Key type stamp
Encyclopedia
Key type stamps are stamps of a uniform design that were widely used by colonial territories in the 19th and 20th centuries.
who used it to print stamps for Trinidad (1851), Barbados (1852) and Mauritius (1858), all featuring the same Britannia
design.
in 1879 when the printing process was split into two through the use of a key plate
(or head plate) for the bulk of the design and a separate duty plate for the name of the colony and the value. These are often known as key plate stamps. While key type stamps are always of one colour, key plate stamps are bi-coloured. This method has the advantage that most of the design remains the same in each of a stamp series with only the value, name and colours changing.
s.
Origins
The idea was invented by Perkins BaconPerkins Bacon
Messrs. Perkins, Bacon & Co was a printer of books, bank notes and postage stamps, most notable for printing the Penny Black, the world's first adhesive postage stamps, in 1840.- Origins :...
who used it to print stamps for Trinidad (1851), Barbados (1852) and Mauritius (1858), all featuring the same Britannia
Britannia
Britannia is an ancient term for Great Britain, and also a female personification of the island. The name is Latin, and derives from the Greek form Prettanike or Brettaniai, which originally designated a collection of islands with individual names, including Albion or Great Britain. However, by the...
design.
Key plate stamps
The idea was refined by De La RueDe La Rue
De La Rue plc is a British security printing, papermaking and cash handling systems company headquartered in Basingstoke, Hampshire. It also has a factory on the Team Valley Trading Estate, Gateshead, and other facilities at Loughton, Essex and Bathford, Somerset...
in 1879 when the printing process was split into two through the use of a key plate
Key plate
In printing, a key plate is the plate which prints the detail in an image.When printing color images by combining multiple colors of inks, the colored inks usually do not contain much image detail...
(or head plate) for the bulk of the design and a separate duty plate for the name of the colony and the value. These are often known as key plate stamps. While key type stamps are always of one colour, key plate stamps are bi-coloured. This method has the advantage that most of the design remains the same in each of a stamp series with only the value, name and colours changing.
Usage
Key plate stamps were used extensively by Great Britain, Germany, France, Spain and Portugal. They were also a ubiquitous feature of British and British Commonwealth revenue stampRevenue stamp
A revenue stamp, tax stamp or fiscal stamp is a adhesive label used to collect taxes or fees on documents, tobacco, alcoholic drinks, drugs and medicines, playing cards, hunting licenses, firearm registration, and many other things...
s.
Further reading
- Fernbank, Peter E. King George V Key Plates of the Imperium Postage and Revenue Design. London: Royal Philatelic SocietyRoyal Philatelic SocietyThe Royal Philatelic Society London is the oldest philatelic society in the world. It was founded in 1869 as The Philatelic Society, London.- Royal connections :...
, 1997. - Lowe, RobsonRobson LoweJohn Harry Robson Lowe , Robbie to his friends, was an English professional philatelist, stamp dealer and stamp auctioneer.- Life and career :...
. The De La Rue Key Plates, London: 1979. - Yendall, Eric. King George VI Large Key Type Revenue and Postage High Value Stamps 1927-1953. London: Royal Philatelic Society, 2008.