Austria

Newspaper Stamps, 1851 (6kr) yellow and (30kr) rose
1856 Issue (6kr) vermilion

Imperial Journal Stamps, 1858 Issue 1kr and 4kr

Sperati made reproductions of the Mercury newspaper stamps in yellow, rose and vermilion. Sperati I mentions that examples exist on genuine stamp paper with genuine cancels retained. However, many of the reproductions most commonly seen were made entirely by Sperati and have forged cancels. He also made the 1858 imperial journal tax stamps.

On the Mercury design reproductions printed in yellow and in rose shades, Sperati used a single genuine stamp, type I, as a model to make two negatives to make and from those, three slightly different clichés. Negative A, cliché A was used to make yellow stamps and Negative A, cliché B was used to make rose stamps. Negative B was used to make a single cliché, cliché C, that was printed in both colors. Because the differences are very minor and rarely clearly visible in the final reproductions, I prefer not to designate unique types to them. A genuine type II Mercury design stamp was used as the model of the 1856 vermilion and the resultant cliché is classified here as unique design. See Sperati I text linked at bottom of this page for more detailed information.

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1851 Mercury Newspaper Design, from a Type I

(printed in yellow [6kr] and rose [30kr] shades)

1. the horizontal strokes of the letters in top label are all missing or defective

2. top part of second "K" in "K.K." is missing

(image of genuine blue Mercury Head, type I is here)

(printed in vermilion [6kr])

1. there is a white spot in the outer frame in the top right corner

2. there are two spots of color un the upper part of teh "T" of "STAMPEL" and the top serifs of the "M" and "P" appear as two dots between the heads of the letters

1. there is a nick in the left foot of the "n" of " Kon"

2. there is a dot just above the right lower serif of the "p" of "Stampel" and there is no top serif to the "l"

3. there is a weakness in the lower half of the "u" of "Kreuzer" and the tip of the second "e" is broken

1. the top and bottom serifs of both "K's" in "Kais. Kon" are joined

2. there is a flaw in the right side of the center stroke of the "m" of "Stampel"

3. the lower right serif of the "z" of " Kreuzer" is broken away from the diagonal and there is a flaw in the nose of the second "e"

4. the lower part of the bottom right circular ornament is broken.

1. the left frame is vertically split and weak towards the top

2. the "Z" of "Zeitungs" is broken at the top of the diagonal stroke

3. the horizontal stroke of the "e" of "Stampe!" is broken

4. the circular ornament in the upper left is broken at the top and those in the lower corners are broken at the bottom

additional information from Sperati I:  Plate 107 & Plate 108  Austria Text

Richard Frajola (May 17, 2020)