C10 - 1927 10ยข Airmail
See below for details
Basic Info
10¢
Dark Blue
Printing Method: Flat Plate
Printer: Bureau of Engraving and Printing
Subject: Spirit Of St Louis and Flight Route
Number issued: 20,379,179
Perforations: 11
Watermark: Unwatermarked
Scott #: C10
Issued: June 18, 1927
Value
C10
Used
25¢-50¢
No postmark with gum (MH)
75¢-$1
Full perfect gum, no postmark
no trace of stamp hinge mark (MNH)
$1 - $2
C10a
Used
$6-$14
No postmark with gum (MH)
$4-$13
Full perfect gum, no postmark
no trace of stamp hinge mark (MNH)
$14 - $23
C10a
C10a is a booklet pane of three. It can be identified by straight edges on all four sides of the block of four and a tab at the top. There are twelve collectible positions which can be determined by the size of each sides margins.
C10a booklet contained two panes of stamps
Plate #'s
#C10 was issued with the following plate #'s
18997-19008
#C10a was issued with the following plate #'s
19414
19425-27
NOTE REGARDING C10a
The selvedge number with the plate block is severed from the stamps in the printing process, there are rare examples where a partial showing of plate block number is visible.
First Day Covers
A first day cover postmarked June 18, 1927
C10a booklet pane of three with tab, used with 2c Valley Forge (Sc. 645) on registered and flown FDC from Cleveland, May 26 to Boston, with purple Philatelic Exhibition cachet, backstamped on arrival, signed by Stephen Smith (pilot)
Usage
The current system of calculating the rate to be charged for was complex and in 1927 it was simplified to 10¢ per half ounce regardless of operator or distance.
The Orteig Prize
Charles Lindbergh and the Spirit of St Louis
A video about Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindberghs arrival in Paris
In 1919, Raymond Orteig, a hotel owner in New York City, offered a prize of $25,000 to the first pilot to fly nonstop from New York to Paris. By 1927, four men had died, three were seriously injured and two others went missing during their attempt, and the prize remained tantalizingly out of reach.
The plane's single-engine design caused many to doubt its ability to cross the vast Atlantic. Previous attempts had all included multi-engine planes. Also, co-pilots had been a staple on the 3,500-mile (5,632-kilometer) journey, but Lindbergh intended to fly alone. Lindbergh omitted a parachute and a radio from his gear, opting to include more gasoline. The newspapers called him "the flying fool.
After 33 hours and 30 mintes, Charles Lindberg arrived at Paris for the first transatlantic flights. 21 May 1927, thus claiming the prize.
A Complete Pane
A complete pane of 50, there were four panes to a sheet of 200
Essay
A hand-drawn art work in ink (203 x 90mm), mounted on card,
The Inspiration for the Design
Spirit of St. Louis taking off at Curtis Field
The design was taken from a fine action shot of the Spirit of St. Louis by photographer M.J. Ackerman, who snapped this picture at Curtis Field, Long Island just as the plane left the run-way for a practice spin a few days before the take-off for Paris".
It is notable that Lindbergh's name does not appear in the design, yet the map of his route does.
1926-34 Airmails
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