Basic Information
Colors: Red brown, dark red brown
Subject: Thomas Jefferson
Plates: 1
Printing Method: die-to-relief-to-plate intaglio engraving process
Printer: Toppan, Carpenter, Casilear & Co.
Perforations: Imperforate
Watermark: none
Scott #: 12
Quantity Issued: 150,000
Issued: March, 1856
Value
An unused stamp with gum: $1,100 - $5,500
A used stamp: $10-$20
Usage
A New Orleans cover to France bearing two strips of three
A 5¢ stamp is introduced
Not issued until 1856 when the postal rate for a registered ½ ounce. There simply was no 5¢ rate, unless you were sending the ship to shore rate to France, which at the time was paid for with cash. Yes, France, where Thomas Jefferson gained popularity with the French while ambassador there. Which may also explain why his portrait was chosen for the vignette of the stamp. Even though prior to this stamp only the busts of Washington and Franklin had been used for the vignettes.
On Cover
A large portion of #12's on cover (of which only 350 exist) were addressed to Europe. Non-European destinations command a premium. Because most of the stamps were used in New Orleans it can be expected, due to New Orleans french heritage, that a large portion of the covers are addressed to France, so it follows that when the cover is addressed to European countries other than France, there is a slight premium.
Distribution
The stamp was unevenly distributed to post offices, being issued just before the perforated variety in 1857. The overwhelming majority of the stock being sent to New Orleans, with a small amount being sent to Boston. Any postmark not showing these cities also commands a premium, as long as the postmark is legible. Grid postmarks also command a premium. Any domestic use of the 5¢
commands a premium as well. Because multiples of three were commonly used to pay the higher 15¢ foreign destination rate, they do not command as higher a premium as one would expect.
The Inspiration for the Design
The inspiration for the US Scott #12 5-cent stamp, issued in 1856, was a portrait of Thomas Jefferson by the renowned American artist Gilbert Stuart.
The portrait for the stamp was engraved by William Marshall, a prominent engraver for the National Bank Note Company.
Research using X-rays revealed that Stuart, dissatisfied with his 1800 work or finding it outdated as Jefferson aged, painted the 1805 likeness directly over the original 1800 canvas. This led to historical controversy over the "missing" original portrait.
Reliefs
Relief A
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Relief B
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Relief C
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Relief D
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The Four Reliefs
There are four reliefs (A, B, C, and D) for the US 1851 5¢ Jefferson stamp. These reliefs were used to transfer the design from the transfer roll onto the printing plate (Plate 1) and are primarily distinguished by specific marks in the white oval to the left of Jefferson's head.
Relief A
Features a slight "bulge" into the colorless oval from the outside, making the oval appear narrower at that point.
Relief B
Shows a distinctive "check mark" in the oval and has the least amount of original design impingement burnished away.
Relief C
Displays a faint "curl" in the same location; notably, there is no remaining impingement below this mark.
Relief D
Identified by a long "artifact trail" that extends significantly further down the colorless oval than the marks on other reliefs.
Proofs
12P2a
Panama Pacific Proof
12TC1
Color Trial
12TC1
Color Trial
12TC1
Color Trial
Notable Stamps
Position 23R1
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Plate position 23R1 of the US 1851 5¢ Jefferson stamp (Scott #12) is famously known for a defective transfer variety.
This specific position is characterized by an area that is noticeably under-inked to the right of Jefferson's head.
A unique recorded example exists of a strip of four on a cover to France where position 23R1 is the bottom stamp in a sequence of positions 3-23R1