#79 1867 3¢ A grill

Basic Information

Color: Rose
Subject: George Washington
Printing method: line-engraved intaglio on flat plates
Printer: The National Bank Note Company
Perforations: 12
Watermark: none
Type of Grill: A
Scott #: 79
Plates: 11, 52
Quantity issued: Not known
Issued: Shortly after October 22nd, 1867

Value

An unused stamp with perfect gum: -
An unused stamp with gum and a hinge mark: $3,250-$5,250
A used stamp: $300-$400

A Grill Detail

This is considered to be an experimental grill. The total production of 250-300 sheets probably took no more than two hours. The grill points are facing up. This was the first experimental grill, it was found that it weakened the paper and the perforations. As a result the separation of the stamps became difficult resulting in rough perforations and jagged edges. It was followed by the C grill which had a small rectangular grill embossed into the stamp.

Usage

The earliest documented use of #79, August 13th, 1867

#79 was primarily used to pay the standard 3-cent domestic letter rate for mail weighing up to 1/2 ounce.

Multiples for Higher Rates: These stamps were often used in multiples to pay for heavier letters or for international mail destinations requiring higher postage. A typical example was to pay part of the 15¢ rate to France and Germany.

The Inspiration for the Design

Houdon’s bust

Montgomery Blair

Portrait Source
Houdon created the original bust from a plaster life mask and wet clay models during a 1785 visit to Mount Vernon at the invitation of Benjamin Franklin. It is considered one of the most accurate representations of Washington.
Artistic Elements
The stamp depicts Washington in profile facing left, with his hair tied back and his shoulders draped in a Roman toga.
Montgomery Blair
A notice went out to Postmasters declaring that they could exchange the Montgomery Blair was the Postmaster General at the time. He was an ardent and loyal Lincoln supporter. He was enthusiastic in his drive to deprive the South of both a mail service and Federal Stamps. His haste only led to delays in the transition and the birth of various schemes by entrepreneurs to profit from the change. He was fortunate in that new designs had already been prepared before his tenure, and thus he was able to implement his plans a little more quickly than possible.

Forgeries

Click image to enlarge

The A grill on #79 is fairly commonly counterfeited. It is far more likely that the a stamp is submitted for certification claiming to be an A grill but was an A grill essay, #79-E15a.

On the #79-E15a essay the grill units are not quite as heavily impressed as are those of the issued grill (#79) and are square. On the issued grill (#79) the units are rectangles, slightly taller than they are wide, and they were impressed strongly enough so that an examination of them thru a glass will reveal that the fibres of the paper are broken at the bottom of each pit made by the grilling units.