Laos 1962 Malaria Issue

1962 Malaria Issue Compound Deluxe Proofs

Only 20 of the perforate sheets and

25 of the imperforate sheets were emitted.

This photo-identification is stamped on the reverse of the photo.

Value:

Perforate = $2,400.00 to $3,000.00 / Not Available

Imperforate = $1,750.00 to $2,250.00 / Not Available

Laos, 1962

Malaria Eradication Issue

For a comprehensive presentation of items relating to this Malaria Eradication Campaign, please visit the site of Larry Fillion:

www.malariastamps.com; and, in particular for Laos at:

www.malariastamps.com/Laos_74_76.asp.

Shown above are the Deluxe Die Proofs and shown below are the Deluxe Plate Proofs. The set value (6 sheets) = $1,500.00 to $1,950.00

1962 Malaria Issue Souvenir Sheet

The malaria souvenir sheet is one of the most prized possessions of a Laos general collector, and is readily available for most collectors, although fairly expensive, currently cataloged at $200.00 (USD), although frequently sells for much more, as it should. But, in fact, there are actually 4 varieties of this issue relating to the color of the ink, dark and light blue, and the type of paper, white and off-white.

As a result, there are 4 varieties of this sheet, #(1) to #(4). #(1) is shown at the right,
and the other three are shown below, left-to-right:

#(1) Light-Blue inscription on white paper;

#(2) Light-Blue inscription on off-white paper;

#(3) Dark-Blue inscription on white paper; and

#(4) Dark-Blue inscription on off-white paper.

To-date, there are only 3 known MNH sheets of variety #(4), and 1 Canceled, as shown here.

Value:

#(1) $350.00 to $500.00; #(2) $550.00 to $850.00;

#(3) $400.00 to $600.00; and #(4) $750.00 to $1,000.00

The canceled sheet of (4) is also valued at $750.00 to $1,000.00.

The difference in the paper can be seen below by comparing the reverse of two sheets,
white on the left and off-white on the right. While the off-white can be seen from the
front of these sheets, the coloration is most noticeable when comparing the reverse,
as shown here.

1962 Malaria Official Imperforates

Official Imperforates are proofs, and are not regular-issue imperforate stamps(!), and are printed in the final color of the stamp since they actually are simply pulled from the printing press that is used to print the stamps. 20 to 40 sheets are pulled from the printing press prior to perforation and are for the postal archive, but, of course, several make it onto the philatelic market. These imperforates are shown below as a block-of-4, a pair and singles (the singles are from the collection of Larry Fillion cited above).

These imperforates make their way onto the philatelic market by way of gifts to government dignitaries and others fortunate enough to get them. While they probably could be used for postage, for this issue, they were not printed for sale at the post office.

Since there are many dealers who claim to be selling “rare imperforates”, it is important to recognize that for pre-1975 Laos, there is only one imperforate stamp emitted through the post office which was the 1963 Universal Declaration of Human Rights issue, Scott’s #88.

However, another distinction needs to be recognized: Whereas most of the so-called “rare imperforates” are actually cut from Deluxe Plate Proofs as seen below, and which are actually not a philatelic item (only the Deluxe Plate Proof is a legitimate philatelic item), the Official Imperforates shown here are legitimate philatelic items, but are not “imperforates” of the regular-issue, but are specifically from the sheets pulled prior to the printing of the stamps, and are “proofs”.

The value of the Official Imperforates depends on whether or not the imperforates include selvage and whether or not an inscription is in the selvage.

Set Value: Corner Block-of-4 = $400.00 to $560.00. Pair = $160.00 to $220.00 Single = $70.00 to $90.00

1962 Malaria Issue Deluxe Proofs

1962 Malaria Issue Publicity Bromides

Publicity Bromides are used for the promotion of the stamps and are printed in shades of black and gray.

These scans were obtained from Larry Fillion, whose site can be seen at:

www.malariastamps.com/Laos_74_76.asp

Set Value: $50.00 to $75.00

1962 Malaria Issue Trial Color Plate Proofs

The Trial Color Plate Proofs shown below are complements of Larry Fillion!

Below are 3 sheets of Trial Color Plate Proofs. 4 to 8 of these sheets are printed with a variety of color choices on one sheet and sent to the P.T.T. for selection of the final color.

These sheets are generally printed in colors different from the final issued color, although sheets of the final color are issued as well as sheets in only one color.

See all the proofs of Larry Fillion at:

www.malariastamps.com/Laos_74_76.asp

Set Value: $3,000.00 to $5,000.00

Shown below are the Malaria regular-issue sheets of stamps on both white and off-white paper.

The Laos Malaria Issue is one of the most collected issues of Laos with the exception, possibly, of the Jubilee Issue (the Temples issue).

This issue will be used to exemplify the variety of collectable items for Laos stamps. We will start with the Compound Deluxe Proofs, since these sheets are the most prized possession of any collection due to their striking beauty and scarcity. While other items were printed in fewer quantity; e.g., Sepia Die Proofs and Stage Proofs, these Compound Proofs are most sought-after.

Then, the other items for any issue will be presented, from the regular-issue stamps and their varieties, to Plate Blocks & Date Blocks, to Official Imperforates, to Deluxe Proofs, to First Day Covers, to Engraver’s Die Proofs, etc.

1962 Malaria Issue Regular-Issue Stamps

There are 3 stamps in this issue. While not generally recognized, there are actually two paper-varieties for this issue.

The stamps are shown below, followed by a comparison of the paper-varieties. These varieties are difficult to discern when looking at an individual stamp; however, when comparing the sheets, they are quite easily seen. The white paper-variety is on top.

As with most issues, these stamps can also be collected for their Plate Block Numbers and Date Blocks, shown following the paper-variety comparisons.

Shown below are the Plate Blocks and Date Blocks.

Of course, as seen here, for this issue, and many others, these blocks can be collected for both the white and off-white paper varieties.

Another point of interest is the inscription on the Date Blocks. #74 and #76 show “IX9” while #75 shows “ID7”. These identify the printing room, the printer, and the printing press machine number, respectively. Therefore, these sheets were printed on machine numbers 9 and 7.

Prior to 1964, the printers were identified by an Operator Code. The middle letter identifies the printer by this code. The “I” refers to the printing room, which is identified as Imprimerie.

1962 Malaria Issue First Day Covers

There are many varieties of First Day Covers for the Malaria Issue.

Show below are the ones known at this time. Varieties 9, 10 & 11, issues of the United Nations, are from the collection of Larry Fillion.

Shown below are the Deluxe Die Proofs and Deluxe Plate Proofs for the Malaria Issue.

These proofs are quite scarce as there were only 50 to 100 printed.

The Deluxe Plate Proofs are often cut up by dealers who then sell them as 4 “rare imperforates”. Unfortunately, they are not, and with every sheet that is cut up in this manner, the actual philatelic item, the Plate Proofs, is substantially reduced in number.

1962 Malaria Issue Progress Die Proofs & Sepia Proofs

Progress Die Proofs were used only until 1959, and, therefore, none exist for the Malaria Issue.

Sepia Proofs do exist and are shown below. These are from the collection of Larry Fillion.

Sepia Printer’s Die Proofs are some of the most difficult to find. They are made from the unhardened original die to check for any flaws in the die that might affect the printing process. Only 3 to 5 proofs are printed in one color, sepia (hence the name). If defects are found, the die is corrected and another set of 3 to 5 proofs are printed. These proofs always have the Printing Works Control Punch. One copy goes to each of the Official Archives, Postmaster, and Printing Office, thus leaving only one or two that eventually make it into the public sector.

However, it has recently been discovered that for some issues, many copies of these Sepia Proofs exist, sometimes more than 30. However, since the unhardened cannot be used to print more than 30, at the most, any additional ones were produced from a hardened die for the benefit of the engraver. Pheulpin, in particular, has a number of die proof varieties. In general, however, these proofs are extremely difficult to find.

1962 Malaria Issue Engraver’s Die Proofs

Engraver’s Die Proofs are available for most of the pre-1975 stamps.

Engraver’s Die Proofs (also called Artist’s Die Proofs) and Collective Engraver’s Die Proofs are proofs of the finished die. They are printed normally in one color on soft, thick paper, usually cream-colored, with an embossed Control Seal, and signed by the engraver. One aspiration of a collector could be to find the variety of colors that were used to print the proof. Engraver’s Die Proofs are printed from an unhardened die. They are printed in quantities of 26 proofs for Laos. Engraver’s Die Proofs may be printed multicolor. But, such proofs are very rare. And, when they are printed, they are printed directly by the artist-engraver, with his personal hand press machine!

1962 Malaria Issue Specimens

There are only 3 Official Promotional Proofs, Specimens, for pre-1975 Laos. These are for Scott’s #C6, C12 & C14.

However, in 1972, the Lao government authorized the production of Officially-Authorized Private Promotional Proofs for the new French organization, the Association Internationale des Collectionneurs de Timbres-Poste du Laos (AICTPL). One of the authorized stamps to be overprinted with “Specimen” was Scott’s #76, as shown here, which is from the collection of Larry Fillion. There are a total of 77 stamps that were authorized for the AICTPL.

1962 Malaria Issue Acceptance Die Proofs / Presentation Die Proofs

While Acceptance Die Proofs should be available for the Malaria Issue, none have been found.

Acceptance Die Proofs are very similar to Engraver’s Die Proofs. They show the die impression but have the Printing Control Punches (the 3 holes found along the bottom edge of the proofs), as are used for the Sepia Proofs. Control Punches were used until 1966. These punches were used to count the number of proofs. Also, whereas Sepia Die Proofs and Engraver’s Die Proofs are obtained from the unhardened die, Acceptance Die Proofs are obtained from the hardened die. Also, Acceptance Die Proofs are often hand-numbered, as seen by the Monaco proof at the right.

For an extensive description of proofs, please go to the site of Giorgio Leccese at:

http://www.dieproofs.it/

1962 Malaria Issue Trial Color Die Proofs

Trial Color Die Proofs are not available for the Malaria Issue.

Trial Color Die Proofs are printed in one color on thick paper, exhibit the Printing Works Control Punch, have an impression of the steel die, and the ink color code will be written in pencil in the lower right-hand corner—unless someone has erased them.

They are printed from the hardened secondary die. They do not have the Printing Office inscription or the embossed control seal.

8 to 10 different colors are normally tested and only 5 to 10 proofs are printed for each color.

[NOTE: While these proofs were prepared for other former French colonies by the French Printing Office, it is not known at this time whether or not these proofs exist for Laos. If so, they would probably exist only for the early issues in the 1950’s.]