FOR STAMP COLLECTORS

Evening Star, Issue 22327, 1 May 1936, Page 2

FOR STAMP COLLECTORS

[By Philatelist.] ‘9

NEW ZEALAND NOTES. M New Zealand Pictorial Stamps.—Sup, fl plies of Id, and Is denominations ,‘fl printed oil paper bearing the multiple watermark will be available Two new plates showing the identifica- ■ tion marks A 3 and B 3 have been used to print tbe supply of Id stamps. J Auzac Commemorative Stamps.—The Anzac commemorative stamps of the .9 denominations Id (id plus id) and 9 2d (Id plus Id) which were issued non M April 27 will be withdrawn from sale yl on June 20. One plate bearing 192 ■ " images in four panes was prepared for * each denomination. After printing, . the sheets were guillotined into sheets j of 48 stamps. The plate number (1) which appears on each denomination may .MJ ( be found in any one of the four corners 9 of the smaller sheets. The printer's -J name does not appear on any of the 9 sheets. 9 Cook Islands Stamps.—The New Zea, land stamps of the denominations 2s and 3s (King George) and 2s 6d, ss, i 10s, and £1 (Coat of Anns) which are * overprinted (Rarotonga) will be withdrawn from sale on July 14 nest, and , the same types and denominations over- H printed “ Cook Islands ” will be issued on the 15th idem. The overprint ■ “ Rarotonga ” is misleading how that t “ Cook Islands ” stamps are used by, , all post offices in the Cook Island Group. The amended overprint will make the ; complete series, ranging from Jd to £5, uniform. j 1 FORGED ENEMY STAMPS. f \ The exact number of enemy stamp* alleged to have been forged by the British Government in the Great War, and the full extent of their employmerit, may never be generally known. ) High officials are habitually coy about their own achievements, and mystification of the public is a game they not J only enjoy tor its own sake, but be- ■ cause conscience tells them that it is J for the public’s own good. : In war time any method of damaging ' the enemy must be judged on its mer--a its. This wholesale forgery of German paper money and its circulation on the , Continent was contemplated by the Go- j vernment quite early in the war, -but 9 the British tradition of fair play umphed, and the idea was because it was felt that we stood to lose WB more than we gained if any “ dirty '■ work ” of that kind was set on foot. 1 Schemes for the forgery of German J stamps did not become practical politics B till 1916. Jealousy between the Wap*j9 Office and the Admiralty, so notorious 9 in their struggle for the soul of the Air;,<9 AVing, persisted in the attitude of their’ high officials towards the multifarious , queer suggestions for helping to win the war, _ which were put forward byj9 private individuals in these years. It is believed that the idea 0f49 forging enemy stamps was actually 1 taken up by the Admiralty after being turned down by the War Office.

Forgeries of the German 10pf. rosecarmine and 15pf. slate violet (“ Germania ” type) are quite common in mint condition.

KING EDAVARD VIII. ISSUES.

It is impossible for any statement on J this matter to be made, yet, but it is j safe to say that, unless a royal mourn- jj ing stamp in honour of King George is issued, there will be no further issues Jl of Georgian stamps. Many months, of 9 necessity, must pass before King ward’s portrait takes his father’s placgjjH upon our stamps. It was almost months after the date of his that King George’s head was featured on British stamps generally, but New- V foundland and South Africa did pro- 1 duce a single stamp each in 1910. ■ Considerable work has to be done be- a fore the new stamps can be produced, Invitations must be issued to artists to submit designs for a complete new' ' series, and these must be approved by the King himself. Designs having been 4 chosen, the method of production must j be decided upon, master dies engraved -m and printing plates prepared, all ■which processes take considerable time. | The same course must be followed for 3 each of the Dominions and the Crown ■ Colonies, so that it seems probable we . shall have to wait until the closing * months of the year before stamps of the new reign appear. -i It is just possible that one or two of the Colonies may be able to feature an | Edwardian stamp at an early date. Bermuda, for example, has a new pic- > torial series on'order. Each of the stamps, we understand, was intended to include in its design a small medal- ; lion portrait of King George, and it may not be a matter of great difficulty to change the portrait to that of King 4 Edw'ard. JUBILEE ISSUES, Readers w'ho have a liking for fig- 1 ures will be interested to know that the total issue of .Silver Jubilee stamps ' in Great Britain amounted to no less ■ than 1,008,000,000! There were 353,- .J 400,000 at id, 150,400,000 at Id, 490,- J 000,000 at lid, and 14,200,000 at 2id. In a number of the general Colonial * issues showing the view of Windsor ‘ Castle, as in the Straits Settlements 12c. stamp there is a variety that has come to be known as the “ double flagstaff.” A flaw in the printing plate ■ produced a line suggesting another flagstaff to the left of the small cen- j tral tower. This variety has been very eagerly sought after, but Stanley Gib- 1 bons Ltd. do not intend to catalogue 4 it. 1