Roller Flaws I
 | One of the earliest major roller flaws was the "O" flaw on Plates 7 through 10. These plates were first put to press for the Penny Black, but Plates 8, 9, and 10 were also used for the early printings in 'red'. The size of the flaw increased as the roller impression wore, and the ridges around the flaw 'chipped' away. Three named stages of the flaw are recognized by specialists. |
 | The flaw began as a break in the baseline under the "O", and slowly spread to the Northeast. These are both classed as Stage 2 of the "O" Flaw and are from Plate 8. Look at this early Black printing and compare it with a late Red printing, some wear of the plate can be seen particularily in the area just above the Value Tablet. |
Click on the Red impression to see both copies enlarged.
| The difference in apparent size of the two images is real. Both were scanned in at the same time. Apparently the Black pressing was over dampened (this may also account for the extra heaviness of the ink, and the slight blurring) and thus when it dried, it shrunk more than the later Red pressing. Note the slight extension of the S.E. baseline, caused by touching up a weak line, it is yet another clue used in plating these stamps. |
 | As the corner lines were of rather thin, long ridges of metal. unsupported by nearby designwork, a number of flaws developed. some were found and touched-up on the plate, but most, especially those in the N.W. and N.E. corners remained. One of the most interesting is the 'Triple Break' found on Plate 23 in the Northeast corner. Note also the extreme weakness of the sideline of the square. |
 | The 'rays' of the corner stars were also subject to damage, and many times provide clues to the various plate groupings. One of the longest lived is known as the "1842-43 Ray Flaw". First found on Plate 26, its life extended through Plate 36! It is a dual flaw, affecting both corner stars. The flaw consists of the shortening and doubling of the 10 o'clock ray in the N.W. corner, together with a truncation of the 1 o'clock ray in the N.E. corner. This example is from Plate 29 |
 | A second pair of flaws show up intermittently in Plates 46 through 56. These flaws were probably caused by something striking the top of the design on the roller. The result shows as slightly angled thin breaks in the border above the "T" and the "E" of "POSTAGE". These are best seen in examples from Plates 47 and 48. As the roller wore, more of the base of the impressing ridge came into play, closing the flaw. |
This example is from Plate 55.