Bk88 - A Nice Story

I read something interesting today. Wanted to share it with those of you who might be interested. So here it is. Enjoy!

The parliament buildings 50c booklet

To meet new postal rates June 21, 1985, Canada Post asked the British American Bank Note Co. to supply in particular a 50c booklet. The six stamps therein took care in looking after the increased rates in various ways, both in Canada and to the U.S.A.

The design featured three handsome views of Canada's Parliament Buildings.

One 50c booklet? All collectors need to do is lay out this small sum and there, the collection is complete.

Not quite. The 50c pane came in 10 different covers, each pointing out various artistic details on the buildings.

So all one needs is a set of 10 booklets to have a complete collection.

Wrong. The printers came out with two different sets of covers. One set of 10 had a small R in the left hand corner. The other set had a blank in the same space. It was explained officially that the R stood for Rolland stamp paper and the blank version for Abitibi stamp paper. Those two companies supplied paper to the printers.

Good enough. That makes 20 booklets for a complete collection.

Again, not quite.

Take a look at what actually exists:

Long ago Abitibi Paper Co. bowed out of supplying the required quality stamp paper. The printers did have on hand a small left over quantity of their paper and a large quantity of Abitibi cover stock. Shortly before june 1st they started printing the 50c booklets using the Abitibi stamp paper stock. This gave out quickly for within two days they were packing Rolland booklets: that is to saythe stamps thenselves were on Rolland paper. The covers? They were Abitibi cover stock. Don't forget the printers had a large quantity of Abitibi paper to use for covers; long enough to last till November, not that booklets were printed all the time. For exemple I doubt if any were printed in July (either enough on hand or vacations).

August came and the printers restarted on the 50c booklets. Their supply of Rolland stamp paper ran short so they used stocks of paper bought from the English paper maker, Harrison.

Since Harrison paper is not Rolland, the printers scrupulously removed the R from the 10 covers.

Except for one quirk; the cover stock for some reason was changes from Abitibi to Rolland cover stock! This happened only for a brief period in august.

September was a quiet month for booklets but printing resumed in October and November and right up to the November 19 packaging, the covers were Abitibi, the stamps Rolland, presumably as the booklets have the R on the covers. By November 21th the printers must have finished with Abitibi paper as henceforward the covers and stampsare on paper made by Rolland.

To recapitulate, here's what we have to end 1985:

COVERS STAMPS
1. Abitibi Abitibi
2R. Abitibi Rolland
3. Rolland Harrison
4R. Rolland Rolland

Making a total of 40 booklets.

So four sets exist, two with R's and two without R's. How can one identify them?

Quite easily and in two ways. Visual eyes only for one. All Abitibi covers are light brown in color. All Rolland covers are grey. Simple. Put a cover of each side by side and the difference is at once apparent.

Secondly, covers cans be checked with a UV lamp and here the difference is fascinating. All Abitibi covers under the light show up as a nice orange color. The Rolland covers? They are a lovely violet. A world of difference.

This was signed by Kasimir Bileski