Lot 60098 – 1840 1d grey black, Pl.1a QK, black Maltese Cross

1840 1d grey black, Pl.1a QK, four good to large margins, extremely fresh and clean appearance, cancelled by a double strike of a Scottish Maltese cross in black which is much scarcer on this plate than the SG cv suggests; immaculately clean back, a vibrant printing giving an exceptionally fine level of detail on this scarce usage (SG £1’100). Note: At time of publication a search on a well know online site and three key UK based dealers of line engraved material for a plate 1a penny blacks with a black Maltese Cross, produced not one single other example, however there were three examples of a brown Maltese Cross readily available – a brown cross on any penny black plate catalogues at £3’000.