Collecting By Engraver

Set of definitive stamps, contains six different designs, was issued for use in Guadeloupe in 1947.

Port of Baase Tere, designed and engraved by Pierre Munier.

Harvesting of Sugar Canes, designed and engraved by Raoul Serres.

Pineapple Holders, designed and engraved by Albert Decaris.

Guadeloupian Woman, designed and engraved by Raoul Serres.

Coffee Cultivation, designed and engraved by Albert Decaris.

Guadeloupian Woman, designed and engraved by Pierre Munier.

Earlier in this thread, I presented the very attractive set of 15 engraved definitive stamps issued in 1931 for use in the Belgian Mandate of Ruanda-Urundi. I then began searching for the original photographs that served as models for the stamp designs, and I have already acquired two postcards featuring such images.

The first postcard reproduces the photograph used to design the 2F stamp, depicting a craftsman making wooden pots.

....the second postcard reproduces the photograph used to design the 3.25F stamp, depicting manufacture of Ficus material. In Rwanda and Burundi, traditional cloth was produced from the inner bark of certain ficus (fig) trees. The bark was removed, soaked, and then beaten with wooden mallets, exactly as shown in the postcard, until it became soft, flexible fabric.



Hope to find more postcards with photographs used to design the rest of the stamps.

The Maohi World – Dances

"The Maohi World – Dances", a set featuring traditional dance cultures of Polynesia. The designs are based on historical ethnographic illustrations documenting ceremonial dances observed in the Pacific islands during the late 18th and 19th centuries. The inscription "DOC. BESLU" refers to the documentation provided by Christian Beslu, a French Polynesian philatelist and researcher whose work helped identify and adapt these historical sources. The stamps were engraved by Pierre Betemps and issued by French Polynesia on June 17, 1992.

A traditional Tahitian dance performance in front of a meeting house, accompanied by drummers.

Hawaiian dancers performing with shields and rhythmic movements, reflecting early European depictions of Hawaiian ceremonial dance.

A night dance of women in Tonga, likely referencing ceremonial dances associated with ritual restrictions (tabu).

Set of definitive stamps, contains six different designs, was issued for use in Martinique in 1947.

Young Martinique Woman, designed by Paul Pierre Lemagny and engraved by Achille Ouvre.

Rocky Island, designed by Albert Brenet and engraved by Rene Cottet.

Harvesting Sugar Cane, designed by Margueritte Dassonville and engraved by Charles-Paul Dufresne.

Mont Pele, designed and engraved by Gabriel-Antoine Barlangue.

Local Fruits, designed and engraved by Gabriel-Antoine Barlangue.

Martinique Landscape, designed by Albert Brenet and engraved by Emile Henri Feltesse.

Here is a set I think would interest many collectors of engraved stamps since it commemorates the printer Thomas de la Rue which his company engraved and printed many stamps. The set commemorate the 105th anniversary of the death of Thomas de la Rue, designed and engraved by de la Rue & Co. Ltd. and issued for use in Guernsey on June 2, 1971.

Thomas de la Rue (1793–1866) was a Guernsey-born printer and entrepreneur who founded the global security printing company De La Rue plc in London. Originally a stationer and manufacturer of playing cards and straw hats, his firm became a leading printer of postage stamps (from 1855) and banknotes (from 1860).

The stamps feature de la Rue with engraved stamps his company printed:
- Hong Kong, Queen Victoria, 1862
- Great Britain, Queen Victoria, 1862
- Italy, King Victor Emmanuel II, 1867
- Confederate States (USA), President Jefferson Davis, 1862

A set of definitive stamps, contains five different designs, was issued for use in French Polynesia in 1958-1960.

Polynesian woman playing guitar, designed and engraved by Charles Mazelin.

Tahitian with traditional headdress, designed and engraved by Georges Bétemps.

Polynesian woman, designed and engraved by Georges Bétemps.

Polynesian fisherman, designed by Jacques Boullaire, engraved by Albert Decaris.

Polynesian dancers, designed by Jacques Boullaire, engraved by Albert Decaris.

A Set of definitive stamps, contains four different designs, was issued for use in Dahomey in 1941.

Man Poling a canoe, designed and engraved by Albert Decaris.

Lakeside Village, designed and engraved by Georges-Léo Degorce.

Sailboat on Lake Nokoue, designed by Dassonville, engraved Emile Henri Feltesse.

Woman from Dahomey, designed and engraved by Pierre Gandon.

A Set of definitive stamps, contains five different designs, all designed and engraved by Pierre Gandon, was issued for use in French Equatorial Africa in 1947.

Black Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis), African Rock Python ( (Python sebae).

Lush Vegetation.

Equatorial Rainforest.

Boatman, Niger river.

Bakongo Girl.

A Set of definitive stamps, contains three different designs, was issued for use in Senegal, part of French West Africa AOF in 1947. I have no designers and engravers names.

Faidherbe Bridge, Saint Louis, Senegal

The Great Mosque of Diourbel, Senegal

Senegalese Girl carrying Water Jar

A very long set of definitive stamps, contains eight different designs, was issued for use in Algeria in 1936.

Colomb Bechar-Oued, designed and engraved by Albert Decaris.

Arc de Triomphe, Lambese, designed and engraved by Henri-Lucien Cheffer.

Ghardaia, Mzab, designed and engraved by Jules Piel.

El Kebir Mosque (The Great Mosque), Algiers, designed and engraved by Antonin Delzers.

Marabouts, Touggourt, designed and engraved by Emile Henri Feltesse.

Cemetery, Tlemcen, designed and engraved by Emile Henri Feltesse.

Sahara Desert, designed and engraved by Henri-Lucien Cheffer.

Admiralty and Penon Lighthouse, Algiers, designed and engraved by Georges Hourriez.

Death centenary of Sir Rowland Hill, designed and engraved by Michel Monvoisin and issued by Mali on May 21, 1979. The stamps show different countries first stamp.

- 120F: Mali stamp 1961** and Sir Rowland Hill
- 130F: Saxony stamp 1850 and Zeppelin
- 180F: France stamp 1849 and Concorde
- 200F: USA stamp 1847 and Mail Coach
- 300F: Great Britain stamp 1840 and UPU Logo

A set of definitive stamps, contains four different designs, was issued for use in Guinea, part of French West Africa (AOF), in 1938.

Mabu, weavers of Fouta Djallon region, designed and engraved by Emile Feltesse.

Laobis wood artisans, designed and engraved by George-Leo Degorce.

Guinean landscapes, designed and engraved by Albert Decaris.

Pula family, designed and engraved by Albert Decaris.

A set of definitive stamps, contains six different designs, was issued for use in French Guiana (Guyana), in 1947.

Woman Resting in a Hammock, designed and engraved by Charles-Paul Dufresne.

Guyanese Woman Wearing the Katoury, designed and engraved by Charles Mazelin.

Boat on the Maroni River, designed and engraved by Emile Henri Feltesse.

Boat on the Oyapok River, Inini, designed and engraved by Charles Mazelin.

White-throated Toucan (Ramphastos tucanus), designed and engraved by Pierre Gandon.

Blue-and-yellow Macaw (Ara ararauna), designed and engraved by Pierre Gandon.

A set of definitive stamps, contains three designs show local motifs, was issued for use in New Hebrides on September 11, 1957. I have no information about the engravers but could be that the designers also engraved them.

The New Hebrides were a condominium jointly administered by France and Great Britain, and the stamps therefore feature the coats of arms of both countries. The stamps shown here were issued with French inscriptions; identical designs were also issued with English inscriptions.


Port Vila - Irikiki Island, designed by Henri-Lucien Cheffer.

Traditional Fishing, designed by Pierre Gandon.

Drinking Coconut Milk, designed by Pierre Gandon.