Papua New Guinea - The 6½d Chief's House variants

An interesting, though often overlooked stamp is the Papua New Guinea 1952 dark purple 6½d Kiriwina Chief's House. A veritable workhorse, the stamp was part of a definitive set of fifteen stamps issued on 30 October 1952, comprising Papua New Guinea's first such series. In total, some 4,124,003 copies of the stamp were sold between 30 October 1952 and its withdrawal on 11 July 1960, making it, along with the 3d and 3½d stamps of that same series, the most common and heavily used for personal, commercial and official mail. The 6½d was, over time, the subject of a number of significant printing variants, making it all that more interesting. These include the following (with accompanying Stanley Gibbons catalogue number, where available):

1. SG7 - The original 1952 printing in dark purple, catalogued by Stanley Gibbons as SG7 (illustrated opposite).

2. SG7a - A change of colour from dark purple to light maroon which was released during early November 1956 and is catalogued as SG7a.

3. SG JB21 - A Stamp Duty 1d. overprint of the 1956 light maroon SG7a which was released during October 1957 and is catalogued as Barefoot 21, or SG JB21. Though a fiscal, it was also used for general post through to early 1958.

4. SG D2 - A Postal Charges 1d. overprint of the light maroon SG7a released in March 1960, catalogued as SGD2 and well known as part of a set of six stamps which includes the most popular of all Papua New Guinea rarities, namely the 7½d blue extended overprint Kiriwina Yam House, with the lower 7½d Postage blanked and crossed out in red ink and catalogued as SGD1. The Postal Charges series was withdrawn on 30 May 1960 with the release of a special set of Postal Charge stamps.

5. SG D2a - A Postal Charges 1d. triple overprint of the light maroon SG7a in 1960. This variant is not catalogued by Stanley Gibbons, though a similar, double overprint variant of the 7½d Kiriwina Yam House is (SGD1a), as is the ½d green double overprint (SG3a). Therefore, herein the stamp is referred to as SG D2a. The triple overprinting uses carmine and black inks and is very rare - possibly limited to a single proof sheet of 36 stamps.

1957 Stamp Duty + 1960 Postal Charges

Unfortunately, the precise number issued of each of these variants is not known, apart from the original Postal Charges 1d overprint. The following is a brief description of known examples of each variant, followed by a collection of contemporaneous covers. Those items marked with an asterix* are part of the author's personal collection.

1) The original 1952 Chief's House

The image presented within the stamp is most likely taken directly from a photograph. It is ethnologically and culturally interesting, and aesthetically pleasing in form, being a recess printed engraving by the Australian Note Printing Branch of a family - mother, father and child, or perhaps grandparents and child - sitting in front of an A-shaped, two-story, chief's house from Kiriwina island, which is part of the Milne Bay province. Mark Franklin's 1970 Guide to the stamps of Papua New Guinea indicates that this chief's house design was originally intended for the 5/- stamp of the 1952 definitives series, but was transferred to the 6½d when that value was required for airmail postage and the 5/- denomination subsequently deemed not necessary. The variants are discussed in further detail below. The original used a dark purple ink and is catalogued SG7.

Dark purple SG7 (1952) and light maroon SG7a (1956)*

2) 1956 - What's the difference?

In October 1956 the 6½d stamp was reprinted with a slightly different coloured ink - moving from dark purple to light maroon (illustrated above). This has been allocated a Stanley Gibbons catalogue number SG7a. It is difficult to tell the two stamps apart, for they are both darkish brown with a hint of purple, and the light colour is only light in comparison. Online copies are difficult to differentiate due to digital scanning variations. No other stamp of the 1952 definitives series was allocated a separate catalogue number by Stanley Gibbons due to a reprinting colour variation. As noted above, these two stamps were heavily used for domestic and air mail (internal and external) postage between 1952-60. They therefore feature, both singularly or with other stamps, on surviving covers from the period (examples illustrated below), whether these be philatelic or for private and commercial use.

3) The 1957 Stamp Duty

The interesting and little-known Stamp Duty 1d. overprinting referred to above (variant #3) took place during late 1957, with the earliest known evidence of use being a postmarked cover dated 11 October 1957 and bearing the address of the well-known philatelic collector, the Reverend A.H. "Harry" Voyce of Buin, Bougainville, and later New Zealand. This was an emergency printing due to the absence of a 1d stamp duty stamp within the special series released in 1952. The 1956 light maroon SG7a was therefore overprinted Stamp Duty 1d. on its upper half, and a black bar was printed over the 6½d and Postage along the bottom section. An attempt to apply this two-part (upper and lower) overprinting was later made on the 1960 Postal Charges issue, beginning with the 7½d Kiriwana Yam House stamp. However, it was quickly abandoned due to misalignment of the overprinting which, at that time, comprised x... rather than a simple thick black bar. The author only became aware of this stamp from a Prestige Philately auction notice of 12 October 2012. It was not listed elsewhere in the more readily available stamp catalogues, or obviously available through the online and auction websites searched during October-November 2021, and the author was not initially aware of any precise listing. However, during a November 2021 UK sale it was listed with the catalogue number Barefoot 21. This referred to the J.B. Barefoot, Commonwealth Revenues Catalogue of 2012. The aforementioned 2012 auction included a single lot comprising 35 items which comprised used and unused copies of the stamp, including blocks, and the Rev. A.H. Voyce general post cover referred to above and illustrated below. The lot sold for Aus$190, indicating the relative lack of rarity of the stamp, though actual printing numbers are not known. Images from the sale are reproduced below.

Barefoot 21, auction sale lot 2012 - used and unused blocks plus cover.

The Rev. A.H. Voyce postmarked cover offered at auction in 2012 and illustrated above is interesting for the fact not only that it bears the earliest known postmark for the stamp, but also because stamp duty (fiscal) stamps were not eligible for normal post in Papua New Guinea at that time. However, Voyce was able to get a copy stamped to mark the supposed first day of issue on 11 October 1957. Apparently during early 1958 the stamp was also made eligible for general postal use, which would therefore warrant a classification by Stanley Gibbons and others. A later general post cover bearing an imprint block of four and revealing the hand of Voyce is also known and illustrated in the Covers section below.

No other copies initially were found by this author. Fortunately, a discussion instigated on the Stampboards forum revealed two additional references - these being to a horizontally misplaced overprint, and an imprint block of four. These were posted on Stampboards during November 2021 and are illustrated below.

Barefoot 21 (1957), imprint block of four plus displaced overprint.

In addition, during December 2021 a block of four was offered for sale on eBay with an imperfectly applied overprint, such that there is minimal inking of the lower block and the original 6½d denomination is easily seen.

Barefoot 21 (1957), corner block of four with imperfectly inked and slightly offset overprint.*

An earlier Stampboards discussion from 2007 included information on all the Papua New Guinea stamp duty issues from the German Papua Philatelic Society website, with reference to Barefoot 21 as a forerunner of later fiscals. It also showed an example of cancelled, postal used items, both singularly and on paper. Note that the reference states: In 1958 these fiscals were officially used as postal stamps.

Barefoot 21 (1957) block of 4 and on cover.

Experts at the time of the Stampboards discussion in 2021 offered the opinion to the author that the stamp was 'common' and of relatively low catalogue value. Nevertheless, Barefoot 21 is a significant stamp in that it is the first Papua New Guinea general postage stamp to be overprinted Stamp Duty . It is not the first for for the eastern part of the island for stamp duty stamps exist from the early 1900s for the prior Territory of New Guinea and Papua (British New Guinea). As the stamp is primarily considered a fiscal, and not a for-general-use postage stamp, the relative lack of interest in it, and general online invisibility, is understandable. The fact that it was used for general postage during late 1957 and early 1958, and officially so, suggests it warrants an official catalogue listing, though stamp duty stamps used for general postage are not generally listed.

The appearance in October 1957 of the Stamp Duty 1d. overprint was a one-off stop gap measure pending the 1959 release of the 1d green stamp with a generic design similar to the 1952 Stamp Duty series.

4) Postal Charges 1960 Overprint

The 6½d stamp was also used early in 1960 when receipt of a new series of postal charges duty stamps from the Australian printer were delayed. As a result, a set of six Postal Charges overprints were done locally in February 1960 and released on 1 March. The set included a Postal Charges 1d. overprint in black ink of the light maroon 1956 6½d. It is catalogued SGD2.

SG D2 (1960) - corner block of nine.

In some instances the overprint is off-centre, as in the example below.

SGD2 (1960) - offset overprint, shifted to the left.*

SGD2 (1960) - full sheet of 36 stamps.

According to Franklin (1970) the 6½d Postal Charges overprint were withdrawn on 31 May 1960, with stocks of the new Postal Charge series available from 2 June. This would account for the numbers issued, as noted in Franklin: 2,364 sold at Territory post offices, and 17,410 at the Philatelic Bureau, Port Moresby. The stamp was only available locally, with PNG. A corner, imprint block of four, postmarked 26 May 1960, is illustrated below.

SGD2 - imprint block of four, postmarked 26 May 1960.

5) Postal Charges 1960 Triple Overprint

Less well known is the uncatalogued triple overprint of SG D2. During the early, experimental stages of the 1960 Postal Charges series printing, copies of SG7 were overprinted initially in carmine - a colour very similar to the light maroon of the stamp. When this was seen to be not contrasting enough, the carmine was then directly overprinted in black. When this ink did not take and, as a result, looked rather messy, the stamp was overprinted for a third time in black, but this time on a separate space on the stamp, above the previous overprinting. With the first two printings aligned, the stamp now appeared to only have a double overprint, though closer inspection revealed the three layers. According to a 2012 auction sale only a few copies of this so-called triple overprint (herein referred to by the author as SG D2a) are known and likely come from a single proof sheet of 36 stamps. The auction copy sold for Aus$1,800, with a certificate of authenticity. Two examples from the sheet are illustrated below, with a 1977 certificate of authenticity from the British Philatelic Association.

SG D2a (1960) - triple overprint in purple and black.

There is a slightly different alignment of the two over-printings, though this does not necessarily mean that more than one sheet was overprinted. Simple black ultimately was used for the remainder of the overprinting of the 6½d stamp sheets for the Postal Charges series. Whilst the Stamp Duty overprint (Barefoot 21) is relatively rare, the triple overprint is undoubtedly one of the rarest of all modern Papua New Guinea stamps, with only a few other overprinting error single sheets known in the modern era. Some of those are connected with the 1994 emergency overprint series. As of writing it remains without any official catalogue description, and no example on a cover has been seen. Reproduction copies are known.

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Covers

Below are some covers featuring philatelic, official and general use of the 6½d Chief's House stamp and its variants during the stamp's lifetime, between 1952-66.

1) SG7 - Official first day cover to Wollongong, Australia, postmarked at Port Moresby, 30 October 1952.

2) SG7 - Official first day cover to Bega, Australia, postmarked at Port Moresby, 30 October 1952. This cover was long to accommodate the 15 stamps ranging from ½d to £1. A small version of the cover was also produced.*

3) SG7 - Official first day cover to Staubenville, USA, postmarked at Port Moresby, 30 October 1952. Block of four of SG7.*

4) SG7 - Official first day cover to Sydney, postmarked at Port Moresby, 30 October 1952. Line of four SG7 stamps.*

5) SG7 - Registered envelope to A.H. Voyce, Buin, postmarked Buin, 7 November 1952, with corner imprint block of four and Buin registration label #1868.*

6) SG7 - Registered envelope to A.H. Voyce, postmarked Buin, 7 November 1952, with SG7 and SG8, plus Buin registration label #1997.*

7) SG7 - Registered envelope to A.H. Voyce, postmarked Buin, 7 November 1952, with 2 x SG7, plus Buin registration label #1914.

8) SG7 - Air mail envelope to Victoria, Australia, postmarked at Wewak, 3 December 1952. The cover includes various lower value stamps from the new 1952 definitive series.*

9) SG7 - Registered letter to America, postmarked Lae, 21 January 1953, with Lae registration label #6340 registration label.

10) SG7 - Australian airletter envelope with special coronation day QANTAS airmail flight to London overprint in red, plus a cachet in black, postmarked at Port Moresby, 2 June 1953. Further discussion on this envelope is available here.

11) SG7 - Registered letter to England, postmarked Abau, 24 August 1954.

12) SG7 - Air mail envelope to Somerset, England, postmarked at Port Moresby, 8 December 1954.*

13) SG7 - Air mail envelope to Adelaide, South Australia, postmarked Madang, 19 January 1954.*

14) Air mail envelope to Oregon, USE, postmarked Wau, 17 February 1954.

15) SG7 - Standard envelope to Samarai, Papua, postmarked Madang, 9 January 1955.

16) SG7 - Surface mail envelope, postmarked Relief No.3 (Samarai), 12 January 1955.

17) Air mail envelope to Madang, postmarked Lae, 27 April 1955.

18) SG7 - Air mail envelope to Sydney, Australia with postmark Relief No.2, Sohano, 22 February 1955. *

19) SG7 - Air mail envelope addressed to Canberra, Australia, postmarked at Wau, 1 August 1955.

20) SG7 - Standard envelope addressed to Sydney and bearing postmark Relief No.3 at Samarai, dated 5 August 1955.

21) Standard envelope with air mail label to the University of Sydney, postmarked at Goilala, 22 August 1955. *

22) SG7 - Air mail envelope to Sydney, Australia, postmarked at Madang, 19 November 1955. *

23) SG7 - Standard envelope with air mail label to Italy, postmarked at Port Moresby, 11 February 1956.*

24) SG7 - Air mail envelope with black air mail label to A.H. Voyce, Buin, postmarked Relief No.1 (Minj), 24 February 1956. With additional Sohano CDS and Lae CDS on rear + Minj registration label #17. *

25) SG7 - Standard envelope with air mail label to Italy, postmarked at Port Moresby, 24 August 1956.

26) SG7 - Official 'Registered Letter' envelope to Victoria, Australia, postmarked at Port Moresby, 31 October 1956. Refer the detailed Stampboards discussion on this postal stationary item here.

27) SG7a - First day cover (?) / earliest known postmark of change of colour reprint from dark purple to light maroon. Postmarked at Wewak, 6 November 1956. [NB: purchased by author in November 2021 from the UK but lost in transit.]

28) SG7 - Official OHMS cover (trimmed left and right) to the Reverend G. Carter, Kihli, Bougainville, postmarked at Konedobu, 8 November 1956.

29) SG7 - Air mail envelope to Buin, postmarked Rabaul, 16 September 1956.

30) SG7 - Air mail envelope to Kew, Victoria, possibly postmarked 1956.

31) SG7 - Ordinary envelope to Port Moresby with Rigo CDS and Rigo registration label #453, postmarked 16 January 1957.

32) SG7 - Air mail envelope to the United States, postmarked at Port Moresby, 19 May 1957.*

33) SG7 - Standard envelope with air mail label to Italy, postmarked at Port Moresby, 1 June 1957.

34) SG7 - Unaddressed philatelic cover with a collection of lower value definitives, postmarked at Port Moresby, 5 September 1957.

35) SG JB21 / Barefoot 21 - Standard envelope (?first day cover) bearing the Stamp Duty 1d. overprint on the light maroon 6½d stamp, postmarked at Buin, 11 October 1957. This is the earliest known postmark, and may be the first day of issue at Buin. It was obtained by the well known philatelist and generator of covers, the Reverend A.H. Voyce.

36) 21) SG7 - Standard envelope with air mail label to Italy, postmarked at Port Moresby, 6 December 1957.

37) SG JB21 / Barefoot 21 - Air mail envelope to the Reverend G.G. Carter, Kekesu, Bougainville, and postmarked at Buin, 7 January 1958. This cover was most likely posted by the noted philatelist the Reverend A.H. Voyce, as his handwriting features on the cover. The envelope carries an imprint block of four stamps, mounted sideways due to its height. This is the only known cover to feature the Stamp Duty 1d. overprint being utilised singularly for normal postage purposes, as the other known covers (2) are tied to regular postage stamps. By early 1958 the stamp had been approved for standard postal use. *

38) SG JB21 / Barefoot 21 - Air mail envelope (black and white image) bearing the Stamp Duty 1d. overprint on the light maroon 6½d stamp, self-addressed to Rev. A.H. Voyce and postmarked at Buin, 28 January 1958. Illustrated August 1980 Stamp News; offered in 1974 for $850, though sold at auction in 2008 for £68.40. Refer to the Stampboards discussion "Stamp Duty" overprints on PNG registered cover. Comments? for information on this and more recent covers.

39) SG7 - Official 'Registered Letter' envelope to Port Moresby, postmarked Daru, 19 June 1959. Refer the detailed Stampboards discussion on this postal stationary item here.

40) SG D2 - First day cover on air mail envelope of five of the set of six 1960 Postal Charges stamps, postmarked at Port Moresby, 1 March 1960.

41) SG D2 - First day cover, with imprint block of four of, plus similar blocks for SG D1 and SG D3, postmarked at Konedobu, 1 March 1960.

42) SG D2 - Un-stamped cover, postmarked at Port Moresby, 7 March 1960 and issued with Postal Charges duty stamps and additionally postmarked at Tapini, 17 March 1960. Sold at auction in 2012 for a record Aus$4,400.

43) SG D2 - Philatelic cover, postmarked at Port Moresby, 10 March 1960. Sold at auction in 2012 for US$625. This is the only known cover to contain a complete set of the six 1960 Postal Charges stamps SG D1-D6.

44) SG D2 - Local cover with ½d definitive postmarked at Port Moresby, 9.30am Sunday, 8 May 1960. Letter subsequently assessed for postage underpayment, as evident by the circled violet "T 10d” collection marking with underpaid sum in manuscript - being 'double deficiency'. This 10d Postal Due was paid with the recent Postal Charges issues - 1d on 6½d, 3d on ½d & 6d on 7½d - all tied by a different style Port Moresby postmark of 10 May 1960.

The above listed covers provide an interesting snap shot of the postal history of Papua New Guinea between 1952-60, and of a single stamp. They disproportionately reveal examples of external correspondence, along with the actual, and philatelic, use of fiscals such as the Stamp Duty and Postal Charges over-printings.

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Last updated: 23 August 2023

Michael Organ, Australia

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