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3c Stars Card Gets 'A' for Concept, 'F' for Education

In an attempt to serve collectors, the U.S. Postal Service includes information along with some of the stamps ordered from its USA Philatelic sales catalog.

Figure 1 shows the card containing such information that accompanied a pane of 3¢ Star stamps that I recently received.

The card is intended to explain the difference between the offset-printed stamp by Banknote Corp. of America (Minkus 1338 / Scott 3613) and a similar gravure-printed version produced for BCA by Guilford Gravure (1339 / 3614). The two appear side by side in Figure 2.

The concept of the card is praiseworthy: informed collectors are better collectors. Unfortunately, while some of the information on the card is accurate, it is incorrect in two of the five points listed - and it also applies mainly to information on the selvage of the two panes.

Fortunately, telling single copies of the two stamps apart is simple.

Part of the glut of rate-change stamps nominally issued on June 7, the 3¢ Stars stamps were intended to make up the difference between the previous first-class rate (34¢) and the new rate (37¢). For that reason, such stamps often are called make-up stamps, or make-up rate stamps.

Sennett Security Products had 400 million 3¢ Star coils (1340 / 3615) with water-activated gum prepared in rolls of 10,000 by American Packaging Corp. A single is shown in Figure 3.

BCA had the contract for sheet versions of the 3¢ Star stamp. It produced 2 billion in offset at its Browns Summit, N.C., plant and 1 billion in gravure at the Guilford Gravure plant in Guilford, Conn. Sheet stamps are die cut, while the coil stamp has straight edges at top and bottom.

On the gravure stamp, '2002' is at the lower right and is slightly larger than it is on the offset stamp, on which the date is at lower left. The '2002' on the offset stamp also is smaller than on the coil stamp.

Also, on gravure stamps, the blue in the lower legs of the star is a deeper color. On the offset version, it is almost a royal blue.

Under 10-power magnification, the black '3c USA' inscription on the gravure stamp has the jagged appearance characteristic of that printing method. On offset stamps, this lettering is cleaner in appearance.

The position of the date is one of the differences noted by the USPS in the card included with the gravure pane, which it indicates 'was printed by GFD' (apparently the USPS abbreviation for Guilford Gravure). However, it has the information mixed up; it incorrectly notes that the date is at the lower left on the gravure stamp.

The card also notes that selvage of the offset version has a smaller bar code number, its text refers to a 'plate' position (rather than a 'pane' position in the gravure version), and the copyright is given as '2002 USPS,' (rather than 'USPS 2002' in the gravure version's selvage).

All of these items in the selvage are valid ways to tell the stamps apart - if the selvage, and these parts of it, are present.

However, the USPS card also incorrectly indicates that plate numbers are all black in the gravure version and black, blue and red in the offset version. In fact, the plate numbers in both versions are multicolored.

On 3¢ Star stamps printed by Guilford Gravure, the plate number begins with a fat 'B' and then has the three numbers in black, blue and red, in that order. The offset stamp has a more condensed 'B' and the numbers are in blue, red and black, in that order.

The card also lists an incorrect order number for the offset-printed pane - '100300' (the bar code number for both versions) instead of '100340.'

In its message to customers, the USPS says it is 'providing this list of characteristics so that you may be assured you have received the item you ordered.'

Further, it states, 'The information should clarify that you have received the 3-cent Star PSA version you ordered.'

In fact, the data on this card may leave a customer more confused than he was to begin with.