Niuafoʻou (Tonga) 1996 "XIII Congress of International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric science"
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| Issue Date | 14.09.1993 |
| ID | Michel: 303-304, Scott: 190a-b; Stanley Gibbons: 247-248; Yvert et Tellier: 238-239; Category: pR |
| Design | Derek Miller |
| Stamps in set | 2 |
| Value |
T$1 - Prehistoric humans and animals: Cro Magnon man, Mammoth, Sabretooth Tiger and more. T$1 - Ancient humans |
| Emission/Type | commemorative |
| Issue place | Niuafoʻou |
| Size (width x height) | 50 mm x 35mm |
| Layout | Mini-Sheet of 6 stamps (3 stripes of 2 stamps) |
| Products | FDC x1 |
| Paper | |
| Perforation | 12.25 x 12 |
| Print Technique | Offset, multicolor |
| Printed by | Walsall Security Printers of London, UK |
| Quantity | |
| Issuing Authority | Post office of the Government of Tonga |
On September 1st, 1995, the Post office of the Government of Tonga on behalf of their Niuafo'ou Island, issued the set of 2 stamps "XIII Congress of International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric science".
These stamps shows some scenes of prehistoric and ancient human life.
Four days later, on September 5th, the Post Authority of Tonga issued a similar stamp set with the same title: "XIII Congress of International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences".
Joint issue of Tonga 1996 (MiNr.: 1429-1430, Scott: 929a-b) and Niuafo’ou (MiNr.: 303-304, Scott: 190a-b).
Products and associated philatelic items
| Monochrome Proof [1] | Plate Proof [2] | Specimens [3] |
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| FDC | Mini-Sheet | Examples of circulated cover |
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Notes:
[1] [1] The Monochrome Proofs were done on thin cards and in black and white by Walsall Security Printers of London UK, and were used to check the design. The perforations on the proof are only simulated.
The monochrome proofs were produced, in amounts of 20, after the Cromalin one, then sent to Tonga for the officials to check. When accepted, they were sent to stamp magazines to illustrate the upcoming new issues.
[2] The he Plate Proofs printed one sheet of plate proofs first, this sheet was taken for checking and approval by Walsall Security Printers company and the officials of Tonga.
After it passed the necessary checks, this imperforated proof sheet was placed in the printers archives and was left imperforated. All other sheets issued were perforated.
The Tongan plate proofs are genuine proofs done by the printers for checking purposes then kept until recently in the printers' archives.
[3] The "SPECIMEN" overprint in black was the normal specimen overprint done for most sets ot Tonga from 1981 to 1997.
[4]Tonga did not issue any imperforate stamps from this set, the only imperforates known are genuine plate proofs, and come from the Walsall Security Printers archives.
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References
- Technical details and stamps presentation:
colnect- Stamp designer: Derek Miller
Acknowledgements
- Many thanks to fellow collector Mr. Peter Brandhuber from Germany, for sharing some scans his collection.
- Many thanks to Mr. Greg Jorgensen from Australia, who sells philatelic materials from the archive of Walsall Security Printers on the Internet under the moniker tonga2, for explanations about their printing process.
- Many thanks to Dr. Peter Voice from Department of Geological and Environmental Sciences, Western Michigan University, for reviewing the draft page and his very valuable comments.
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