Gallery

 

Bleistiftstriche and Other Points of the 212a/b

There are four versions of this Oliva scene. At the top is 212b, which has a bit more red mixed in with the orange ink, compared to the a version, which is a tad narrower than the b. The 212a was first issued on Jan.1, 1925, using the same Hellingrath design as 207 (issued Sept. 22, 1924, with a dark olive-green as the second color). A major theft at the post office resulted in a recall and re-issue of the 212a. However, the 212b inks (when the stamp was issued in May, 1932), did not match those of the more yellow-orange issue of 7 years earlier. The 3rd Reich version (Mi.297) came in 10.38.

Note also that the black plates were so seriously misregistered in both printing runs that grease pencil retouching was required on the right side and bottom of b and the left side of a. Why the 24:17 perfs on the 212a and the 25:17 on the 212b? Stay tuned.

 

Danzig Report Vol. 1 - Nr. 101 - October - November - December - 1998, Page 17.