Gold Medal Stamps: Another major print error, this time on Paralympic sheet E.

One of our eagle-eyed contributors has spotted on eBay another major print shift on a Gold Medal Stamp (thanks Mark!)

This error occurs on the PGMWE1 stamp - Rowing: Mixed Coxed Four LTAMix4+ issued on 4 September.

There would have been 4 of these stamps on the A4 sheet, 16 on the press-sheet of 4 x A4 sheets.  Other stamps affected would have been

PGMWE2 Athletics Men's Discus F42
PGMWE3 Cycling Track, Men's Individual B Sprint
PGMWE4 Swimming Women's 200m Freestyle S14

As you can see, this single used stamp sold for £65+ on eBay.  I wonder if there are any more out there in kiloware sacks?

This is the mint item referred to in the comments below.  This sold for only £27, which seems odd, but it depends on who saw it at the time.  Although the images look similar, the perforation runs across the legs just above the knees - compare the sky next to the Queen's head.

 

UPDATE 26 February:
Thanks to Anonymous commenter, we can show another misplacement which has been offered on eBay:

 

The overprinting - the design and caption - is shifted vertically resulting in the black overlaying the original gold caption, and the head and arm are above the level of the perforations.

We've been told about a sheet of Gold Medal stamps with duplicate printing of the black, but if the design and caption were printed in one pass of the press, the picture should be doubled as well.  We're waiting for a picture!

---

Has Walsall produced the first British 3D-stamp?

A reader has sent this picture of the 2nd class 2012 Christmas stamp received today.  It's the sort of view that Santa might have after a few too many sherries on the night of 24th/25th December.

We're used to minor mis-registration of the colours on modern stamps produced on high-speed presses, especially on the booklets produced by Walsall, but this is a spectacular shift!

It's difficult to be sure from this image but it doesn't look like the De La Rue sheet version.

Thanks to AAB.

UPDATE: H J R has sent this image from the 1st class booklet, so it's not just Rudolph!

---

Litho ring flaw on London 2010 Festival of Stamps Souvenir Sheet

Two different ring flaws have been found on the 1p stamp in this sheet. 

From the position they could have the same origin - or they may be from two different parts of the press sheet.  We have seen several of each in our stocks - also on FDCs, now available on our e-commerce site.

Send us your finds!

Mary Quant's going grey ! Black colour fade on Design Classic book 4.

Two collectors have reported a very grey print of the black on the Design Classics Booklet 4, featuring the mini-skirt. One report is from the UK and the other from Australia, neither has the cylinder booklet, though from the cylinders used that would only show that the black was light or dry, rather than missing.

Remember the words 'Designed by Mary Quant' are silver so not affected by this fault. These two scans were not done at the same time, but the outcome is clear enough. Check yours, and let us know if you have any similar - or worse! And if you have a cylinder booklet it would be good to see a picture of that as well.

Error



Normal

---