Leeward Islands and Mauritius Head Plate Dies
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| Die 1 | Die 2 | Die 3 |
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| Die 1 | Die 2 | Die 3 |
| Mouth - thin shading | Mouth - less shading | Mouth - thicker shading |
| Leeward Islands used from 1937 to 1938 |
used from 1942 to 1944 |
used in 1942 and 1945 to 53 |
| Mauritius: used from 1937 to 1938 |
Mauritius: used from 1938 to 1945 |
Mauritius: used from 1945 to 1948 |
| Last used 10/11/1938 |
Last used August, 1945 | Used until production ended |
Notice that there is a difference in the inking on the King's forehead and cheek. The forehead shows medium blank area at Die 1, to a narrow portion at Die 2, and widens at Die 3. The cheek shows a crack in a few lines at Die 1, with almost no crack at Die 2, and a triangular spot at Die 3.
The shading to the left of the mouth is thin and well defined as a downward
stroke joined by 3 horizontal strokes on Die 1. The shading to the left
of the mouth is thicker on Die 3.
It should be noted that as damage occurred to Die 2, the spot on the cheek
became more visible so it is possible to confuse it with Die 3. In most
cases, the stamps produced from Die 2 were on ordinary paper, while the
high value stamps produced from Dies 1 or 3 were on chalk paper. (There
are a few exceptions, like the Mauritius 5R Die 3 on ordinary paper.)
All of the lower values were produced with substitute paper.
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.