Polar Exploration: Antactica and Arctica |
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Daniel
Mint Joined: 30 March 2010 Location: London Status: Offline Points: 1128 |
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Topic: Polar Exploration: Antactica and Arctica Posted: 29 April 2021 at 08:03 |
These Antarctic Expedition Cinderellas of 1954 were produced by renowned Australian stamp dealer Bill Hornadge for his company Seven Seas Stamps. They are surprisingly more complicated than you might imagine. There were different printings and different perforations. The first set was available perforated, imperforate and rouletted. Also available was a miniature sheet in black. Then there was a second set which was available rouletted only with changed colours:
Scan_20210220 (5) by Daniel, on Flickr
There are known colour differences with the original perforated ship version. Indeed, it was originally printed in pink but was switched to red part way through the print run! This is an extract from one of Bill's catalogues: Scan_20200806 (3) by Daniel, on Flickr |
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Daniel
Mint Joined: 30 March 2010 Location: London Status: Offline Points: 1128 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 29 April 2021 at 08:06 |
Here is a pair of postcards produced for the expedition with a set of 4 rouletted stamps. The cards have been postmarked at Mawson, Australian Antarctic Territory.
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Daniel
Mint Joined: 30 March 2010 Location: London Status: Offline Points: 1128 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 29 April 2021 at 08:09 |
In a letter to Wilson Ilberry then president of The Cinderella Stamp Club of Australasia and published in their journal in 1990. Hornadge gives more interesting details. I purchased a small job lot of this magazine and here is the relevant part of the letter. It appears that most of the print run was used to supply a junior stamp approval company and were also used in an international barter system!!
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Daniel
Mint Joined: 30 March 2010 Location: London Status: Offline Points: 1128 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 29 April 2021 at 08:15 |
The stamps were issued in sheets of 20 perforated, rouletted and imperforate but here are 2 sheets of 40, perforated, Purple Penguins and Green Plane (believed to be the most common colours) but not mentioned anywhere else.
Scan_20200806 (7) by Daniel, on Flickr Scan_20200806 (8) by Daniel, on Flickr
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Daniel
Mint Joined: 30 March 2010 Location: London Status: Offline Points: 1128 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 29 April 2021 at 08:32 |
There is one additional set, a reprint from 1994 to mark the 40th anniversary. Printed by FameFace, a printing company in Dubbo, Australia, best known for reprints and some original material as well. Printed in sheets of 6 blocks of 6.
Scan_20210415 by Daniel, on Flickr My general conclusions for these stamps are that the first series was produced perforated, imperforate and rouletted. That is Green Plane, Purple Penguins, Yellow Map and Red or Pink Ship. Imperforate stamps are quite rare but odd singles have turned up in recent sales.
The second series with colour changes, Purple Plane, Blue Penguins, Red Map and Green Ship. Rouletted only. Miniature sheet in black, perforated. As has been suggested by a dealer on another forum, and confirmed by myself, they were produced in uneven quantities and the Green Plane and Purple Penguins, perforated, are the most common stamps. I have acquired several of these singles in job lots. See also, my sheets of 40 of these colours. Given the nature of their production, that is to fulfill overseas approval books and to maintain a barter system, it seems likely that the printers took full control of the quantities of each stamp. Note that Bill Hornadge, who produced the stamps, in his letter, shown above, doesn't know the quantities. It was, I believe left to the printers to print them as expediently as possible. So, it would be much quicker to print larger sheet quantities, my 40s as above, and in fewer colours, purple and green, to make up the numbers. |
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guyana1230
First Class Joined: 13 August 2018 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 237 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 30 April 2021 at 18:03 |
Excellent information on these, I have a few in my collection but have been trying to get more info on them and this confirms most of my conclusions, but you have great info to back you up and I was just guessing from what little I could find. Thank you
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Daniel
Mint Joined: 30 March 2010 Location: London Status: Offline Points: 1128 |
Post Options Quote Reply Posted: 21 July 2021 at 01:45 |
Thanks, always good to get feedback.
Daniel
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