French cancels - 01 n Paris numbered stars (étoiles chiffrées)

see also: https://rainbowstampsandcoins.blogspot.com/2023/02/french-cancels-01-c-paris-numbered.html

Variations on the star itself:

mute star (no number)

mute star

mute star cropped

cropped mute star

mute start blank center 

blank center

If you like to collect the numbered stars, there are various ways to do so.
You can search for all numbers, regardless on which stamp they occur, or you can look for each stamp (between nr. 1 to 60) to find 40 different cancels each time.
I'm sure, the last option will get you a lifetime achievement award, as you'll be looking for 2400 stamps.

The page I made (see link) has 6 pages:

page 1 is a list of each of the 40 offices
page 2 is an album page that can be used for each of the 40 star cancels
(this page can be copied many times, if you like to collect the cancels on different stamps)
page 3/4/5/6 are pages where you can put all variations of the star cancels.

I also added a mute start cancel, a cropped mute cancel, and an empty center star cancel.

link to the pdf-file

French cancels - 01 m Paris numbered stars (étoiles chiffrées)

Some variations on the étoile 3:

see also https://rainbowstampsandcoins.blogspot.com/2023/02/french-cancels-01-c-paris-numbered.html

For the star nr. 3, there are also few variations.

étoile 3 - normal version

In the first variation, the dot on top of the 3 is missing.

étoile 3 - plein

The second variation is similar to the first one, but the horizontal line in the middle of the 3 is extended and connected with the dot in front of it. As if an extra dot is placed in front of the 3.
This variation is called the 'parasite 3'.

étoile 3 'parasite'

Two more variations on the 3-star exist.
For those 2, an improvised 3 cancel was used. The font is different than the one used before.
The handstamp was however not very strong made, or used the wrong way, as not only this improvised cancel, but also a worn out - version of this cancel can be found.

étoile 3 - improvisé (1st state)

étoile 3 - improvisé (2nd state)

Below, the 'original' étoile 3 cancel.

to be continued...

French cancels - 01 l Paris numbered stars (étoiles chiffrées) - variations 5

For this post, I present the last (so far) known variations on the star cancels.
 

Variations on the 23:

For this specific cancel all 6 points of the cancel are gone, as if the cancel started to melt.
Incomplete cancels (on the stamp alone) can create the illusion of an incomplete cancel.
Therefore only clear cancels or cancels on letters can tell if the 23 is a normal cancel or a truncated one.

étoile 23 tronquée (truncated)

Variations on the 28:

This variation is clearly due to the use of a worn out  hand cancel.
The degeneration of the cancels made the 28 look like a 20 in the end...

normal 28 - cancel

28 second state

28 third (laste) stage

For cancels in this last stage, some expertise is needed.
Lack of ink, or soft cancels can create a 28 in this third state. Not even mentioning the removal of the centre by fraud.

to be continued ...

French cancels - 01 k Paris numbered stars (étoiles chiffrées) - variations 4

More variations on the French star cancels :

Variations on the 15:

étoile 15 - grand logement

Variations on the 16:

étoile 16 accidentée

Variations on the 18:

étoile 18 cassée

étoile 18 - grand logement

to be continued...

French cancels - 01 j Paris numbered stars (étoiles chiffrées) - variations 3

More variations on the french star cancels:

étoile chiffrée 7 in pair

For this cancel type, we do not find damaged or deformed numbers, but the variations are within the 7 itself.
There are 3 known versions of the 7.

The 7 can be 6.5 mm high, 5.5 mm or even 5 mm.

normal 7 - 6.5 mm

Smaller version of 5.5 mm:

average 7 - 7 moyenne - 5.5 mm

And the smallest version is only 5 mm high:

small 7 - 7 petite - 5 mm

For the 6 and the 9 star cancels, the variations are there to make the difference between both numbers.
see : https://rainbowstampsandcoins.blogspot.com/2023/03/french-cancels-01-g-paris-numbered.html

to be continued...

French cancels - 01 i Paris numbered stars (étoiles chiffrées) - variations 2

The variations continue...

Variations on the 4:

Also on the 4 cancel, some variations are known :

étoile 4 - normal

Since the cancels were often used, some damage to them is inevitable.
A worn out cancel is know as 4-brisé (broken 4) :

(broken4) 4 brisé

Similar to the 1 'grand logement'  (large housing), the 4 has a also such a version:

étoile 4 - grand logement

Probably, an empty star cancel was prepared to serve as a 4 cancel.
The empty space in the middle was large enough to add two digit numbers if necessary.
For the 1 and 4 therefore there was too much space then needed, resulting in a large central space.

Another option to make a 'new' 4-cancel, was to alter an existing cancel.
A 24-star cancel was used, of which the 2 was removed and the dots were more or less restored.
It is called ex-24.

étoile 4 - ex-24

How about the vartiations on the 5:

The 'normal' 5 has a curly upper line, and a dot in the centre above it.

étoile 5 - normal

Some 5's are slightly deformed.
Those are called the broken 5's (5-cassé)

In some cancels, the upper line is flattened, and the dot in the centre above it, is missing.
This cancel is called a ' 5 crochu' (hooked 5) - a flattened 5 would be more accurate in my opion.

Finally, similar to the 1 and 4 'grand logement' also a 5 grand logement exists.

5 grand logement

Note the two dots (and not 3) left and right of the number, on the central horizontal line. 

to be continued...

French cancels - 01 h Paris numbered stars (étoiles chiffrées) - variations 1

The variations:

Variations on the 1

In the image below, we see a 'normal' version of the 'étoile chiffrée 1'.
The 1 starts with a short line, not touching the dot in front of it.

étoile chiffrée 1 - normal

Two étoiles 1 : with normal '1'

There is a variation where the beginning of the 1, touches the dot in front.

Only 2 remaining 'free dots' in front of the 1, in stead of the 3 in the normal version.

Another variation is called the 'large housing' or "grand logement"
In this cancel we only find 2 dots left and right of the centre of the '1'.

étoile 1 'grand logement

Other 'variations' are more likely due to the wear of the stamp.
The incomplete "1" comes in different stages :

stage 1

stage 2

The examples above are not realy variations, but more like accidentially impartial cancels.
They are also called '1 accidenté'.
However, they were used in this condition before being replaced by a new 'complete' cancel.
Some expertise is needed, as not all imperfect 1's are real "1 accidentés"

Variations on the 2

For the étoile chiffrée 2, there is one variation described.
Also here, the variation is more likely to be caused by the use of a worn out cancel.

As the cancel was used, and copies of this type of cancel can be found, I added it to the list of variations.

étoile chiffrée 2 cassé

The 2 cassé (broken), shows a slightly deformed star and a broken nr 2.

to be continued...

Currency Today : Switzerland 02

The second coin in circulation in Switzerland is a 10 rappen-coin.
Although with a low face value, it is without any doubt de most interesting coin to look for.

10 rappen

10 Swiss rappen

Between 1850 and 1876 the coins had the coat of arms of Switzerland on the back side. These coins contained 10% silver, and therefore they were replaced in 1879 by copper-nickel coins. They have the image of the head of  'Liberty' on the reverse side.

Opposite to the 5 rappen coins, which had grapes and grape leaves on the coin, the 10 rappen coin has oak leaves.

10 rapppen with oak leaves

The alloy changed only few times : 1919–1931: Cu-Ni, 1932–1939: Ni, and since 1940: Cu-Ni.

In 1886, the first version (1850-1876) with the coat of arms were taken out of circulation, but the others remained in circulation. Therfore it is possible to find a 1879 coin in your change, as they remain legal tender!

Any variations to look for?

First of all not all coins are coins, some are medals too.  This has to do with their orientation. Before you start writing me about equal rights and non-discrimination laws... coin or medal orientation is the way the front side of the coin/medal is printed in relation to the back side.

Holding a coin between index fingar and thumb

Hold a coin between thumb and index finger and make sure the front side is upright.

Now you turn the coin around its verical axis, until you see the back side.
If the coin is still presenting the image/text upright, we call it 'medal orientation'.
This comes from the soldiers who had medals printed that way. The medal was supposed to be upright no mather how the soldier was presenting the medal. A flip over made the medal still upright.
These type of printing is typical for British, European and Japanese coins.

If the coin shows an upside down image when flipped around the vertical axis, we call it coin orientated. This can be seen on American, Thai and old French coins.

In catalogues a medal orientation is indicated as : medal alignment ↑↑
and coin orientation is indicated as : coin alignment ↑↓

There is a variation on a 1925 coin, where the normal medal alignment is slightly disturbed.
Only few coins are known with this variation:

1925 10 rappen variation picture belongs to : https://www.sincona.com/en/

In 1939 a unique variation occured. Only one coin so far is known. Only one side is printed, and the 10 rappen image is not present.

1939 10 rappen variation picture belongs to : https://www.sincona.com/en/

Another variation is on a 1942 coin, where the front head of the head of Liberty, has an extra hair line.

1942 10 rappen variation picture belongs to : https://www.sincona.com/en/

Finally a variation that is more like a misprint that made it into circulation.

I cannot image that this coin, or what is left over, ever came in circulation, without anyone asking what the f... happend to that coins.
I present it to you to be complete :

10 rappen severe error picture belongs to : https://www.sincona.com/en/

Most rare are the 1896 coin and the 1875 coin.

to be continued ...

Commemorative coins : Canada 1867-1967 - 04

For die hard fans...

From the 1 dollar commemorative coin, some errors and varieties exists, and I don't want to keep them away from you... (altough NOT in my collection)

Normal version

↑↑ Coinage

1 dollar 1967 - medal orientation

Turning the coin horizontally, the image of the goose and the Queen are upright.
This kind of minting is called 'medal orientation'.

For a medal to display properly, even if it flips over, when it is tagged to a uniform, the reverse needs to be aligned so that the top of the reverse shares the same position as the top of the obverse. This alignment is called medallic orientation. The opposite situation is seen in some coins, e.g. coins of the United States - but not those of the United Kingdom. In this case, the coin must be flipped about its horizontal axis in order to see the other side the correct way up. In other words, the image on one face of the coin is upside-down relative to the other. For this reason, 'coin orientation' is used in the United States to express the opposite of 'medal orientation'.

Errors and varieties

↑↓ Coinage

1 dollar 1967 - coin orientation

Same coin as above, but with different orientation of one of the sides. Very very rare !!!

Coins with coin orientation include United States coinage, South Korean coinage, Thai coinage and pre-Euro French coinage.

Diving Goose 45%

The diving or declining gooze, is a variation of the first coin (medal orientation).Catalogue value rises up to 5 to 10 times the value of the 'normal' coin. Rather rare.

1 dollar 1967 - medal orientation and 'diving goose'

Double Struck

The coin looks terrible, but this has much to do with the fact that it was struck twice.
As we see a goose with two necks.

This error is worth easily 10 to 20 times the value of a regular coin of the same quality. - Very rare.

1 dollar - medal orientation - dubble struck

Theme : Zodiac signs 14

What does a swiss landscape has in common with a zodiac sign?

Nothing, indeed, although swiss stamps from 1982 till 1985 show us a set of 12,
sorry 13 (!) stamps with zodiac signs.

Let's start with the first issue of 1982:

set of 1982

The zodiac sign in the corner of the stamp has nothing to do with the actual image on the stamp.
Depicted are views of cities of landscapes in Switzerland.
1,00 CHF : view on the old city of Bern - Aquarius
1,10 CHF : city of Nax, near Sion - Pisces
1,20 CHF : Graustok - Aries
1,50 CHF : Cathedral of Basel - Taurus
1,60 CHF : Schönengrund in Appenzell - Gemini

A year later, a second set was issued, this time with 3 stamps

set of 1983

In this second set, we find:
1.70 CHF : Mount Wetterhorn - Cancer
1,80 CHF : Canyons of l'Areuse - Leo
2,00 CHF : Aletsch Glacier - Virgo

the 2 CHF stamp is the special one ...
Swis stamps are know for their good quality, but in this case, the designer, or at least the one who was responsible for the layout of the stamp, must have had too much Appenzeller liquor, or Fendant wine, as the image on the stamp is mirrored compared to reality...

Aletsch Glacier

issued stamp

stamp as how it should have been ...

The 'wrong' stamp was not redrawn, but replaced by another view in 1984

new stamp 'Virgo'

The 1984 issue of the Virgo stamp, shows us 'Lac Noir / Schwarzsee' near Zermatt.

Finally two sets of each 2 stamps were issued in 1984 and 1985:

1984 set

4,00 CHF : view on the Glarus Alps (central Switzerland) - Saggitarius
4,50 CHF : village Scuol-Schuls - Capricorn
2,50 CHF : view on Fechy - Libra
3,00 CHF : view on Corippo -  Scorpio

1985 set

Again, the views on the cities, and the zodiac signs have nothing in common, this happens often in countries like Equatorial Guinea, Togo, Mozambique ... where we see logos of WWF, Rotary or scouting on hundreds of stamps. A bad way to make collectors buy stamps that are 99% off topic, but that appear in 'specialised' catalogues on WWF or scouting for example.

Not the bes issue of the Swiss, but at least again something to write about.