Inside Linn’s: ‘Look’ and its creative uses of the 1955 ½¢ Ben Franklin stamp

By Charles Snee

The July 7 digital-only issue of Linn’s Stamp News will be available to subscribers Saturday, June 21. While you wait for your issue to arrive in your inbox, enjoy these three quick glimpses of exclusive content available only to subscribers.

‘Look’ and its creative uses of the 1955 ½¢ Ben Franklin stamp

In Modern U.S. Mail, Richard L. Beecher writes, “During the period when the Liberty series of definitive (regular-issue) stamps were in everyday use, Look used many of the low-denomination stamps from that series on its mass mailings to attract new and renewing subscribers.” To make his point, he illustrates and discusses three covers mailed by Look and franked with eye-catching multiples of the 1955 ½¢ Ben Franklin stamp from the Liberty series. One of those covers, which still has its original contents, is pictured above. The other two are equally interesting, so be sure to read the entire column.

Tip of the week: United States 1894 2¢ carmine lake type I George Washington

Stamp Market Tips columnists Henry Gitner and Rick Miller recommend the U.S. 1894 2¢ carmine lake type I George Washington stamp (Scott 249) from the First Bureau Issue, observing that the stamp “is surprisingly difficult to find in unused, original gum condition and in mint, never-hinged condition.” Gitner and Miller also point out that the stamp comes in a range of color varieties. They advise looking for “an example in dark carmine lake to easily differentiate it from the 2¢ carmine stamp (Scott 250).”

Kitchen Table Philately: mixture of 300 U.S. stamps for $5

In each weekly issue of Linn’s, either E. Rawolik VI or E. Rawolik VIII dissects the contents of a stamp mixture offered to collectors. E. Rawolik is a pseudonym that is also the word “kiloware” (a stamp mixture) spelled backward. This week, E. Rawolik VIII reviews a sample of 200 stamps from a mixture of 300 U.S. stamps from a seller in Connecticut. According to E. Rawolik VIII, the seller “sent a wide variety of stamps from the 20th century, primarily the 1940s-1980s. They were mostly definitive and commemorative postage stamps, with about two dozen airmails and three special delivery stamps thrown in as well.” Much more is revealed in the full review.

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