5c Red Brown (12). Position 50R1, huge side margins including "(E)NGRAVERS Phila" portion of imprint at right and trace of adjoining stamp at left, just touched at top and bottom, used with perforated 1857 10c Green, Ty. II (32), deep shade, both stamps tied by grid cancels, "Philadelphia Pa. Jan. 15" (1858) circular datestamp on cover to Paris France, red Philadelphia 6c credit datestamp, carried on Collins Line steamer Baltic, arriving Liverpool Jan. 28, French receiving and transit datestamps, 5c stamp with small corner crease at top left

VERY FINE. THE ONLY RECORDED ON-COVER EXAMPLE OF THE 5-CENT 1856 ISSUE WITH IMPRINT.

The 5c stamp was issued in 1856, five years after the 1c, 3c and 12c values and one year after the 10c were issued. It was typically used to pay the 5c shore-to-ship rate for mail sent overseas and also in multiples for the 10c transcontinental or 15c U.S.-French treaty rates.

The plate used to print the 5c 1856 imperforate and its Type I perforated counterparts has never been fully reconstructed, due to the lack of multiples or significant plating marks. However, 5c stamps with imprints or corner sheet margins can be reliably plated. We record only thirteen copies with part of the imprint, with this the only example we are aware of on cover (the strip of four pictured in the Hill book has been removed from its cover). The famed Mayer collection had imprint singles but none on cover.

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