Queensland 2 shilling brown covers

A census of Queensland 2 shilling 2nd Sideface covers with details of the postal rates used. Most of these stamps, being of a high value, were used for fiscal purposes. When used for postal purposes, it was mainly for parcels, so covers are scarce

1888

FORGERY. Ipswich registered letter to London dated July 1888. Total postage is 2s 10d. The registration fee was 4d. As the standard rate was 6d. it appears that the 2s was not required and has been added on afterwards. Further evidence of this is that the illegible barred numeral cancellation is facing the wrong way and has been added to with some extra lines where it joins the envelope

1890

Cover from Brisbane to Melbourne dated 12 June 1890. Ex Francis Kiddle. Philatelic use as it is hard to see how an envelope could attract such a high rate of postage and the use of the large chalon is also highly unusual

1898

Brisbane to Baden, Germany dated 12 February 1898. The postage paid was 3s including a registration fee of 3d. The letter rate was 2.5d per half ounce, so this is either a 13 x rate (highly unlikely and a ha'penny too much) or, more likely, a philatelic cover. Seen at Abacus auction no 239

1899

Posted at Samurai, British New Guinea on 19 September 1899 to Townsville, Queensland. Seen at Prestige Philately auction no 149 lot no 2028

Unknown date

A registered cover with a Brisbane datestamp. Seen in a private collection and the only genuine non-philatelic postally used cover seen used in Queensland so far

1900

George Street, Brisbane to Salzburg, Austria dated 2 January 1900. The postage paid was 3s 6d including a registration fee of 3d. The letter rate was 2.5d per half ounce, so this is either a 14 x rate (highly unlikely and 2d left over anyway) or, more likely, especially as the 1 shilling 3rd Sideface issue went on sale in June 1899, a philatelic cover. Seen at auction

1909

A stunning pair on cover from Brisbane to Germany dated 11 June 1909 which would indicate that it was of philatelic origin as these stamps were certainly not available at the Brisbane post office after 1902

1912

Qld 2/- brown & SA 10d orange thin postage, cancelled with poor Sydney registered of 7MY12, on parcel wrapper piece to Birmingham, England, with Sydney red & black registration label & oval 'REGISTERED/21/7JU12/LONDON' (A2). Seen at Premier Postal auction no 69 lot no 1013. Obviously philatelic in nature given the location and the date

A philatelic cover (the date is 1912) from Brisbane to Apolda, Germany with 2 x 2 shilling stamps. Seen in Gartner auction no 49 lot no 3101

1913

Registered cover from Melbourne to Austria dated 17 November 1913. Obviously philatelic. Seen in the Queensland Stamp Collecting Facebook Group

Queensland 2 shilling brown damaged frames

This issue, like all the sideface issues, exhibits damaged frames. For further information on damaged frames for the Queensland 2nd sideface issues, see here.

 Frame damage at top

  Frame damage at top right

  Frame damage at top left

  Frame damage at top right

  Frame damage at top right

  Frame damage at top centre

  Frame damage at top right

  Frame damage at top right

Frame damage at top right. It is interesting that all my examples involve the top frames. In other sideface issues other frames besides the top frames exhibit these characteristics.

Queensland 2 shilling brown - a late printing

I came across this in the Australian Philatelist 30 August 1900 p. 3 and reproduced in the London Philatelist October 1900, p. 276:

Queensland. — Messrs. Smyth and Nicolle send us the new 2s. value.

It is similar in every detail to the 1s. value lately issued, except figures (2) in each corner, and the colour is a washed-out blue, which a contemporary calls " Palermo" blue.

It is reported in Ewen's Weekly that, "pending the issue of this stamp, the Post Office Department, finding the stock of 2s., brown, exhausted, had another hundred sheets printed. These, however, are on a different paper to that last used, the quality of the latest issue being much inferior. The perforation is also slightly different, owing to the maker of the latest perforating machine having slightly stretched the gauge. By careful measurement we make it 12¾. The new issue will not come into operation until the old stock is exhausted."

Basset Hull believed this perforation to be from a single-line machine but remarked that he and his committee had never seen a copy of this stamp with a 12¾ single-line perforation. Nonetheless, if it existed it would constitute the first record of the use of the E1 single-line machine.

Here is what Ken Scudder has written about this printing:
"The February 1900 printing, in the distinctive lake brown, was a small emergency printing of 100 sheets, out into stock pending the release later that year of the new 4 numeral 2/-. Most of this printing was perforated with the 12.5, 13 comb machine. but a very small quantity were perforated with both the Perf 12 line and the Perf 12.5, 13 irregular line machines. Most postal cancellations are of the Parcels Post Branch with dates from January to December 1901. Others have been seen cancelled to order with dates of 1901 or 1902."

I have 6 copies from this period:

The dates are:  (l-R) 18 January 1902, 28 November 1900, 20 June 1900, 13 January 1902, 23 August 190-, 11 June 1900. The 1902 dates are exceptionally late, later than those seen by Scudder, and, as he mentioned, most of those postally used after 1900 came out of the Brisbane parcel branch. The only one that isn't is no 1, which is Bundaberg

Here is an enlarged version of my copy date stamped Brisbane parcel post 13 January 1902, perf 12.75.

This is the perforations from the E1 perforation machine. When combined there appears to be a possible match at the top and the right!

Queensland 2 shilling brown - synopsis

NAME	COLOUR	WMK	PERF	Issue date	Paper	SG No	Robson Lowe No	Price Mint 2012 SG cat	Price Used 2012 SG cat	Comments
2 shilling	Red-brown	6 (Crown above Q)	12 line	12 March 1889 - ?	De La Rue, Intense white	181	128	70	55
2 shilling	Pale brown	6 (Crown above Q)	12 line	1889 - ?	De La Rue, Intense white	182	129	60	45	Also known at the time as light yellow-brown
2 shilling	Red-brown	6 (Crown above Q)	12 line	1895 - 1899	Cowan, wove paper	Not listed separately (included in 181)				On Cowan paper from mid 1896 onwards
2 shilling	Pale brown	6 (Crown above Q)	12 line	1895 - 1899	Cowan, wove paper	Not listed separately (included in 182)				On Cowan paper from mid 1896 onwards.  Also known at the time as light yellow-brown
2 shilling	Red-brown	6 (Crown above Q)	12.75, 12.75 comb	1890 - ?	De La Rue, Intense white	197	140	42	35
2 shilling	Pale brown	6 (Crown above Q)	12.75, 12.75 comb	1890 - ?	De La Rue, Intense white	198	141	48	38	Also known at the time as light yellow-brown
2 shilling	Red-brown	6 (Crown aboveQ)	12.75, 12.75 comb	1895 - 1899	Cowan, wove paper	Not listed separately (included in 197)				On Cowan paper from 1895 onwards
2 shilling	Pale brown	6 (Crown aboveQ)	12.75, 12.75 comb	1895 - 1899	Cowan, wove paper	Not listed separately (included in 198)				On Cowan paper from 1895 onwards.  Also known at the time as light yellow-brown

There was also a late printing of this stamp in 1900, when 12,000 stamps were printed on a different and inferior paper, perf 12.75. Details here.

Scott catalogue numbers are:
86     2 shilling red brown perf 12 $95 mint and $50 used (2006)
96     2 shilling red brown perf 12.5 $55 mint and $40 used (2006)

Queensland 2 shilling brown Reglet Flaws (Frame Flaws)

For further information on compartment lines and frame flaws for the Queensland 2nd sideface issues, see here.

Here are some examples on the Queensland 2nd Sideface 2 shilling stamp.

Lines on the upper right hand side and the bottom right hand side

Marks on the upper right hand side

A mangled  line  on the upper right hand side

Lines on the left hand side

Extensive  lines  on the left hand side

Lines on the upper left hand side

Queensland 2 shilling brown fiscal cancellation

The following notice was inserted in the Queensland Government Gazette of 3^rd January, 1880:

POSTAGE AND DUTY STAMPS. 

"The public are informed that from and after lst January, 1880, the issue of separate stamps for duty and postal purposes will cease.

The present postage stamps, from one penny to one shilling, and the present duty stamps, from two shillings upwards, will, in future, be the only stamps issued and each denomination will be available to the full extent of its nominal value for all purposes for which separate stamps have hitherto been required.”

What this meant was that postage stamps could be used for fiscal purposes and vice versa. This is why most of the Queensland 2nd sideface 2 shillings stamps were used for fiscal purposes and are therefore seen fiscally cancelled. Here are some examples of the different ways they were fiscally cancelled.

A commercial name using a cancel with violet ink - Davis

Pen cancel

Blue crayon cancel

Date cancel, September 1889

Commercial cancellation in violet ink

This block was offered at the Spink auction in October 2012 from the Alan Griffiths collection. The cancellation is BRISBANE T.C. [Telegraph Counter] 11.45 am. 21 February 1901

Queensland 2 shilling brown postally used

Most of these stamps, being of a very high value, were used for fiscal purposes. When used for postal purposes, it was mainly for parcels. I am not aware of any postally used blocks and I have only seen two postally used pairs. 3 cancelled to order blocks are known, all dated 21 February 1901 with a Brisbane Telegraph Counter type 1 datestamp and so presumably from the same sheet

For examples on cover, see here:

Here are some examples of postal usage

One of only two known non-philatelic used pairs. Rockhampton 9 March 1893. From my collection

One of only two known non-philatelic used pairs. Charters Towers Registered. Dated 17 May 1899. From my collection

A CTO (Cancelled to Order) Block of 4 with a Brisbane Telegraph Office CTO datestamp type 1 dated 21 February 1901. Seen at Phoenix auction no 32 and ex Griffiths

Another CTO (Cancelled to Order) Block of 4 with a Brisbane Telegraph Office CTO datestamp type 1 dated 21 February 1901. Seen on Ebay

Another CTO (Cancelled to Order) Block of 4 with a Brisbane Telegraph Office CTO datestamp type 1 dated 21 February 1901. From my collection

Numeral 156 Georgetown

This one was used at the Parcel Branch in Brisbane

Hughenden 20 May 1896. Datestamp type 3b rated 3R

Barred numeral 298 Location unknown rated RR

Brisbane February 1897

This is the latest usage I have come across. Parcel Post Branch [Brisbane], 18 January 1902

Here are 6 late dates from my collection. The dates are (l-R) 18 January 1902, 28 November 1900, 20 June 1900, 13 January 1902, 23 August 190-, 11 June 1900. The 1902 dates are exceptionally late, and, as Scudder mentioned, most of those postally used after 1900 came out of the Brisbane parcel branch. The only one that isn't is no 1, which is Bundaberg

Another exceptionally late date from my collection. Posted at Maryborough on 15 January 1903

The only used perfin example seen so far. Barred numeral 234, Travelling Post Office Railway Number 4, Southern and Western Railway, courtesy of Dave Elsmore