myStampJourney

In one of my earlier posts, I wrote on the 20 CENTS overprint varieties on the 1909 North Borneo 18c stamp that features the banteng.  One with a stamp catalogue that lists North Borneo would be surprised to find that among all the low value denominations, why would this specific 18c stamp commands such a high catalogue value?  Short answer : No one uses it.  Or rather, there was no use of it. The 18c denomination was withdrawn in the very same month that it was issued as there were no postal requirements of it.  "It is believed that 50,000 18c stamps were printed and of these 5,000 had been sold, 5,000 were retained at Sandakan, and 40,000 were returned to London" [1]. This explain the scarcity of the 18c stamp.  On the catalogue value of the 18c stamp, one could very clearly that the difference is day and night. Here are some snippets,  SG Simplified, 2014 Scott, 2017 ISC, 2018 Of course, catalogue values are just numbers and do not necessarily reflect on...

At the end of World War II, the victors took administrative control over Germany after the fall of the Third Reich. The eastern zone of Germany under Soviet rule was then known as SBZ, which stood for Sowjetische Besatzungszone. Naturally, stamps to be used within this zone were overprinted.  MiNr. 182-197, overprinted 'SOWJETISCHE BESATZUNGS ZONE'. MiNr. 943-958, without the overprint These stamps remain a good starting point for collectors and enthusiasts if they wish to set foot into collecting stamps in the area of post-war occupation. Mint sets come relatively cheap, at times even cheaper than its used counterparts.  I always have a thing for stamps printed in smaller formats, 20mm x 25mm is the sweet spot to look exceptionally good in 1200dpi scans. Recently I have gone busy sorting from boxes of used stamps again, if I hadn't mention it in earlier posts. The frequency of finding these SBZ stamps is testament to how many they were printed and how easily they could be ...

Distinguishing between two shades of very old stamps could be challenging considering that colors may have oxidized or even bleached.  In this update, we are covering the stamps of Labuan, to be technically correct, stamps of North Borneo overprinted with 'LABUAN'. Specifically, shade varieties of the 24c stamp (1894-1896). The shade listed on ISC are Pale Mauve (ISC#61) and Dull Lilac (ISC#62).  Finding the difference is confusing since both are almost identical - that is until we involve a similar stamp but was issued on 1897, 24c Grey-Lilac (ISC#85).  Comparing with ISC#85 makes it much easier since it only exists as a shade of lilac, not very far off from dull lilac. Here are the enlarged scans for a closer look.  Pretty straightforward, right? Thank you for dropping by! 

 Just a small snippet of some QE II definitive series, specifically the 15c bearing some postmarks.  Thank you anyway for dropping by although this is just a small update!

One interesting bar obliterator seen and used in Selangor in the late 19th century is the 9-bar diamond obliterator. The usage of this obliterator, as recorded by Proud, was seen in Klang, Kuala Lumpur, Kajang, Kuala Kubu, and Rawang at different periods.    Kuala Kubu (11.12.1890); Kuala Lumpur (18.8.1891- 14.4.1893); Klang (15.3.1892-6.1.1894); Kajang (18.4.1896-23.6.1896); Rawang (not recorded).  One question that I pondered, since all of these towns had the same obliterator ordered on 20.5.1890, did it mean that it was all produced the same way? I have tried measuring the dimensions, and it seemed that each one is similar except for Kajang K1, which had longer bars at each ends. Selangor 1892, 5c blue, ISC#54 bearing the diamond of bars.  Straits Settlements 1894, 8c Ultramarine, ISC#100. Here, the bars at each end appear longer and rather rounded, which corresponds to Kajang Proud K1.  Selangor 1893, 1c green, ISC#51 also with Kajang K1  Regardles...

Apart from the shade varieties of the 2c (orange and orange yellow) and 6c (slate-grey and slate), another interesting variety of these two stamps is white forehead.  It is believed that the white forehead is due to plate wear, which is consistent to overall look on the stamps where all with such varieties are stamps from worn plates (speckled, cracking, and inconsistent inking) when compared to the normal ones.  CW32a, White forehead variety CW32, Normal 2c Used CW32a CW35, Normal 6c CW35b, White forehead Used CW35b Cropped and zoomed-in for comparison. The stamp on the right also shows some extent of ink fading out, a consequence of a worn plate. Notice that the right stamp has a wider white forehead. I wonder if does get any wider than that.  Take a quick look at your stamps, now! Hopefully this will spark more interest in collecting Malaya BMA stamps. Thank you for dropping by!

Early methods of defacing stamps of Straits Settlements largely comprised of obliterators such the famous octagonal obliterator (B109 - Malacca; B172 - Singapore; and B147 - Penang), duplex killer cancels, and dumb type obliterators.  This brief update is on circular bar cancels, which its recorded usage is seen in Singapore between 1872-1874 and 1879-1880.  Singapore, Proud K11 Singapore, Proud K17 To be frank, it is almost impossible to tell between K11 and K17 as both consists of 12 bars and are of equal dimensions. The only difference is usage period.  1868 2c Brown, ISC11, Watermark Crown CC with Proud K11 1868 6c Dull lilac, ISC13, Watermark Crown CC with Proud K11 1867 24c Blue-green, ISC16, Watermark Crown CC with Proud K11 In these three stamps, it is K11 since it corresponds to the period, which I think is only possible way to distinguish between these two. In what was recorded by Proud, K11 seemed slightly thicker than K17. However, this is also very subjective...