Welcome to the Small Queen Constant Plate Varieties (CPV) Site

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The purpose of this site is twofold: to introduce a Small Queen CPV identification system; and to provide pertinent information and high quality scans of all CPVs that have been identified. The site welcomes all new discoveries but cautions that for a variety to be a true CPV, two examples are generally required and three are preferable.

Small Queen denominations, from Half Cent to Ten Cents, were issued at various times from 1870 to 1898. Although the individual Small Queen denomination designs remained the same over the three decades, there were many other changes.The ink ingredients were varied. Different perforation settings were used. The stamp papers evolved from high quality, expensive, handmade wove paper to poor quality cheap newspaper. Different printers had different production processes in different locations. Printing plates were damaged, re-touched, re-entered, re-laid and re-issued.

As a result of the changes to the printing plates, CPVs were unintentionally introduced. Some CPVs were produced for years, others for very short periods. In the longer printings of a CPV it is possible to see the deterioration of the retouched or relaid lines as they faded away from printing wear. That deterioration or fading of lines can lead to some confusion in the identification process, but the earlier, stronger examples showing all the variations is used in the identification.

Although the Two Cent and Five Cent Registered Letter Stamps and the Widow Weeds are not Small Queens, they are included because they were printed during the Small Queen era. The site does not include the Twenty Cent Widow Weeds stamp because no CPVs have been found on that denomination.

Please note that the pages describing the identification system are visible only on larger devices. Enjoy!

Bill Burden

    Welcome to the Small Queen Constant Plate Varieties (CPV) Web Site

    Home
    The purpose of this site is twofold: to introduce a Small Queen CPV identification system; and to provide pertinent information and high quality scans of all CPVs that have been identified. The site welcomes all new discoveries but cautions that for a variety to be a true CPV, two examples are generally required and three are preferable.
    Small Queen denominations, from Half Cent to Ten Cents, were issued at various times from 1870 to 1898. Although the individual Small Queen denomination designs remained the same over the three decades, there were many other changes.The ink ingredients were varied. Different perforation settings were used. The stamp papers evolved from high quality, expensive, handmade wove paper to poor quality cheap newspaper. Different printers had different production processes in different locations. Printing plates were damaged, re-touched, re-entered, re-laid and re-issued.
    As a result of the changes to the printing plates, CPVs were unintentionally introduced. Some CPVs were produced for years, others for very short periods. In the longer printings of a CPV it is possible to see the deterioration of the retouched or relaid lines as they faded away from printing wear. That deterioration or fading of lines can lead to some confusion in the identification process, but the earlier, stronger examples showing all the variations is used in the identification.
    Although the Two Cent and Five Cent Registered Letter Stamps and the Widow Weeds are not Small Queens, they are included because they were printed during the Small Queen era. The site does not include the Twenty Cent Widow Weeds stamp because no CPVs have been found on that denomination.
    Please start by taking a few minutes to understand the identification system. This should significantly increase the usefulness of the site. Enjoy!
    Bill Burden
    NEXT: Understanding the Identification System
Understanding the Identification System
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A...

Let's describe our identification system for Small Queen Constant Plate Varieties.

Small Queens are a confusing topic for any philatelist. When someone becomes interested in Constant Plate Varieties (CPV) in Small Queens the confusion explodes into chaos and, without some method of describing what you are looking for, or what you think that you may have found, you risk becoming lost in the wilderness and perhaps deciding that it is all just too difficult. Don’t give up.

Here is a solution for you to understand and classify what you may have found. The system restores order to confusion and chaos. At first glance the system may look like a mathematician’s musings but it actually is very intuitive and logical.

B...

Every stamp on the site has an ID composed of letters and numbers assigned to it. There are four fields to this alpha-numeric. They are denomination, CPV type, position of the CPV, and count.

The first assigned field is the denomination of the stamp. So, it can be from H to 10. (Using 'H' vs. '1/2' solves some computer file structure issues.)

The second field describes four types of CPVs.

R - Re-entry F - Plate Flaw S - Scratch T - Retouch

C...

The third field on the stamp's ID is the detailed roadmap to the variety. This field tells us which of the areas of the stamp to look at to see the variety. The stamp is divided into 5 zones and each zone is assigned a number. If the CPV is in one area of the stamp then the number after the denomination shows the area.

Note: The white circle around the Queen’s portrait is included in the 16 zone.

But what happens when the CPV is in more that one area of a stamp. When that is the case, the number designators of the areas are added together. Without making it difficult, any number adding the areas together can only be from those areas. Thus, if the number is 3 the flaw must be in the lower two areas, and one looks at those areas of the stamp. The largest number possible would be to add the five areas together making the number 31. The number 31 indicates that what is being described is throughout all of the stamp, all the areas. A flaw in the lower left and upper right corners would be a 5, and so on.

D...

Since there may be several different plate varieties in the areas covered by the number it is followed by a dot and a sequential number to indicate that there is another re-entry or scratch or flaw or retouch in those areas. This designates the count. For example, the 3F1 group has at least four different flaws in that area so the numbering would add a . and a sequential number from 1 to 4. e.g. 3F4.2 As more flaws are identified, they would be added to 3F1 count as .5 and so on.

That is all there is to the CPV identifier system. Denomination, type, position of the CPV, and count.

E...

Examples: If we look at 1F16.2 (A diagonal line in the Queen's hair on the 1¢), we will see that the 'variety' (in this case, the extra line) is in zone 16. This CPV is numbered as 1 (denomination) F (Plate Flaw) 16 (centre of the stamp) and .2 (the 2nd CPV identified from this group.)

3R31.3 is a bit more 'interesting': 3 (the denomination) R (a Re-entry) 31 (doubling in all 5 zones) and .3 (the 3rd CPV in this group.)
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