Sunday, August 22, 2010

USA - Columbian Issue - The 6¢ stamp



In 1857, Randolph Rogers was commissioned to produce a number of door panels depicting Columbus's voyages, to be hung at the United States Capitol  building. The 6-cent value in the Columbian Issue, "Columbus Welcomed at Barcelona", was taken from one of those door panels, the seventh in Rogers's chronology. The framing figure on the left is King Ferdinand of Spain. The one on the right is Vasco Núñez de Balboa, a Spanish explorer inspired by Columbus's return. Robert Savage was the engraver for the printed design.[3]

Slight variations are known in the purple color of this stamp. The most dramatic, a color called red violet, is considered significant enough to be given a minor number listing by Scott. However, this variation is not considered to be an error like the 4-cent blue and so does not command substantial premiums.

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