I think it does not matter what I think. I agree, in my mind mint should imply PO fresh and never hinged, but realistically when buying stamps, if the seller just says mint I have to assume hinged. If I want otherwise I need to see MNH, MUH, etc explicitly stated (or be able to inspect in person).
Same as used - I prefer postally used, but just "used" does not always mean that, can mean cancelled, CTO, soaked off a FDC, etc.
I guess that we all have our own opinion, me personally I feel that a mint stamp is that, mint, never heard of the PO issuing stamps with hinge marks in the back. It is either M or MH, everything else is a redundancy MNH, MLH, MVLH, MHH and so on.
Used, to me it is an stamp that has served the purpose for what it was intended for, never will l consider a CTO used stamp since it approaches the mint description more than anything else.
I believe the term "mint" comes from the coin collecting world. A "mint" is the place where they make the coins. So a mint coin is one that is the way it came from the mint. Thus, a mint stamp is as it is coming right off the printing press (or post office fresh).
If there's a hinge, or the gum has been soaked off, etc. then it is no longer mint...but it is still unused.
The truth is within and only you can reveal it 20 Dec 2016 07:27:30pm
re: Mint or Unused?
I prefer the following terms:
Unused= no gum
Mint= with gum. Description should also include one of the below.
VLH = very lightly hinged, very faint hinge mark appears nearly NH
LH= easily seen trace of hinging, no remnant
H= hinged, part of hinge remaining
HH= multiple hinge remnants
NH= no trace of hinging or other defects, Post fresh
Hinge thins are a separate issue. They should be described for size and depth
Using the nomenclature ... Mint = Not Used Postally or CTO ... then adding the additional initials to further clarify is descriptive, accurate and simple. The only deviation from this is my personal preference for adding ... NG = No Gum but I could live with "Unused" interchangeably.
Mint is merely a superclass of MNH, MH and all other mint varieties. If you are purchasing a "mint" stamp you need to find out whether hinged, unhinged, and the state of the gum. Of course all language depends on its acceptance and usage. I believe the above is the accepted usage of the term(s) by most dealers.
The thing that bugs me the most about mint or unused is when people classify an unused stamp that has no gum as a mint stamp. To me that is not a mint stamp at all, it would be unused.
Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy.. 29 Dec 2016 10:36:32am
re: Mint or Unused?
I must have missed it along the way but; How many angels was it that can stand on the head of a pin ?
A further reflection; How is it that labeling a stamp "unused" = "no gum".
A CTO that was marked with an apparent cancellation during production is certainly both "unused" as well as usually "gummed." In fact, it could be considered "mint" since it is precisely as issued by the agency.
Now. back to inspecting pin populations dancing on the heads of straight pins. Did I ever show scans of my paper clip collection ?
Login to Like this post
".... You may think you understood what you thought I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you think you heard is not what I thought I meant. .... "
Now, I for one, would like to see a scan of a paper clip collection. For years I had collected vintage office supplies and somewhere there should be various boxes of paper clips.
