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Isle of Man – Landmarks definitives – 9p–12p – Official cover – 1978

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First day cover details
FDC image Landmarks definitives – 9p–12p – Official cover
FDC reverse image N/A
Country Isle of Man
Country code IM
Issue title Landmarks definitives – 9p–12p – Official cover
Date of issue 28 February 1978
Withdrawal or invalidation date 30 June 1983 (stamps withdrawn from sale)


Stamp type Definitive
Stamp subtype Country pictorial
Theme or subject Isle of Man; landmarks; nature and heritage
Text credit
Designer or artist J. H. Nicholson, R.I., P.S.
Printer House of Questa
Printing process Lithography
Colours Multicoloured; 4 colours
Paper and gum White security-coated paper, 102 g/m²; PVA gum
Perforation 14 or 14½ according to the catalogue entry; actual cover stamp perforations unmeasured
Stamp dimensions 26 × 34 mm (orientation varies)
Issue format Sheets of 50 (arrangement varies by value; see text)
Number of stamps 4
Cover type Official first day cover
Cover producer Isle of Man Post Office Authority
Cover reference
Limited edition No
Edition limit N/A
Copy number N/A
Cachet or cover design Albert Tower above Ramsey, Manx postal badge and 1978 Definitive Issue — Landmarks wording.
Addressed No
Postmark type First-day-of-issue postmark
Postmark location Douglas, Isle of Man
Postmark date 28 February 1978
Postmark inscription FIRST DAY OF ISSUE / 28 FEB 1978 / DOUGLAS / ISLE OF MAN
Postmark notes Douglas circular first-day cancellation. The shared February image illustrates the standard cancellation design; individual strikes and positions differ.
Postmark image

Main postmark for Landmarks definitives – 9p–12p – Official cover


Signed No
Signed by N/A
Signature details N/A
Information sheet included Yes
Information materials Two-sided printed information sheet
Information sheet title 1978 Definitive Issue — Landmarks — 9p to 12p
Information sheet image 1978 Definitive Issue — Landmarks — 9p to 12p — front
Information sheet reverse image 1978 Definitive Issue — Landmarks — 9p to 12p — reverse
Information sheet notes The supplied sheet describes these stamp subjects and gives production details.
Certificate of authenticity included No
Certificate of authenticity image N/A
Certificate of authenticity reverse image N/A
FDC owned Yes
Condition
Collection Comment Owned official cover; envelope reverse blank.

Image notice: Images on these pages may depict copyrighted stamp designs, cover artwork, text or photographs. Unless otherwise stated, they are scans of physical items in the collection of PhantomSteve. Rights in the depicted material remain with their respective rightsholders. See Copyrights.


This cover belongs to the Landmarks and Queen Elizabeth II definitive series, issued in stages: ½p–16p on 28 February 1978, 20p–£1 on 18 October 1978, and £2 on 29 September 1981.[1]

Illustrated cover

The collector owns this official cover. It bears 9p, 10p, 12p, 11p (left to right, reading the rows from top to bottom), with the stamps tied by Douglas first-day cancellation dated 28 February 1978. The envelope is unaddressed and its reverse is confirmed blank.[2]

The shared February postmark image uses the collector’s filename IM-Landmarks-Feb-1978-postmark.jpg. It illustrates the standard Douglas cancellation and is not claimed to show every individual strike on this cover.

The official cachet depicts the Albert Tower above Ramsey, commemorating Prince Albert’s 1847 visit. It is distinct from the towers shown on the stamps.[3]

Subjects and production

9p — The official sheet describes the Laxey Wheel, built by Robert Casement in 1854 to pump water from the mines. It identifies its pitch-backshot operation and draws attention to the anti-clockwise three-legs emblem on the wheel.[3]

10p — The sheet identifies the view as the barbican and main gateway of Castle Rushen, with the keep behind. It also identifies the adjoining former police station, known as the Pepper Pot, and credits its design to Baillie Scott.[3]

12p — The sheet describes the Tower of Refuge on Conister Rock in Douglas Bay, built in 1832 as a shelter for shipwrecked mariners. It associates the project with Sir William Hillary and credits its design and construction to John Welch.[3]

11p — The sheet relates St Ninian’s Church to the philanthropy of Henry Bloom Noble. It dates its erection to 1913 and credits the design to W. D. Caroe and construction to R. Costain.[3]

The official sheet credits J. H. Nicholson, R.I., P.S., and the House of Questa. It specifies lithography, four colours for each value, 26 × 34 mm stamps, and white unwatermarked security-coated paper with PVA gum, 102 g/m². Its perforation specification is 14 per 2 cm. The catalogue additionally lists perforation 14½ for twelve denominations.[3][1]

The catalogue lists perforations 14 and 14½ for the low and medium values, except the 6p SG113, for which only 14 is supplied. The collector has not measured the illustrated cover stamps, so the actual suffixes are not assigned from appearance, filename or the usual bureau combination.[1]

Perforation and first-day-cover combinations

The catalogue states that both perforations of the ½p–16p stamps were printed at the same time, but some were not recorded in use until later. It gives these earliest recorded uses: SG112a (1p), August 1979; SG114a (7p), August 1978; SG115a (8p), June 1980; SG117a (10p), August 1979; and SG119 (12p), September 1980. Those are earliest-use records, not exact issue dates.[1]

For the three low and medium value FDCs, the catalogue records the common Edinburgh Philatelic Bureau combination as SG111a, SG112–115, SG116a, SG117–118, SG119a, SG120, SG121a, SG122 and SG123a. It also records some examples with SG111, SG118a or SG120a instead. Island-prepared dealer or collector covers are recorded with SG111–118, SG119a–120a, SG121, SG122a and SG123. These are recorded preparation patterns, not a measurement of the collector’s copies.[1]

Sheets, plates and imprints

  • 9p: sheets of 50 (10 × 5). Plate numbers: 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D (each × 4). Imprint: Left-hand corner, top margin, and right-hand corner, bottom margin.
  • 10p: sheets of 50 (5 × 10). Plate numbers: 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D (each × 4). Imprint: Left-hand corner, top margin, and right-hand corner, bottom margin.
  • 11p: sheets of 50 (10 × 5). Plate numbers: 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D (each × 4). Imprint: Left-hand corner, top margin, and right-hand corner, bottom margin.
  • 12p: sheets of 50 (5 × 10). Plate numbers: 1A, 1B, 1C and 1D (each × 4). Imprint: Left-hand corner, top margin, and right-hand corner, bottom margin.

[1]

Withdrawal

9p, 10p, 12p, 11p: withdrawn from sale on 30 June 1983.[1]

No quantity-sold figures are supplied for this series; the sales fields remain blank.

Stamps on this cover

Where two perforations are catalogued, the row’s identifier is left unassigned and the linked alternatives are given in Notes. No suffix is inferred from the scan filename.

Image Identifier Face value Subject Format Other catalogues Notes


Laxey Wheel IM-SG-116 9p Laxey Wheel Stamp Perforation not measured: IM-SG-116, IM-SG-116a.



Castle Rushen IM-SG-117 10p Castle Rushen Stamp Perforation not measured: IM-SG-117, IM-SG-117a.



Tower of Refuge IM-SG-119 12p Tower of Refuge Stamp Perforation not measured: IM-SG-119, IM-SG-119a.



St Ninian’s Church IM-SG-118 11p St Ninian’s Church Stamp Perforation not measured: IM-SG-118, IM-SG-118a.


References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 Stanley Gibbons.Channel Islands and Isle of Man 2022 Edition Stamp Catalogue(31st combined edition).Stanley Gibbons.2022.Section: Isle of Man.pp. 204–205.Catalogue system: Stanley Gibbons.Catalogue number(s): 111–128, including the listed a perforation variants.ISBN: 978-1-911304-89-0.Place of publication: Ringwood. Transcribed by the collector, who also confirms that A1-1-1-1 and B1-1-1-1 apply to the £2 value and unspecified values have no plate numbers recorded.
  2. ↑ Isle of Man – Landmarks definitives – 9p–12p – Official cover – 1978(Collection scan).The collector’s owned official cover and supporting scans; the collector confirms the envelope reverse is blank.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 1978 Definitive Issue — Landmarks — 9p to 12p(Information sheet).Isle of Man Post Office Authority.Sheet accompanying the collector’s owned official cover. Scans: front and reverse.
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