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Identifying King George VI Stamps
Leeward Islands Head Plate Dies
If you are trying to sort the stamps of the Leeward Islands keyplates, you will need to understand how to identify the various Head Plate Die states. There are three Dies of the Head Plate that were used during the 15 years the stamps were printed. These Die Plate States can be used to help determine when a stamp was printed. These are shown below:

Identifying the three Die States

Die I

Die II

Die III

Forehead - medium

Forehead - narrow

Forehead - wide

Cheek - small spot

Cheek - almost no spot

Cheek - triangular spot

used in 1938

used from 1942 - 1944

used in 1942 and 1945-53

Notice that there is a difference in the inking on the King's forehead and cheek. The forehead shows medium blank area at Die I, to a narrow portion at Die II, and widens at Die III. The cheek shows a crack in a few lines at Die I, with almost no crack at Die II, and a triangular spot at Die III.

Please be aware that every stamp is different, and variation will be found due to inking and other conditions that arose as the stamps were printed. Do not expect all stamps to easily fit into one of these states.

This article is intended to help collectors identify their KGVI Stamps. Please feel free to write with additional information. It will be added to revised versions of this article.

Comments or Questions feel free to write

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