Stamp Stories

Press, Volume LXXIV, Issue 22335, 24 February 1938, Page 2 (Supplement)

Stamp Stories

(By R, J. G. Collins)

The last of the subjects—colour —which we have to consider in dealing with stamp production, is the most difficult, unfortunately, few postal administrations have consistently .taken trouble to ensure that as far as possible all the stamps of an issue should be printed with the one type of ink, and, as a result, where a stamp has been current over a lengthy period it is usual to find marked variations. Then there is a further difficulty, that the use of various textured papers may give shade variations, even when the same ink is used; and with mechanical inking in present day production, i# is possible to find varying intensities in the one shade. But the greatest trouble in dealing with colour descriptions in stamps is that there has been no uniformity on the part of philatelic writers. Even in some of the most important catalogues and books, it will be found that a stamp will be de- ’ scribed as in orange, while the identical stamp when overprinted may be described as printed in

vermilion. There have been numerous attempts to solve the colour difficulty, and certain) so-called colour guides have been produced, but these will continue to be useless until that day, if it ever comes, when a fixed standard Is adopted, and all descriptions , are based upon the same standard. It would be impossible in these columns to treat this matter very deeply, but certain general remarks on the members of the colour families should be helpful. It should be understood that the colour names used are those which are frequently used in philately. The most widely-used colour family in stamp production Is red, because all stamps of the value fixed as the minimum internal letter rate should, according to the Postal Union, be printed in this colour. At one end of the group we have the colours in which red is mixed with violet, but with a greater amount of red. The deepest of these is maroon, while the next is claret.

Among stamp collectors the very deepest shade of red is known as lake, and the next deepest is crimson. Then comes carmine, ■which is a deep red, though the word is often used where red would be better. Scarlet is a bright shade, while the tefm red should be reserved for stamps of a bright warm colour, resembling blood. Rose is a dullish, slightly pale tint of red, while salmon lies mid-way between rose and pink. Vermilion is the brightest of the reds. Between the red and orange families, we have the familiar stamp colour of orangered, which resembles vermilion, but has more yellow in it. In the orange family, the simple colour should not give much trouble, as we are all familiar with the fruit Intensities of the general colour in this group, as in others, are shown by the use of the words deep and light. Light orange r is similar to orange yellow, but has more of the red tint.

In the yellow group, we have gold, yellow, and lemon and these should be easily understood. The yellow group is followed by green and among stamps we find many instances where yellow and green inks are mixed. Where there is a greater amount of yellow we use the term greenish-yellow, but

PART VI—STAMP PRODUCTION Colours

where the yellow modifies the green, we describe the shade as yellow-green, which is a pale bright green. The term green is used very loosely in philately. Thus light green is often wrongly described as yellow-green, but there is no tint of yellow in the true colour. Grass green is a bright shade, butthe brightest of all is emerald. Myrtle green is the deepest shade of pure green. Sage is dull with a trace of grey in it, while olive has a tinge of brown about it. The blue family presents even more difficulties than the red. Between the green and blue lies the colour known as. blue-green. Sky blue is the palest of the blues, while another light shade is cobalt. - . Ultramarine as a stamp colour is dullish with a suspicion of grey in it. Prussian blue is a deep colour with a trace of green, and indigo is the deepest of the blues. In the violet family, true vmlet is the colour of the flower, lilac is a pale bright shade; purple is a deep bright colour, and mauve has a considerable amount of red mixed with the violet. " ■ . Among the browns, buff is another name for yellow-brown. Bistre is a smoky buff. Orangebrown is deeper than bistre, while chestnut is a bright, warm brown. Red-brown is a term used for a deep tan shade, while chocolate is the. deepest of the browns; At the two extremes of colours, we have white and black. , Where these two pigments are mixed we get grey and slate, grey having more white, while slate has a greater amount of black. Many modern issues, when the stamp is seen from the back, show a definite dyeing of the fabric of the paper. This is through the mixture with the pigment of aniline, a coal tar preparation. Stamps described as “aniline red,” "aniline purple” and so on, must necessarily show signs of the dye, and It is with these stamps that care must be taken when they are being washed from paper, otherwise the colours will run.

TO SAVE HIS PETS A 16-year-old Shanghai boy, Valentine Holdosi, who braved Japanese rifle Are and bombardment to rescue his pets, has been awarded the National Canine Defence League’s silver medal for gallantry. iHe brought back a chicken and a canary, as well as his two dogs, from a part of Shanghai which was being subjected to constant rifle Are and bombardment. After being marooned for 13 days with his pets at his home in Ford lane, Yanstzapoo, he made his way, under intense fire into the International Settlement. Efforts were made by Officials of the Shanghai S.P.C.A. to rescue the animals by means of their motor ambulance, but the Japanese refused to allow a safe conduct. The boy, however, returned alone again under fire, a distance of several miles to his home, and managed .to bring his four pets back to the Shanghai Club. . • :.