Specimen Overprints
Some stamps are never valid for postal use. They are made for use in promotional displays or as reference material by postal authorities and the Universal Postal Union (UPU). Still others are manufactured by printers for color matching throughout successive printings. In all such cases, the stamps will display the word "specimen" (or "cancelled") on its face. Occasionally, the word may be uniquely handwritten by a postal authority or, much more elaborately, punched through the stamp paper in a method known as perfin. Most often, though, specimen markings are applied as a prominent overprint.
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A British National Health Insurance stamp overprinted specimen.
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A Belgian specimen telephone stamp.
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A Natal 1902 £20 specimen stamp.
Read more about this topic: Overprint
Famous quotes containing the word specimen:
“The rare,
Uninteresting specimen might still be putting out shoots, for all we know.”
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