5c Brown, A. Grill Essay (80a). Unused (no gum), characteristic centering and perforations of the experimental A. Grill, small nick at top, few faults at lower right

THE TOP RIGHT STAMP FROM THE EARL OF CRAWFORD BLOCK OF FOUR OF THE 1867 5-CENT ALL-OVER EXPERIMENTAL GRILL. ONE OF FOUR RECORDED UNUSED EXAMPLES OF THIS ESSAY.

There are four unused 5c A Grill essays recorded in our census, which originally formed a block of four owned by the Earl of Crawford. This stamp is the top right stamp from this block, which has an interesting history.

The entire Earl of Crawford collection was purchased by Nassau Stamp Co. (John A. Klemann) in 1915. In a June 5, 1930, letter from Klemann to Philip H. Ward, this stamp was described as follows: "The 5c copy was one of a block of four from the 'Lord Crawford' collection, purchased by this company and later broken into four single stamps. It was previously owned by an employee of the National Bank Note Company, Mr. Charles F. Steel." [Steel was the creator of the grilling process]. The stamps originating from the Earl of Crawford block have drawn inconsistent opinions over the years. The right vertical pair of stamps (including this one) have been separately certified by the P.F. as genuine, while the upper left stamp was certified first as an essay (PFC 3170) and then as a counterfeit (PFC 36753). The lower left stamp -- offered in our 2003 Rarities sale and the one described in the Klemann letter -- had never been submitted to the Philatelic Foundation until 2003, when it was declared to be an all-over essay grill. It previously had a 1942 American Board of Experts certificate signed by Klemann, describing it as a genuine "5c Brown with essay grill covering the entire stamp", an opinion consistent with Klemann's knowledge of grilling and of the source block's origin.

Of the four recorded used 5c A Grill stamps, two have identical shades, centering and cancellations. In fact, the two of the same shade were originally joined as a pair and were used as singles together. They are printed in a distinctive shade -- sometimes called Black Brown -- that is very scarce and found only on covers dated from late 1867 into 1868 (we have records of four covers from October 1867 to May 1868). It is likely that a small number of sheets from this late printing were available for grilling with the A Grill in 1867. The other two recorded 5c A Grills are in a brighter shade of Brown and must come from a different supply of 5c sheets printed earlier.

Two of the four unused 5c A Grill stamps from the Earl of Crawford block, including this one, were previously certified as genuine Scott 80's by The Philatelic Foundation. The P.F. is now being consistent in describing this as an essay.

Ex Schilling. With 1969 P.F. certificate as Scott No. 80, unused, with small defects. With 2015 P.F. certificate stating "it is a genuine Scott 80E, with an all over essay grill, a small nick at top and faults at lower right."

Image Magnifier / Download

Power Search for Comparables