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Isle of Man – Royal Wedding – Cotswold cover – 1973

From PhantomWiki


First day cover details
FDC image No image uploaded
FDC reverse image No reverse image uploaded
Country Isle of Man
Country code IM
Issue title Royal Wedding
Date of issue 14 November 1973
Withdrawal or invalidation date 13 November 1974 (SG 41 withdrawn from sale)
Quantity sold 400,813
Stamp type Commemorative stamp
Stamp subtype Wedding
Theme or subject Royal wedding; Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips
Text credit
Designer or artist A. S. Larkins
Printer Thomas De La Rue & Co. Ltd., Basingstoke, Hampshire
Printing process Lithography (catalogue description)
Colours Multicoloured; three colours
Paper and gum White paper; gum not specified
Perforation 13½
Stamp dimensions 52 × 36 mm, perforation to perforation
Issue format Sheets of 50 stamps (catalogue description)
Number of stamps 1
Cover type First day cover
Cover producer Cotswold Covers
Cover reference
Limited edition No
Edition limit N/A
Copy number N/A
Cachet or cover design Line portraits of Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips within two overlapping silver-coloured horseshoes, with silver-coloured “Royal Wedding” lettering, a dark border and the Cotswold Covers imprint.
Addressed No
Postmark type Pictorial first day of issue handstamp
Postmark location Douglas, Isle of Man
Postmark date 14 November 1973
Postmark inscription FIRST DAY OF ISSUE / 14th NOVEMBER / 1973 / DOUGLAS I.O.M.
Postmark notes Interlaced ornament links alpha and omega symbols. The supplied reference photograph shows this cancellation tying the single 25p stamp to the cover.
Postmark image

No postmark image uploaded


Signed No
Signed by N/A
Signature details N/A
Information sheet included Yes
Information materials
Information sheet title
Information sheet image No image uploaded
Information sheet reverse image No reverse image uploaded
Information sheet notes
Certificate of authenticity included No
Certificate of authenticity image N/A
Certificate of authenticity reverse image N/A
FDC owned No
Condition
Collection Comment Wanted. The supplied reference photograph shows an unaddressed example bearing one 25p stamp and a Douglas first day of issue cancellation dated 14 November 1973. The photograph is illustrative and is not reproduced on this page. The reverse has not been examined; the condition and accompanying material of a future acquired copy remain unconfirmed.

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.


The Isle of Man issued a 25p stamp on 14 November 1973 to commemorate the wedding of Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips. It is catalogued as SG 41.[1]

Cover design and reference example

The illustrated cachet shows line portraits of Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips within two overlapping silver-coloured horseshoes. Silver-coloured “Royal Wedding” lettering appears above the portraits, with “First Day Cover” and the Cotswold Covers imprint below. The supplied reference photograph shows an unaddressed example with one 25p stamp and a pictorial Douglas first day of issue handstamp dated 14 November 1973. The handstamp incorporates interlaced ornament linking alpha and omega symbols.[2]

Production details

The catalogue credits A. Larkins as the designer and De La Rue as the printer, using lithography. It records a multicoloured stamp, perforation 13½ and sheets of 50.[1]

The information card accompanying the owned official cover names A. S. Larkins as the engraver and Thomas De La Rue & Co. Ltd., Basingstoke, Hampshire, as the printer. It gives three colours, white paper and a stamp size of 52 × 36 mm, measured perforation to perforation. Its printing-process description is “Delacryl with one colour by the direct plate engraved process”.[3]

Sales and withdrawal

The catalogue records 400,813 sold for SG 41 and withdrawal from sale on 13 November 1974. The quantity and withdrawal date describe the stamp, not this cover product.[1]

Stamps on this cover

Image Identifier Face value Subject Format Other catalogues Notes


Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips IM-SG-41 25p Princess Anne and Captain Mark Phillips Stamp Quantity sold: 400,813 stamps. Withdrawn from sale on 13 November 1974.[1]


References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Stanley Gibbons.Channel Islands and Isle of Man 2022 Edition Stamp Catalogue(31st combined edition).Stanley Gibbons.2022.Section: Isle of Man.p. 199.Catalogue system: Stanley Gibbons.Catalogue number(s): 41.ISBN: 978-1-911304-89-0.Place of publication: Ringwood.
  2. ↑ Royal Wedding – Cotswold cover(Reference photograph).Reference: Collector-supplied image(20261011-135818).png, examined 11 October 2026..Illustrative reference for a wanted cover; not a scan of an owned example. The reverse and accompanying material have not been examined.
  3. ↑ Royal Wedding stamp issue information card(Information card).Isle of Man Post Office Authority.Card accompanying the owned official cover; illustrated at information card scan. This does not establish the accompanying material for the wanted cover recorded here.