Scott 553 – 1½¢ Harding with Rockford, IL Misaligned Precancel

Overview

A 1½¢ Warren G. Harding definitive from the 1923 Fourth Bureau period (Scott 553) showing a significantly misaligned Rockford, Illinois, precancel. The horizontal bars sit well outside standard placement, creating a clear alignment variety that appeals to precancel specialists and collectors of U.S. EFO material. This is a sheet-issued perf 11 stamp with an unusual overprint position that stands out immediately on a precancel or Harding study page.

Key Features

• 1½¢ Harding definitive from the early Fourth Bureau series

• Rockford, IL, precancel with dramatic downward bar shift

• Town marking printed across the portrait rather than the label

• Bottom bar positioned unusually low in the design

• Crisp engraved linework typical of Bureau intaglio printing

• Solid example for precancel albums, alignment-variety collections, and Harding memorial pages

Technical Details

Scott number: 553
Issue year: 1923 (Harding memorial)
Denomination: 1½ cents
Color: Brown
Printing method: Intaglio (engraved)
Printing authority: Bureau of Engraving and Printing

Condition: Mint Never Hinged
Design: Warren G. Harding, profile facing left, with solid frame and denomination tablet at bottom

Collector Appeal

• Ideal for precancel specialists seeking out misalignment, bar-shift, or overprint-position varieties

• Relevant for Illinois town-type collectors, especially those focusing on Rockford precancels

• Valuable addition for Fourth Bureau era completions or Harding-specific collections

• Visually distinctive alignment variety that adds interest beyond standard precancel strikes

• An example of differences in hand-fed and mechanically applied precancel devices

Additional Notes

This misalignment is a regular production variation from the precanceling device, rather than damage.
Rockford, IL, precancels are well documented, and examples with extreme bar displacement are notably rare.
A strong choice for collectors searching for affordable yet distinctive U.S. precancel EFOs