"1/2" overprint on 1856

[Bubba Bland]

Spuff,
I haven't seen this before, but to me it looks as if a letter follows the '3', and I think it may be a 'p' or something else. Hard to say. If it is a 'p' it may be a German marking. Just a guess. Maybe it is an 'r', for Reales.

Now the question is, it this marking over or under the cancel. What is the odd looking 'Mexico' doing out in the field? The original overprint is good and the cancel may be a standard one, but the 3 and the other Mexico ovpt. would be suspect.

B

[Martin "Spuff" Spufford]

As this is a similar type item I thought I would list it here with the "½".
 
This is a large"3" which is unknown to me. Anyone know about it?
 
spuff

[Martin "Spuff" Spufford]

And another fake from nf2005

[Martin "Spuff" Spufford]

  Here's another one I sold a few years ago in my scan archive,
This one is obviouslñy drawn by hand but still of interest.

[Martin "Spuff" Spufford]

The cds is over the 1/2

[Farley Katz]

Thanks, Spuff.  Looks to me that whatever this is, it isn't a cancellation.  Can you tell if it's under or over the circular cancellation?

[Martin "Spuff" Spufford]

  Here is another one Farley
spuff

[Farley Katz]

Does anyone have more examples of this "1/2" mark?   The two we've seen (assuming the eBay one is inked over a rubber stamp) are perfectly centered on the stamps and perfectly aligned vertically and horizontally with the stamp design.  This may be coincidence, but this seems unusual if the stamps were being cancelled by (different?) clerks on the envelopes.  To me it seems to suggest that the "1/2" marks were put on before the stamps were used.  Of course, this can't be right if Bubba is correct that  the 1/2 mark is over the Mexico City cancellation. 

[Donald]

Or, this may just be the "O" in "EFO"........

[Bubba Bland]

I think the cancel has been enhanced with ink. Most of these Sz821A I have seen are fairly weak as the one I have is. I looked closely at my stamp's cancel and it appears to be done over the Mexico City cancel.

What all this means is, I don't know. It may have even been a cancel that originates in another district and incorrectly attributed to Mexico City. It may be a postage due mark for underpaid postage, or I have even heard of other things like a forward charge. It could have been used for city delivery. It is hard to tell, because I don't believe there is any real government regulations that covered this, or if they were, it has been lost in time.

Campeche has a number of fractional cancels and some have suggested they were used for rate changes. I don't believe this is a pre-cancel or it would have been done under the city cancel, leading us to think of it as an after thought, for whatever reason we don't know.

[Farley Katz]

The "1/2" on the eBay stamp looks very close to the cancellation 821A, but it is much darker and irregular and looks like a pen and ink copy (or possibly drawn over a genuine 821A?). 
 
BTW, what is the origin of 821A as a cancellation?  Is it a pre-stamp mark for postage due that was later just used as a cancellation?  Or is it still used to indicate postage due here?  The seller described it as "extra postage".

[Bubba Bland]

Yes, they do exist.

[Thomas_A]

I noted that item also and scratched my head a bit.  I was a little surprised by activity.  In my perusing of auction catalogs over the last year, I do not recall seeing this mark on any 1856 lot (although I may have missed it).

That even makes me wonder a little bit about Schatzkes 821a (40 points).  Does anyone have a cover or stamp with 821a, district Mexico, that they could show us?

Thomas

[Farley Katz]

There is a somewhat similar "1/2" cancellation in Schatzkes under Mexico, no. 821A.  That is recorded on the 1856s only, but I can't tell from the illustration if it's the same.  Also this is a Vera Cruz stamp.  The 1/2 here is very dark and irregular and looks like it might be hand drawn.

[Tad Mackie]

And "pericomex" is a well know dealer.........