Type 1 and type 2

No, we are not talking about diabetes, but about overprints. In 1958, the Dutch PTT issued a stamp with a 12-cent overprint on a permanent 10-cent postage stamp: Queen Juliana in profile. For seasoned stamp collectors, these are very normal terms. A permanent postage stamp is a stamp, usually featuring a neutral image such as a numeral, a number, or the image of the head of state. And the term 'en profile' in this case indicates that the portrait of the Queen was taken from the side and not 'en face', straight from the front. The stamp in question was issued in late May 1958. The original stamp, issued in September 1953, was intended for intercity letters up to 20 grams. This rate had already been in effect since November 1, 1946, and the 10 cent stamp in the color reddish-brown was the successor to the stamp issued in July 1949 in the color gold ochre (Juliana 'en face'). On November 1, 1957, the domestic letter rate was changed from 10 cents to 12 cents. A 12-cent stamp was available (issued in June 1954 for local letters of the second weight class), but such large quantities of the 10-cent stamps remained that the PTT decided to overprint the 10-cent value with the value indication “12 cents”. The number of 10-cent sheets present in Haarlem amounted to 185.000 pieces (of 200 stamps per sheet). A number of these were also distributed to the post offices, and ultimately 120.730 sheets were provided with the overprint. After the overprinted stamps entered circulation (the earliest date of use is May 24, 1958), collectors soon discovered that various types of overprint forms existed. These overprint forms consisted of individual numbers and letters cast by a typesetter. The letters and numbers were assembled into a printing plate with 200 overprints. The overprint was applied in silver using letterpress printing. However, due to wear on the letters and numbers in the printing plates, these sometimes had to be replaced with newly cast letters, resulting in discrepancies. And behold, the birth of two different print types in a single sheet. It is primarily the numbers “2” that deviated from the originally used numbers. The enlargements show this. For the collector who wants to know more: the overprints were applied to sheets marked with the letters L 26, R 26, L 27, and R 27. On one sheet of 200 copies, the overprint appeared twice. This sheet, with mark L 26, was sold at a post office in The Hague. It was not until 1960 that it was reported that a sheet with an inverted overprint had also been found, again with mark L 26. The stamp with the overprint became invalid for postage on December 31, 1985. Do you ever look for differences in overprints on stamps? It is well worth the effort. If you consult the NVPH Special Catalogue, the mint catalogue value of a 'normal' overprint of this stamp is €1,40, i.e., for type 1. For type 2, this is €10,50. Stamps with double overprints and inverted overprints are highly valued in the catalogue. So: go look for type 2!! And who knows, you might even come across an inverted or double overprint.