmarking ofthe offIce that applied thecancellation, here La Boca, dated July3rd. Then in the case of an item going between towns, there is a secondhandstamp serving as a receivingmarking of that town. For mail going into Panama, as is the case of the
Auctionsby Jim Crumpacker
With the exception of a nice offering of inverted centers by Shreve's,the third calendar quarter. July 1Sept. 30, 2002 was a bummer insofaras Canal Zone stamps and coverswere concerned. Otherwise, a fewauction houses had one or two lots ofmodest interest in a dead quarter.
Some results are shown below. Thefirst price is hammer plus commissionand is followed in parenthesis by the2002 Scott's Specialized Catalogvalue.
6, used, VF $55 ($65) Aldrich22g, inverted center wI ovpt readingup, used, -VF+ $4125 ($2730) Shreve's22g, inverted center wI ovpt readingup, TG, HR, and a small adhesion o/wVF $1870 ($4000) Shreve's3ge, inverted center and ovpt readingdown, OG, NH, F $770 ($700) Shreve's
3ge, inverted center and ovpt readingdown, OG, H, XF $495 ($700) Shreve's
item in Fig. 2, as well as the cover inthe accompanying Zemer article, thatadditional marking is a transit marking from the town through which themail went into Panama which, in thecase of the item in Fig. 2, is fromCristobal on July 5th. For the coverin the accompanying article, I wouldhave expected a second town mark-
3ge, inverted center and ovpt readingdown, used, VF+ $385 ($750) Shreve's39f, booklet pane of 6, handmade, perforated margins, inverted center andinverted overprint, part TG, H, perfstrimmed 4 stamps and staple holes in2 stamps, centeredF-VF $4125 ($8000)Shreve's
54, OG, NH, VF $116 ($175) Aldrich71b, ZONE inverted, OG, NH, almostVF in pair wI normal $242 ($351)Aldrich
C3, F on F-VF cover COCO SOLO cds5/5/34 also tied by "Airship V.S.S.Macon Participation in Fleet ProblemXV off Coco Solo, Canal Zone"handstamp. Item sold in a lot wI 3 unrelated covers, $184 ($n/a) Superior
The names and addresses of the
three auction firms are given below.Michael E. AldrichP.O. Box 2295Carefree, Arizona 85377Shreve's :Philatelic Galleries, Inc.14131 Midway Rd., Suite 1250Addison, TX, 75001-9829
ing, on the cover, from Cristobal. Thispoint may merit further study of theknown examples of genuine coversinto Panama, and is one on which Iwould welcome comments, as I do onanything contained in this. series ofarticles on forged overprints.
Superior Stamps and Collectibles9478 West Olympic Blvd., Second FloorBeverly Hills, CA 90212-4246
Scott No.2 -New Varietycontinued from page 49
vertically, ... genuine in all respects."Numerous early publications have
been checked, but H.F. Colman, William Evans, and J. M. Bartels provideno information a to this new variety.
Hopefully a new addition to theScott No. 22 varieties will be listed ina future edition ofthe Scott catalog. Iam proposing that it be given thenumber Scott 22h so that the alphabetical order of what is currentlylisted in Scott is not upset.
So, once again, carefully examineyour stamps. There is no telling whatwill show up; maybe a "wront font"among your sharp A overprints? Andif anyone has an example of the newvariety would they please contact methrough the CZP Editor.
The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145 55
Fig. 1. Incoming 1887 cover to De Lesseps from U.S.
Incoming Mail to theCanal Zoneby Jim Cross
In March 2000 I began collectingincoming mail to Panama and theCanal Zone. With the exception ofitems with Canal Zone postage duethis mail is widely scattered, withmuch of it in collections of the countries of origin. The Internet has madeit much easier to find this materialsince it is possible to quickly searchdealer and auction listings for the keywords. Previously most could only befound by time-consuming searches indealer's cover boxes.
The incoming mail collection wasshown non-competitively in Boxboroin conjunction with our meeting therein May.The exhibit included over 120covers that originated in more than66 countries and colonies. Just over60% of the items were addressed tothe Canal Zone, the rest to Panama.I will discuss the Canal Zone portionin this article.
I have divided the collection into sixtime periods. The first period coversmail thru 1903 when Panama waspart of Colombia. Mail from this period is not plentiful. My earliest incoming cover is dated in 1858. Twocovers from the French canal construction period (one not in my collection) are forerunners ofinterest toCanal Zone collectors.
Figure 1 shows an underfranked1887 cover addressed to FerdinandDe Lesseps, lot 470 in the AFINSAsale of Nov.4, 1999. It was mailed in
the U.S. with a 2c stamp and markedwith a T and due 15 centimes. Payment of the postage due is shown bya 5 centavos stamp of the 1886 Colombia issue. By this time De Lessepshad returned to France from an earlier visit. This is the only recordedcover to Panama with a regular Colombian stamp used to collect postage due. The Helme collection included four pre-independence incoming covers with postage due paid bystamps of the 1892-1895 issue forPanama.
Figure 2 shows lot 222 in theAFINSA sale of Feb. 20, 2002. Thecover was mailed in France. It has afaint previously unrecorded LABOCA! CANALDE PANAMAmarking ofthe French Canal Company aswell as a PANAMA/CANAL DEPANAMA marking on the reverse.These are the only two incoming covers addressed to the French CanalCompany known to the author.
The second period in the collectionis the Canal construction period(1904-1914). Covers from this periodinclude two large incoming correspondences. The first is mail addressed toDr. J.C. Perry. Dr. Perry was a publichealth officer who also suppliedPanama and Canal Zone stamps todealers in the U.S. The exhibit hasregistered covers to Perry from British Honduras, British Offices in Levant (Fig. 3.), German Offices in Turkey (Fig. 4.), Hungary (Fig. 5.) and acover from Dahomey.
Gerald D. Bliss, a Canal Zone postalemployee who later became theCristobal postmaster, received muchcorrespondence. Post cards addressedto him from Austrian Offices in Turkey, French Indochina, Japan, Papuaand New Guinea, Senegal and Uruguay have recently appeared on eBay. Five of these are in the exhibit.These two correspondences seem tobe widely dispersed, with e-Bay offerings by dealers in several foreigncountries.
Other interesting covers from thisperiod include a registered item fromTripoliville, Syria franked withstamps of the French Offices in Levant and a 1913registered letter fromPiraeus, Greece.
The next period (1914-1929)beginswith the opening of the Canal andends with the beginning ofscheduledairmail service. Most of World War Iis included. Interesting covers in thecollection include a 1918 registeredcover from Chudnov in the Ukraineto Ancon (with extensive water damage, possibly from handling in Russia prior to dispatch), a cover fromLourenc;oMarques with franking thatincludes a Mozambique War TaxStamp (Fig. 6.), a censored 1916coverfrom India and the cover shown inFig. 7. The A.P.S. typed I. ofP. at thebottom of the address to abbreviatethe Isthmus of Panama. The post office interpreted this as the PhilippineIslands. The letter was delayed forover a month. This period also in-
56
Fig. 2. Incoming 1886 cover from France,
with LA BOCA marking.
The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145
Fig. 3. Incoming 1910 cover to Perry, fromBritish Offices in Levant.
Fig. 5. Incoming 1905 cover to Perry from Hungry.
Fig. 7. Incoming mis-routed 1918 cover from the A.P.S.
Fig. 4. Incoming 1906 cover to Perry, fromGerman Offices in Turkey.
Fig. 6. Incoming 1905 cover from Lourenco Marques.
Fig. 8. Incoming 1923 "Hyperinflation" cover fromGermany, with TRANSITO marking.
eludes incoming covers from severalU.S.Army survey flights to Costa Ricaand from the February 1929Lindbergh flight from the UnitedStates.
An unusual item in the collectionfrom this period is a card mailed fromGermany on November 11,1923 dur-
ing the hyperinflation period. (Fig.8.).The postage rate on that date was40 million marks. The card has aColon "Transito" marking on thefront. A cover belonging to DavidLeeds mailed to a Panama address 4days later has postage of 8 billionmarks. It was illustrated on the cover
of the March 2001 issue ofCOPACARTA.
The fourth period (1929-1939) sawa steady increase in the volume ofairmail. While outgoing mail after May22, 1929, was sent from the Canal
Zone and Panam~ to Et!rope by com-(ConUnued bn next page)
The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145 57
bined air/sea mail, there is little evidence of reciprocal service. Evenphilatelic covers from Europe whichhad sufficient postage paid to coverairmail fees were sent from NewYorkby ship. I have seen incoming airmailonly from Canada, Latin America,and the West Indies until clipper service to the U.S. from Europe andAsiabegan. Airmail covers other than firstflight covers are not plentiful. Theexhibit has such covers from Aruba,Bahamas, Barbados, Canada, Chile,Colombia, Costa Rica, Venezuela, andthe U.S. Virgin Islands in this period.Figure 9 shows a cover mailed to theChief ofPolice ofthe Canal Zone fromAlmeria, Spain in 1938. It was censored because of the Spanish CivilWar.Philatelic mail during the periodincludes two covers with semi-postalsets from Belgium and one with 10values ofthe 1934-1935 small definitive set from Austria.
A June 29, 1937 letter from Germany to Cristobal was sent by shipto New York, via Air and has an arrival marking of July 7 (Fig. 10.).
The fifth period covers the WorldWar II years 1939-1945. Beginning in1940 there is an extensive correspondence of the British West Indian OilCompany. Most letters were registered and sent by Karl Karlson to his
wife at the company address. The earliest covers are addressed to Panama,but later covers show post officeboxaddresses in the Canal Zone. Thesecovers have only recently comeon themarket and are being offered by several dealers in the United States,Canada and Argentina. I have registered covers to Mrs. Karlson fromAntigua, Aruba, Bahamas, BritishGuiana, Dominica, Falkland Islands,Grenada and Jamaica, and have seenone from St. Helena. Three 1942Falkland Island registered coversfrom this correspondence have beensold on e-Bay in the past year, eachfor more than $200.
A 1940 First Day Cover with thefirst Pitcairn Islands stamp set wassent to a chaplain at Fort Clayton.The first available ship on which itcould be sent went to Seattle and thecover was routed to New York andthen the Canal Zone. There is a 1940airmail cover from Hong Kong, theonly example of clipper mail fromAsia before the war in the collection.
Almost all covers from this periodare censored with markings of theoriginating locations. The exhibit includes a 1940 cover from Denmarkwith German censorship markings onthe reverse. I don't have incomingcovers to APO's in the Canal Zone,
but the exhibit includes pre-war covers addressed to military stations beginning with a 1913 cover to LasCascadas.
The final period in the exhibit is1946-1979. Better post-war coversinclude a registered letter fromLiechtenstein to Colon that missed a
boat passenger, was forwarded toSingapore and eventually returned tothe sender completing a trip aroundthe world. A registered letter fromHonduras was mailed at Guanaja, anisland off its Caribbean coast. An airmail letter from New Zealand addressed to a passenger via a shippingagent was marked postage due 60centimes, but has no indication postage was collected when delivered inBalboa.
Covers from printed matter are notcommon. The collectionincludes postwar printed matter covers fromAden,the Canary Islands, Fiji, Netherlandsand Turkey and pre-war printed matter covers from Japan, Newfoundlandand Poland.
Examination of the backstamps onregistered letters indicates that somemail for the Canal Zone was dispatched to Panama and then turnedover to Canal Zone authorities. Fiveof the registered covers in the collection show Panama backstamps. Theyoccur in all time periods.
Fig. 9. Incoming 1938 censored cover form Spain
Fig. 10. Incoming 1937 ship-air cover from Germany
58 The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145
2003 ScottSpecialized Catalogue of
United States Stampsby Jim Crumpacker
There were around 110price changesin the 2003 Scott Specialized Catalogueof United States Stamps and covers,although more than 50 of these represented nothing more than increases of$25-$100 each in all the Proofs. Mostmoves were auction driven and generally did not amount to much. Ebayinfluence was noted in nos. 105a-114plate blockspricing, as nearly all wentup 15-20% or so; not many dealersseem to have any meaningful stock ofthese. A few photos of stamps disappeared from the new catalogue, leaving us with Third Series "8 cts." or "8cts" surcharges to view but no pictureofan actual stamp. Similarly,the photoof Scott No. 55 was removed, leavingbehind a much oversize Type V overprint, although the text does define theactual size of the overprint.
There are two new listings: JllC andJllCd. The former is given an integerwith the text mentioning the blue typeV overprint on the underlying lcstamp. JllC has the overprint read-
ing up, the very elusive J11Cd has theoverprint reading down. For the background on these issues please refer tothe articleby Richard Spielbergin CZPWhole No. 136 and another article inCZPWhole No. 123. These two issuesare, in my opinion, properly priced inthe new catalogue (see listings at theend ofthis article). Now all we haveto do is educate the dealers about thesubject.
The Scott's editors made no pricechanges in any of the Postal Stationery. They must be waiting forthe newVPSS catalog,just as we are. Alsoleftalone were Nos. 136 - 165 and nearlyall the Airs.
Some of the changes are shown below. Price is for an OG copy,unlessnoted otherwise.
President's ReportContinued from page 49
Scott's CZ listings elsewhere in thisissue. Even if you do not purchasetheir catalogs every year, your locallibrary will have a copy of the Specialized catalog.
I refer you also to the "Auctions"column in this issue, wherein men-
Scott 2002.2003
Catalogue #
listinglistinglb CANAL ZONE double
$2000$25002
225250
15 var., P_NAMA32505000
56f, ZONE double
10001250
84b, ZONE CANAL
375325
97b, BP of6
600525
115c, BP of6
225210C2
8575
J9, on cover
165200JllC
OG unpriced,$10 for usedJllCd
-200
J12110100
tion is made of an airship cover resulting from a visit by the V.S.S.Macon to the Canal Zone. Airshipsand their related CZ postal historyare not subjects that have receivedmuch illumination in CZP. Don't wehave a member out there who isknowledgeable on this topic? Thereare many other orphan subjects inneed of a bright light of reason whowill expose us to an interesting article. I wish you all a happy andhealthy holiday season.
UnlIoo::ISl.cN PoNl seMoe
Statement of Ownership. Management, and Circulation1. P\.IbliQl*," TIlle
,PlIblicaliooNumbio.3.Fi"gO~e-
THE CANAL ZONE PHILATELIST01'1 '1'1_1 010 I' IX26 SEP 02
Complete ancll'lle one copy 01 thia rorm wiltl your postmaster annLl&lyon or belore October 1. Keep. copy of lhe completed fannlor YOUfI'8OOrds.2.
In ene. where !he •.tockholdetor securlty holder II • trustee, fldudeln lema 10.ncll1 the name of !he person Of corporatiotl 101
whom !he trustee is acting, Also Include lt1e names and addreases of individuals whO.11I a1ockholdol'$ who own or hold 1 perconl01 more of the total amount of bonds, mortgag&S, or other securities of the publsting corporation, In it&m 11, if none, check thebolt. Use blank sheets Imolt space is required.3.
Be S1J1'll1O furnish all circulation Information called lorflit&m 15, Free cireulalion must be shown in items lSd, e, and f.
..l!em ISh .• Copie, nol Diattiluted, must indl.de If) newulalld cop/os origlnalfy sIaled 0l'I Form 354', and relum&d 10 the pubiLshet .
(2) e'lMnatod returns 'rom n.ews agents, I.l"Id (3), copi"e .• for olFlC8 ••se, lellovers,.spoiled, and all other copies not dislril;l\.lloo.5.
lithe publication n.d Periodieal.- ••• lhoti:ation ••• gene'.! 01' r&q1Je.ter pubflCl.lion, this Stal;mant 01 Ownership. Mllne.Oomen~end Circul8tlon mIlS! be p ••b1ished; it must be printed in lit)' i•••••.••in Oc:tobo. or, if Ihe publication •• nol publio.hod du~ October,Ihe Ilrat i$aue printed aflerOclobet,..
In Item U" indicate the"te althe lIsue In which this Statement 01 OIIIoel5l1lp 'frill be pr.blishea .
7.
l!em 17 mUlt be algnecl,
F.llun '" flJ. or publJ.h •• ur.",.nl of owtIMUIlp tNy'" It' .U¥M1.kHr of P~Iod/g.'.MJllKHlutJon.PS Form 352e, OdobIr tlli9~)
The Canal Zone Philatelist, 2002, Volume 38, Number 4, Whole No. 145 59
CANAL ZONEComprehensive stock including
singles, plate blocks, FDC's, FFC's,B.O.B., stationery, covers and
