Papua New Guinea stamp overprints 1952+
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From an intermittent few ... to too many....
The stamp issuing program of Papua New Guinea has long been considered one of the most conservative by the collecting community, and it largely remains so to this day. Relevant to, and focused on, the country's traditional culture and local issues and events, it was for many years in stark contrast to some of the more irrelevant and money grabbing programs practiced by other countries since the 1960s, whereby characters such as Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse and Darth Vader began to feature, and actual stamps became a small element of the dominant postal revenue raising regime. Australia has been no exception to this in recent years with, for example, expanding into areas of numismatics (coin collecting), expensive 'Prestige' limited edition releases, the use of machine generated receipt labels rather than stamps, and sales of non-philatelic materials including toys and household appliances. The path followed by Papua New Guinea has not been as extreme as the Australian example, but it has, in recent years, gone down a different route in seeking to enhance revenue raised from the worldwide collecting community and maintain some financial stability for its philatelic program in the context of national constraints. This was most obviously in the form of increases in the number of stamp releases and a seemingly indiscriminate use of provisional overprints. Though we should not forget the Elvis Presley, Marilyn Monroe and numerous Lady Diana Spencer releases, along with increasing numbers of Royal Family, Chinese New Year and American Presidents releases which, on the surface, have nothing at all to do with the special and unique history and culture of the country. In most instances it has been stated by the Papua New Guinea postal authorities that the frequent overprinting of previously issued stamps was necessary due to changes in postage rates and/or the local shortage of the relevant values. There is also a practice - arising out of the precarious financial and civil situation in the country, and as outlined in a 2016 Stampboards discussion here - of reusing obsolete stock rather than having them simply destroyed when there are increases or changes in postage rates. The ad hoc nature of this latter practice creates havoc with non-resident collectors who are usually only made aware of the releases after the fact, and therefore find themselves forced to pay often exorbitant prices to complete their standard country collections. This trend towards overprints may have seemed reasonable in a country where the stamps are mostly printed overseas - usually in Australia, Great Britain or Europe - and delays in receiving stock occur, especially when unplanned shortages arise. But it was not always this way, and an efficient management regime which takes into account such delays - if that is at all possible - should be able to use provisional overprints sparingly, as Papua New Guinea had done in the past, and with due consideration to prior notification and print quality issues. The dire security situation in the country for many years, alongside lack of a solid local collector community able to provide feedback and guidance, does not help. Papua New Guinea is not the only Pacific Island nation to face this situation, as seen in the following video from September 2021 featuring New York collector and dealer Steven Zirinsky talking about the issue.
Papua New Guinea issued its first set of definitive stamps on 30 October 1952 and from that date through to 1985 there was a steady, though minimal release of new definitives and commemorative stamps on an annual basis. A browse of the Stanley Gibbons catalogue reveals this, with approximately 110 releases between those years i.e. an average of 4 per year. However, in 1985 there was a sign that the situation was going to change when, on 1 May, a previously issued stamp was released with an up-rated overprint. The last time this had occurred was back in 1959. The item in question - 1981's Defence Force 7t stamp - was subject to a 'provisional overprint' to the value of 12t. This was carried out within Papua New Guinea by a local printing firm. A previously issued first day cover for the 1982 Coral definitives was given a 'Provisional Overprint' overprint and made available to the collecting community with the 12t overprint and the Port Moresby first day of issue circular date stamp. Needless to say, this was logical, though novel. There had been overprints of previously issued stamps prior to this, between 1952-60, but not on the scale that was to come, with 29 different overprinted stamps released during 1994-5 and 27 during 2014-15, not including varieties, and generally no official first day covers! The following table lists the number of individual stamps subject to provisional overprinting between 1952-2020, included major variants such as different overprintings.
| Years | No. of overprinted stamps |
| 1952-60 | 10 |
| 1985 | 1 |
| 1987 | 1 |
| 1989 | 1 |
| 1993 | 4 |
| 1994 | 13 |
| 1995 | 20 |
| 1998 | 1 |
| 1999 | 12 |
| 2001 | 5 |
| 2004 | 5 |
| 2005 | 4 |
| 2006 | 2 |
| 2014 | 31 |
| 2015 | 10 |
| 2018 | 1 |
| 2020 | 7 |
| Total | 128 |
Dealer Glen Stephens, in his 1995 article, refers to the 1994 Emergency Overprints set of 11, and the extended 1994/5 set of 20. Beyond this, he notes that there are actually 31 overprinted stamps from 1994/5, if we include the 1995 Tourism (6) and Peter To Rot (1) sets, plus four additional overprinting variants of the Bird of Paradise stamps from 1995. However, the latter actually includes an additional two variants, such that the number comes to 33. These are listed in a table below.
The problem of provisional overprints was brought home to this author with a reading of the 2020 newsletters of the Papua New Guinea Philatelic Bureau. Therein the manager revealed how the stamp issuing program for the year comprised a planned 17 releases, including 2 carried over from the previous year. Unbelievably, this program was not officially confirmed until 22 June 2020! Unfortunately, or fortunately, only five stamp issues appeared during 2020, and three in 2021. It appears, from the aforementioned Stampboards discussion, that the senior management of Post PNG has not been as supportive of the philatelic program as the PNG Philatelic Bureau staff and bureaucratic delays have ensued. In the January/February 2020 newsletter the Philatelic Bureau manager stated:
As the release dates of these [17] issues have yet to be made known, we’ve resorted to releasing 2 x Overprint Issues to meet current demand experienced at our Post Offices. The overprints, as you will have noticed, are now off the press and are selling online and at our post offices nationwide. Stocks used for the overprints are those of APEC 2017 and TUNA Fishery 2016.
Then, in the May/June newsletter he reported:
...We planned to release seventeen (17) stamp issues this year, and the management has given its approval on this. With the inclusion of the two Overprints released earlier in the year, the seventeen stamp issues scheduled for 2020 were signed-off on Monday 22nd June, 2020.
Many of the planned stamp releases had actually been printed, but due to the hold up from above, the provisional overprints were issued instead during the interim January-July wait-and-see period. Also worrisome was the issue of release dates, with the manager stating:
Despite the delay, I am pleased to inform you that we have so far released four stamp issues: 1) The TUNA FISHERY Overprint, 2) APEC Overprint, 3) Post Courier 50th Anniversary, 4) Bread Fruit. The Post Courier 50th Anniversary issue was literally out for sale before the official launch on the 30th June, 2020.
So we not only have the forced creation of provisional overprints, but also an official release taking place prior to the official release date! This bureaucratic nightmare was nothing if not unfortunate. A similar situation existed as far back as 1994-5 when parliament was responsible for delays in confirming the new postal rate and, as a result, a plethora of provisional overprints appeared from March 1994 through to the end of the following year. The collecting community was, in the case of the 1994-5 and later 2014-5 provisional overprintings, not informed prior to their appearance. As a result, the conservative reputation of the Papua New Guinea stamp issuing program began to suffer, especially when the shoddiness of many of the overprintings was revealed, giving rise to double and even triple overprintings, inverted overprints, missing denominations and numerous other variants. During a relevant Stampboards discussion - one of many on the issue of Papua New Guinea overprints - one collector noted that he stayed clear of all such stamps, both recent and historic, as modern printing techniques allowed for the all too easy production of forgeries. This writer was nothing if not initially confused by the proliferation of recent overprints and the seemingly endless varieties. This blog is an attempt to better understand the situation by listing the various overprints, with only brief mention of the more common and verified varieties. Many now sell for thousands of dollars and will forever be out of reach of ordinary collectors. Their inclusion in standard catalogues and collection materials such as the Seven Seas Stamps hingeless album pages is, in the opinion of the author, problematic. Of course, if they are officially issued then they need to be included in catalogue listings. However, the problem arises when their numbers are so low - in some cased only 500 printed! For example, the presence of a distinct catalogue entry and place in the Seven Seas Stamp hingeless album pages for SGD1 - the 1960 Postal Charges double overprint of which less than 800 copies are known and which retails for around $700 - means that a standard PNG collection may never be complete, and the market for cheap, forged copies is filling the gap. The inclusion of some of the later provisional overprints, where only a couple of hundred or low thousands exist, is a continuation of this problem. There is no doubt that the Papua New Guinea postal authorities need to be more supportive of the philatelic community, get their house in order, stop issuing provisional overprints - or, at the very least, provide more information about their release and the reasons thereof - and get back to a conservative, collectible issuing program which focuses on its rich cultural heritage. Seventeen releases in one year, as was planned for 2020, is very different to the average four per year era upon which the country's reputation was based.
A listing of Papua New Guinea Overprints
The following is a brief history of Papua New Guinea surcharge, fiscal and provisional overprints on stamps (miniature sheets are not included), the majority of which had been previously issued. A separate blog deals with revenue (e.g. stamp duty) and postal charges overprints. This current blog seeks to be brief but comprehensive in listing basic information. Print numbers are provided where known, with the recent (1994+) provisional overprintings ranging from 500 to 1,796,510 for individual stamps. Specimen overprints from the period 1952-64 are not included as the focus herein is on official issues eligible for general postal usage. Within the following listing relevant first day covers and, in their absence, commercial covers, are illustrated.
Precursors
Prior to 1952 overprinting was common in the stamp issuing programs of German New Guinea, British New Guinea, Papua and the Territory of New Guinea. Varieties included: Air Mail, change of name e.g. from British New Guinea to Papua, change of administration, Specimen, Stamp Duty, commemorative, exhibition, OS (Official Service) and denominational surcharges. In one instance a set of new definitive stamps was issued only with an Air Mail overprint, that being the 1932 Undated Bird of Paradise series (though there are a few rare copies in circulation of the ½d orange without overprint). Of the seventeen sets of stamps issued by Papua between 1901-1939, seven sets were overprints. It could be said that the precedent was set. However, in those cases the printing was generally not done locally but in Great Britain or Australia, whereas in 2020 local personalised stamp printing machines and printing firms have been used by the Papua New Guinea postal service to produce "emergency" provisional overprints.
The 1957-60 overprints
1) SG16-17 - The first official overprinting of pre-existing Papua New Guinea stamps - which were initially printed in 1952 - came on 29 January 1957 with two of the 1952 definitives surcharged - 4d on the 2½d orange Bird of Paradise, and 7d on the 1/- Lakatoi (SG16-SG17). Numbers sold: 4d on 2½d orange - 3,002,688; 7d on 1/- green - 1,279,440.
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| SG16-17 1957 surcharges on official generic first day cover. |
2) SG JB21 - During October 1957, the 1952 definitive 6½d light maroon Kiriwina Chief's House was overprinted Stamp Duty 1d. This fiscal (catalogued Barefoot 21 / SG JB21) was officially deemed eligible for normal postage early the following year. Number printed / sold: Unknown. Despite generally being dated in the literature to 1958, a cover postmarked Buin, 11 October 1957, is the earliest known use of the stamp.
3) SG25 - On 1 December 1959 there was another surcharge overprint, with the 5d on ½d green Tree Kangaroo stamp from the 1952 series (SG25). Number sold: 4,597,776.
4) SGD1-SGD6 - On 1 March 1960 five of the 1952 definitives were overprinted and released as six fiscals with a Postal Charges overprint, to be used for instances of insufficient postage:
* SGD1 - 6d on 7½d extended overprint; number sold - c.800 (20 sheets)
* SGD2 - 1d on 6½d; number sold - 19,774
* SGD3 - 3d on ½d; number sold - 19,060
* SGD4 - 6d on 7½d; number sold - 18,648
* SGD5 - 1/3 on 3½d; number sold - 17,483
* SGD6 - 3/- on 2½d; number sold - 15,055
The 1952 definitives were overprinted due to the late arrival from Australia of the official set, which was eventually issued in July.
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| 1960 Postal Charges overprints (6) on cover, postmarked 10 March 1960. |
From that point on the overprinting stopped for an extensive period, through until 1985.
The later overprints 1985+
The use of overprints, especially provisionals, was slow to begin with during the second half of the 1980s, but ramped up during the middle of the following decade. It continues through to the present day, for the various reasons outlined at the head of this article. Overprinted stamps are listed below chronologically and according to their Stanley Gibbons catalogue number, where available. Dates of issue of some of the recent overprintings are not definitive as the stamps were often printed and made available on a needs basis, with no prior announcement. The main period of issue of provisional overprints was between 1994/5 and in 2014/15. From 1985 through to 2007 new Stamp Duty and Departure Tax overprints were also applied to various previously issued Papua New Guinea stamps. These are listed here.
1985
* SG495 - 12t on 7t 1981 Defence Forces SG408. Released on 1 May 1985 with a special first day cover, comprising the overprinted Coral stamps issue cover of 1982. As perhaps a sign of things to come, a first day cover also exists postmarked 1 April 2015, pointing to the vagaries surrounding provisional overprints in regard to release dates, due to the ad hoc / just-in-time approach often forced upon the Philatelic Bureau.
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| Defence Forces 12t on 7t overprint, special Provisional Overprint first day cover, 1 May 1985.* |
1987
* SG562 - 15t on 12t 1982 Coral SG442. Released on 23 September 1987 with first day of issue postmark at Port Moresby, on the Supplementary Coral Definitive first day cover from 29 May 1985.
 |
| 15t overprint on Supplementary Coral Definitive first day cover, 23 September 1997.* |
1989
* SG602 - 20t on 17t 1987 Anemone fish SG539. Released on 12 July 1989 with an associated first day cover made up from the original 1987 cover with a new Supplementary Overprint overprint. Numerous printing varieties are known for this stamp, as they are for many such overprintings. e.g single bar on the denomination overprint.
 |
| Special Supplementary Overprint first day cover, 12 July 1989.* |
1993
* SG687-690 - Taipei '93 on 1993 Birds SG683-686. Released on 13 August 1993 with a special first day cover and postmark. The previously issued Birds stamps were overprinted with the Taipei '93 logo. This is not a provisional overprint meant to address a lack of supply, but rather a commemorative, supporting an overseas philatelic exhibition.
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| SG687-690 on first day cover, postmarked Port Moresby, 13 August 1993. |
1994
Despite the early practice of issuing first day covers for provisional overprints in the 1980s, this was discontinued during 1994-5. The emergency nature of the overprinting forestalled any such action. As a result, covers
bearing such stamps are not usually common, though the stamps were issued in the hundreds of thousands or more, and widely used, with covers generated as part of normal and commercial use. However, it appears that the vast majority
of these were destroyed. Philatelic covers such as first day covers for provisional overprints were either never produced during the emergency overprints period (e.g. 1994-5), or are rare. It has been noted on Stampboards that some back-dated covers were later produced by PNG Post staffers, and these are mentioned below where known.
The following table, adapted from the Glen Stephens webpage on the history of the release and his delayed discovery of the 1994/5 overprints, provides information on the twenty provisional overprints from that period, along with the number of stamps sold and dates of issue. The known print numbers range from a relatively low 40,000 through to 1,750,000. The catalogue number 'A' refers to the Australasian Stamp Catalogue, whilst 'SG' refers to the Stanley Gibbons equivalent. Scott numbers are also commonly applied, with variations existing between the major catalogues. The original table has been updated with additional information from the research of Phil Mullins, Derek Wong, Doug Spencer and the current author. The table is arranged only roughly chronologically.
| Cat No. | Description | Denomination | Issue Date | Number sold | |
| 1 | SG708 / A538a | Tomato Clownfish | 21t on 35t | 16.03.94 | 1,750,000 |
| 2 | SG737 / A539a | Anemone Fish | 65t on 70t | 28.11.94 | 125,000 |
| 3 | SG709 / A560a | l’Astrolabe Ship | K1.20 on 40t | 16.03.94 | 254,850 |
| 4 | SG730 / A600a | Baining Dancer | 5 t on 35t | 06.10.94 | 500,000 |
| 5 | SG735 / A608a | Rouna Waterfall | 50t on 35t | 28.11.94 | 50,000 |
| 6 | SG739 / A610a | Wawoi Waterfall | K1 on 70t | 28.11.94 | 75,000 |
| 7 | SG738 / A613a | National Census | 65t on 70t | 28.11.94 | 50,000 |
| 8 | SG736 / A615a | Gogodala Mask | 50t on 35t | 28.11.94 | 45,000 |
| 9 | SG740 / A617a | Gogodala Mask | K1 on 70t | 28.11.94 | 55,000 |
| 10 | SG733 / A619a | N.Z. 1990 (Birds) | 10t on 35t | 03.10.94 | 70,950 |
| 11 | SG732 / A620a | N.Z. 1990 (Masks) | 10t on 35t | 23.08.94 | 134,950 |
| 12 | SG731 / A626a | Musical Instrument | 5t on 35t | 06.08.94 | 490,350 |
| 13 | SG734 / A633a | Land Shell | 21t on 80t | 28.08.94 | 796,150 |
| 14 | SG755 / A647c | Bird of Paradise small “t” | 21t on 45t | 16.05.95 | 450,000 |
| 15 | SG757 / A647d | Bird of Paradise Large “T” | 21t on 45T | 16.05.95 | 85,000 |
| 16 | A647e | ditto, small "t", 1993, 2nd print | 21t on 45T | 1995 |
9,350 |
| 17 | A647f | do., large "T", 1992, 2nd print | 21t on 45T | 1995 |
3,200 |
| 18 | A647g | do.small "t", 1992, 2nd print | 21t on 45T | 1995 |
1,850 |
| 19 | SG756 / A649a | Bird of Paradise small “t” | 21t on 90t | 27.03.95 | 480,000 |
| 20 | SG758 / A649b | Bird of Paradise Large “T” | 21t on 90T | 25.04.95 | 387,000 |
| 21 | A649c | ditto, small "t", 1993, 2nd print | 21t on 90T | 1995 |
8,900 |
| 22 | A649d | do., large "T", 1992, 2nd print | 21t on 90T | 1995 |
3,500 |
| 23 | A649e | do., small "t", 1992, 2nd print | 21t on 90T | 1995 |
1,200 |
| 24 | SG759 / A685a | Freshwater Fish | 21t on 45t | 20.06.95 | 325,000 |
| 25 | SG760 / A686a | Freshwater Fish | 21t on 60t | 20.06.95 | 70,000 |
| 26 | SG761 / A687a | Freshwater Fish | 21t on 90t | 20.06.95 | 120,000 |
| 27 | SG746 | Pope John Paul II | 1K on 90t | 11.1.95 | N/A |
| 28 | SG749 | Tourism | 50t on 45t |
11.1.95 | N/A |
| 29 | SG750 | Tourism | 50t on 45t |
11.1.95 | N/A |
| 30 | SG751 | Tourism | 65t on 60t |
11.1.95 | N/A |
| 31 | SG752 | Tourism | 65t on 60t |
11.1.95 | N/A |
| 32 | SG753 | Tourism | 1K on 90t |
11.1.95 | N/A |
| 33 | SG754 | Tourism | 1K on 90t |
11.1.95 | N/A |
 |
| PNG 1994-5 provisional overprints (20). |
* SG708 / ASC538a Tomato Clownfish SG541. Issued on 16 March 1994. Varieties: Overprinted dots throughout sheet; overprint no.2 - wider block(?). Number overprinted: 1,750,000.
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| 21t Tomato Clownfish on commercial cover, 14 July 1994.* |
* SG709 - K1.20 on 40t 1987 l'Astrolabe SG551. Issued on 16 March 1994. Number overprinted: 254,850. Variety: double overprint with blurred value.
 |
| SG709 on registered commercial cover, postmarked Lae, 24 November 1994.* |
 |
| SG709 and SG740 on registered commercial cover, postmarked Tabubil, 7 March 1995.* |
A first day cover for these two stamps exists (illustrated below). However, it is highly likely that it was an unofficial production, back-dated by PNG Post staffers upon request. Such covers are postmarked 23 March 1994, when the stamps were actually released on 16 March 1994. Refer Stampboards discussion here in regard to the possible nature of this cover.
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| First day cover, postmarked Port Moresby, 23 March 1994. |
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| Official Post PNG leaflet announcing the overprints. |
* SG730 - 5t on 35t Baining Dancer. Issued on 23 August 1994. Number overprinted: 500,000. Variety: Double overprint.
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| Commercially used cover, postmarked Mail Centre Lae, 7 May 1995. |
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| Overprints SG731, SG755 and SG756 on commercial cover postmarked Mail Centre Lae, 24 May 1995. |
* SG732 - 10t on 35t 1990 Maori Mask - World Stamp Exhibition SG621. Released 23 August 1994. Number overprinted: 134,950. Example on commercial cover illustrated above.
* SG734 - 21t on 80t 1991 Papuina Land Shells SG635. Issued on 28 August 1994. Number overprinted: 796,150.
[Cover]
* SG733 - 10t on 35t 1990 Cassowary and Kiwi SG623. Issued on 3 October 1994. Number overprinted: 70,950. Example on commercial cover illustrated above. Variety: Double '100t' overprint - only a single sheet known.
* SG735 - 50t on 35t 1990 Rouna Waterfall SG612. Issued on 28 November 1994. Number overprinted: 50,000.
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| ? Back-dated first day of issue private covers, Port Moresby, 28 November 1994. |
* SG737 - 65t on 70t 1987 Anemone fish SG542. Issued on 28 November 1994. Number overprinted: 125,000.
* SG739 - 1K on 70t 1990 Wawoi Waterfall SG614. Issued on 28 November 1994. Number overprinted: 75,000.
 |
| SG739 on registered commercial cover, postmarked Kimbe, 1 February 1995.* |
* SG740 - 1K on 70t 1990 Gogodala Mask SG620. Issued on 28 November 1994. Number overprinted: 55,000.
 |
| SG740 on commercial cover, 22 February 1995.* |
1995
During 1995 the provisional overprints continued to be issued, as the parliamentary holdup was not alleviated until mid year. The impasse also resulted in the overprinting of stamps that had been printed in 1994 for release later in the year and to accommodate the proposed new rates. However, with those rates held up, some of these stamps were overprinted prior to release. This occurred with the Beatification and Tourism released in January 1995.
* SG746 - K1.00 on 90t Beatification of Peter To Rot. Issued on 11 January 1995 in a strip of three stamps, two bearing denominations and one overprinted. Some copies of the sheets without any overprint were also released. The 21t stamp was also subject to overprinting during 2001 (refer below).
 |
| 'Unissued' - no overprints. Printed late 1994. Possibly released on 11 January 1995. |
 |
| Issued on 11 January 1995 with a single K1.00 overprint. |
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| Issued on 1 December 2001 with a new 50t overprint. |
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| Official first day cover, 11 January 1995. |
* SG747 - SG754 Tourism - a set of eight stamps were issued on 11 January 1995. They had initially been printed during late 1994, but were subsequently released with six of the eight overprinted:
- SG749 and SG750 50t on 45t Resorts (x2)
- SG751 and SG752 65t on 60t Trekking Adventure and White Water Rafting (x2)
- SG753 and SG754 1.00K on 90t Diving (x2)
Two varieties are known:
1) SG749a - SG754a 1995 Tourism - six stamps without overprint. An unknown quantity (? 4 sheets each - 4 x 100 stamps) were released without the overprint. A set of the Diving stamps without overprint were sold on eBay during January 2022 for $695.
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| No overprint Resorts, Trekking Adventure and White Water Rafting stamps. |
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| No overprint plus overprint blocks of 4 Diving stamps, |
2) SG751a 1995 Tourism Trekking Adventure missing 65t denomination overprint. Issued on 11 January 1995 in sheets of 80 stamps. Occurs with the Trekking Adventure set of two stamps, whereby one of the overprints in the sheet is missing the 65t denomination value. This is apparently consistent across all the sheets printed and is found at location row 8, stamp 3. Examples in blocks sell for around $50. SG751a and SG751b.
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| Missing denomination variety. |
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| Tourism first day cover, Port Moresby, 11 January 1995. |
* SG755 21t on 90t Bird SG643 / SG757 21t on 45t Bird SG650b. This was the first of the five 1995 provisional overprints. Five varieties are known - one with a small 't' and another with a large 'T' plus associated with two different printings of the original stamp, in 1992 and 1993. They were issued on 27 March 1995 (small) and 25 April 1995 (large). Number overprinted: small 480,000 / large 387,000 = 867,000. A full description of the variations can be found here at PNGStamps.
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| Commercially used cover, postmarked Lae Mail Centre, 19 July 1995. |
* SG756 21t on 45t Bird SG646 / SG758 21t on 45t Bird SG650d. Five varieties are known - one with a small 't' and another with a large 'T' plus associated with two different printings of the original stamp, in 1992 and 1993. The stamp was issued on 16 May 1995. Number overprinted: small 450,000 / large 85,000 = 535,000. A full description of the variations can be found here at PNGStamps.
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| Commercially used cover, postmarked 7 September 1995. |
* SG759 21t on 45t 1993 Peacock Gudgeon fish SG692. Issued on 20 June 1995. Number overprinted: 325,000. Varieties: Thick and thin 21t fonts.
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| Alotau, 2 July 1995. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG760 21t on 60t 1993 Northern Rainbow fish SG693. Issued on 20 June 1995. Number overprinted:70,000.
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| 3 November 1996. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG761 21t on 90t 1993 Popondetta Blue-eye fish SG694. Issued on 20 June 1995. Number overprinted:120,000.
As no official first day cover was issued for this overprint, or any of the 1994-5 provisional overprints, some unmarked and unaddressed philatelic covers were apparently produced which were applied with the Port Moresby first day of issue circular date stamp. Two such covers are known for the Fish series: one dated 19 June 1995 and the other 20 June 1995.
The three Fish provisional overprints of May 1995 were the final in the 1994-5 series. No more were issued until 1998.
1998
* SG832 - 25t on K0.65t 1995 Crab SG774. Issued on 28 May 1998 along with a special first day cover and crab-themed first day of issue postmark at Port Moresby. This appears to be the first specific first day cover provided for a provisional overprint since 1989. It was also the last until the Horses overprint of January 2015.
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| Special Provisional Overprint first day cover, 28 May 1998.* |
1999
* Australia '99 International Stamp Exhibition. Four of the 1987-8 Ships series were overprinted with the exhibition logo (SG853-6), plus a further eight were issued in a miniature sheet, though these were not strictly overprints, but rather, a new printing. The overprints were similar to those issued for the Taipei exhibition in 1993.
2001
A series of five provisional overprints were issued during December 2001, with the values of either 50t or K2.65. Print numbers are not known. No official first day covers were produced.
* SG903 - 50t on 1995 21t Peter To Rot Beatification SG745. Issued on 1 December 2001. The sheet of stamps was issued with both the 50t and the K1.00 stamps. It appears that all the remaining sheets of the 1995 issue were overprinted as original 1995 sheets are rare.
* SG904 - 50t on 25t 2000 Runner SG883. Issued on 1 December 2001. Variety: Double overprint, with one sheet of 50 recorded.
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| Commercial cover, postmarked Mail Centre Lae, 11 April 2002. |
* SG905 - 50t on 65t 1999 Man on computer SG871. Issued on 1 December 2001.
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| Commercially used cover postmarked 28 December [2001]. |
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| Lae Mail Centre, 4 December 2003. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG907 - K2.65 on 65t 1999 Dancer SG866. Issued on 1 December 2001. Illustrated on cover above.
* SG1001 - 70t on 65t 2003 Coastal Village SG977. Issued 20 January 2004.
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| Mt. Hagen, 24 September 2010. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG1002 - 70t on 65t Coastal Village SG978. Issued 20 January 2004.
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| Kavang, 18 June 2004. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG1031 - 5t on 20t 2001 Manus Province SG910. Issued 1 June 2004.
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| Lae Mail Centre, 20 December 2010. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG1032 - 70t on 65t 2003 Dolphin SG994. Issued 1 June 2004.
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| Mt. Hagen, 20 September 2004. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG1033 - 5t on 20t 2003 Dolphins SG995. Issued 1 June 2004.
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| 20 September 2004. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
2005
* SG1056 - 75t on 70t 2004 Fish SG1003. Released 3 January 2005.
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| Madang, 14 April 2005. |
* SG1057 - 75t on 70t 2004 Fish SG1004. Released 3 January 2005.
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| Lae Mail Centre, 26 January 2005. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG1058 - 75t on 70t 2004 Headdress SG1025. Released 3 January 2005.
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| Popondetta, 3 March 2005. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG1059 - 75t on 70t 2004 Headdress SG1026. Released 3 January 2005.
 |
| 5 December 2005. Source: Zirinsky Stamps. |
* SG1134 - 80t on 70t 2004 Shell SG1050. Released 5 July 2006.
[Cover]
SG1135 - 80t on 70t 2004 Shell SG1051. Released 5 July 2006.
[Cover]
2014
* SG??? / Z3 - K15 on K1.20 Common Spotted Cuscus. Issued January 2014. No print numbers known, though possibly only 500 in line with others overprinted during this month. Uncatalogued.
* SG1497 / Z4 - K15 on K1.05 2011 Law and Order. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
 |
| Cover postmarked Port Moresby Philatelic, 16 March 2017. |
* SG1376 / Z5A / 5B - K25 on K6.30 2010 Sea Cucumber. 500 printed. Issued January 2014. Variety: Single or double line cancellation.
* SG1434 / Z6 - K25 on K4.65 Orchids d. mirbelianum. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
* SG1435 / Z7 - K25 on K6.30 Orchids d. helix. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
 |
| Cover postmarked Lae Mail Centre, 13 April 2016. |
* SG1452 / Z8 - K25 on K5.00 Traditional Dance. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
* SG1294 / Z9 - K40 on K3.70 Beach Kalofilum. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
 |
| Commercially used cover, postmarked Lae Mail Centre, 29 August 2016. |
* SG1387 / Z10 - K40 on K4.65 World Girl Guides. 500 printed. Issued January 2014. Variety: Inverted overprint (illustrated).
* SG1352 / Z11A / 11B / 11C - K40 on K6.00 Oil Palm - Fruit Collection. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
* SG1541 / Z15A - K90 on K.700 Traditional Dance - Siasi. Black box overprint. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
* SG1541 / Z15B - K90 on K.700 Traditional Dance - Siasi. Line overprint. 500 printed. Issued January 2014.
* SG1673 - 5K on 1K.70 2014 Saddled Horse SG1668. Issued 12 February 2014.
* SG1674 - 5K on 1K.70 on 2014 Saddled Horse SG1667. Issued 12 February 2014.
 |
| First day cover with special Overprint postmark, Port Moresby, 12 February 2014. |
* SG1568 / X3 / 3A / 3B - K1.30 on K1.20 Common Grey Cuscus. Issued 25 October 2014. Number overprinted: 1,250.
* SG1562 / X1 / 1A - K1.30 on K1.20 Cooking Pots Madang. Issued 6 November 2014. Number overprinted: 1,250.
* SG1580 / X7 / 7A / 7B / 7C - K1.30 on K1.20 Orchids ‐ d. williamsianium. Issued 15 November 2014. Number overprinted: 1,250.
* SG1581 X6 / 6A / 6B - K1.30 on K1.20 Orchids ‐ d. macrophyllum. Issued 27 November 2014. Number overprinted: 1,250 printed. Variety: misplaced overprint (illustrated).
[Image]
2015
* SG1331 / Z1 (small block) / 1A (large block) - K15 on 85t Black Bellied Bats. 500 printed. Released 7 January 2015. Variety - small or large block.
 |
| Postmarked Kimbe, 21 January 2015. Source: Zirinsky Stamps; Stampboards. |
* SG1294 / Z2 - K15 on K3.70 Beach Kalofilum. 500 printed. Released 4 May 2015.
* SG??? / X9 (block) / 9A (strike through) - K1.30 on K1.20 Costumes. Issued 15 June 2015. Number overprinted: 1,250.
* Three Tuna Fishery overprints were released on 6 March 2020 with an associated first day cover and special postmark. They were issued due to bureaucratic delays in permission to proceed with the planned 2020 stamp release program, with confirmation of that program not received until July 2020. This was the first such first day cover to feature an overprint since the Year of the Horse issue of 2014.
- K1.60 on K2 Bluefin Tuna
- K5 on K1.45 Yellowfin Tuna
- K6.90 on K1.45 Yellowfin Tuna
* Four APEC overprints were released on 6 March 2020 with an associated first day cover and special postmark. Issued due to bureaucratic delays in permission to proceed with the planned 2020 stamp release program.Note the difficulties in seeing the small black type overprint denomination in amongst the multicoloured image of the stamps, with confirmation not received until July 2020.
- K1.60 on K6.80 APEC
- K5.00 on K3.40 APEC
- K6.90 on K3.40 APEC
Acknowledgements
Various long-standing collectors of Papua New Guinea have assisted in the compilation of this blog, and I need to clearly acknowledge that. In large part I am simply bringing to light previous research and repackaging it. Individuals whose previous research has been used include the following: J. Barefoot, Matt Franklin, Phil Mullins, Doug Spencer, Glen Stephens, Derek Wong and Steven Zirinsky.
References
I-NG, Modern surcharges. Available URL: https://i-ng.org/en/background-information/papua-new-guinea-postage-stamps/modern-surcharges/.
-----, Postage Rates. Available URL: https://i-ng.org/en/catalogues/postage-rates/.
-----, Surcharges 2014-2015. Available URL: https://i-ng.org/en/background-information/papua-new-guinea-postage-stamps/ueberdrucke-2014-2015/.
-----, Varieties and special features on PNG stamps, I-NG. Available URL: https://i-ng.org/index.php?id=730&no_cache=1&L=2.
Papua New Guinea - Postage Stamps [website], Stampworld, 2021. Available URL: https://www.stampworld.com/en/stamps/Papua-New-Guinea/.
Papua New Guinea Surcharge Stamps [website], The Stamp Forum, April-May 2020. Available URL: https://thestampforum.boards.net/thread/7221/papua-new-guinea-surchages-stamps.
PNG Emergencies [webpages], PNGStamps, n.d.. Available URL: https://pngstamps.com/home.
Stampboards, PNG 1990s stamp oddities - fair prices for them?, 17 January 2009. Available URL: https://stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?p=420298.
-----, PNG Emergency Overprints with printing errors, $65, 7 August 2013. Available URL: https://stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=47792.
-----, 2014/15 Papua New Guinea overprints wanted, 26 April 2016. Available URL: https://stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=70308.
-----, Wanted: Papua New Guinea overprint FDC 14 March 1994, 14 May 2016. Available URL: https://www.stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?p=4534636.
-----, WTB - Papua & New Guinea recent provisional overprints, 27 August 2016. Available URL: https://www.stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=72395.
-----, Questions on Papua New Guinea SG602 20t on 17t Fish overprint, 7 March 2018. Available URL: https://stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=80944.
-----, PNG 1994 "Emergency Overprint" *Sheet of 50* [65t Census] for $195!, 13 July 2018. Available URL: https://www.stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=82780.
-----, Wanted to buy - the PNG K1.30 Overprints, 18 November 2020. Available URL: https://www.stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?t=93027.
-----, 8 February 2021. Available URL: PNG 1994 65t Fish overprint block of 4, with *10* ink flaws, $50! Available URL: https://www.stampboards.com/viewtopic.php?f=27&t=94122.
Stephens, Glen, PNG 1994/5 "Emergency" Overprints: The Real Story, 1995. Available URL: https://www.glenstephens.com/overprints.html.
-----, World record price for PNG cover!, 1997. Available URL: https://www.glenstephens.com/png.html.
Zirinsky, Steven, PNG 2014-2015 Provisionals [Table], Zirinsky Stamps, 2016. Available URL: http://www.zirinskystamps.com/Publications/web%20publications/PNG%202014-2015%20provisionals%20public.pdf.
-----, 2014/15 Surcharged Stamps, Papua New Guinea Calling, Papuan Philatelic Society, 62(1), issue 269, March 2016.
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Last updated: 21 January 2023
Michael Organ, Australia
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