Hello, Sorting some
George V Straits Settlements stamps recently reminded me of what is called the
Key Type differences. From Stanley Gibbons guide I repeat this for your
interest. Perhaps a difference worth knowing about so you can check when you
are studying your various British Commonwealth George V stamps.
As you will see from the
image below there are three basic ways to differentiate Die I and Die II. To me
the easiest way is to check the angle of the line - the second thick line – below the name of
the country. Unless a postal cancel is in the way of course, you should be able
to see the difference very easily with a good magnifying glass. The following
is copied courtesy of SG.
A – in Die I the second
thick line below the name of the country is cut slanting - in Die II the line is cut vertically on
each side of the crown - See example
above I used two different stamps because it was easier to scan. The left
stamps show Die I and the right stamp shows Die II
B – in Die I the labels
of solid colour bearing the words “Postage” and “& Revenue” are square at
the inner top corners, whereas in Die II the labels curve inwards at the top.
C – in Die I there is a projecting “bud” on the outer
spiral of the ornament in each of the lower letters, whereas in Die II there is
no “bud”.
In the Straits
Settlement issues, by example, two stamp may appear to be the same but they are
Die I and Die II and the catalogue value can be very different. For example SG 231 ( Die I) issued in 1923 is catalogued at £13 Used, while the Die II issue from 1926 is calalogued at 30p. Worth
checking the Die I think.
just once please, and have a look to see if we have what
you are missing.
Michael cddstamps.com
