The Stamps Of Australia : On Steiner Pages.

That John Ash block of 4 5/- imperfs look like essays or are they posthumous die proofs.

Rob

More like an extra leaf with colour omitted than a third leg, nevertheless, it is quite an interesting variety.

Reprints of the Guba 2 , round the world flight.
Reported in Australian Stamp Monthly 1939

I could post details but it is 7 pages long.

This is the pertinent text, as a precis.

On May 17th, 1939 the new Minister for Civil Aviation (Mr. Fairbatrn) in the new
Menzies' Government revoked the decision of the previous Lyons' Government, and
so no official mail was carried on the Survey Flight, nor was the 5/— commemorative
stamp issued. The whole printing was destroyed except for an imperforate sheet now
housed in the Australia Post official collection. The Ash imprint block of 4 used in the
Plate with this article comes, by courtesy of Australia Post, from this sheet.
Design-wise the 'Guba' stamp carried centrally an allegorical figure with left-hand
resting on a sextant, and right-hand on a globe. The head of the figure is turned to the
right looking upward toward the "Horn-of-Africa". The allegorical figure is flanked by
a map of Australia at the right of the stamp, and a map of the south-eastern side of
Africa at the left. Sydney, Cocos, Diego Garcia, Seychelles, and Mombasa on Survey
route are clearly marked, but curiously Port Hedland is not. The 57—values are in the
two lower corners of the stamp, and the word AUSTRALIA at the top with
POSTAGE below AUSTRALIA and 1939 below and to the right of the last A of
AUSTRALIA. The stamp has a solid frame flanked on the outside by a "milled" edge,
within which at the bottom are the words — TRANS-INDIAN OCEAN AERIAL SURVEY.

Information issued by the Bendigo Philatelic Society Inc., from Abandoned Stamps of Australia:

1939 Trans-Indian Ocean "Guba" Flight, 5s.
In June 1939, a survey flight across the
Indian Ocean was carried out by Australian
aviator, PG Taylor, in the flying boat
Guba-II. This was intended to establish
a safe air route, should the existing land
route through Asia be interrupted by war.
Originally, an official air mail was planned
for the survey flight, which would involve
a postage fee of 5s. per half ounce, in
addition to the normal surface postage
of 2d. A 5s. commemorative stamp was
developed; the production of which
reached an advanced stage before the
carriage of an airmail was cancelled. All
supplies of the 5s. stamp were destroyed,
except for a single, imperforate proof
sheet of 80 stamps, now held in the
National Philatelic Collection

Australian Commonwealth Specialists Catalogue, states.....

"Three paws to Roo" So Castor was quite in line with verbiage.

Thanks Jill. Saved.




Wonder if that is an error?

2004
The order form, for the Guba ll flight reprints.

Well to me it looks like an extra leaf without colour but I went with the terminology used by ACSC (thanks Rod).

This particular block of four means a lot to me, it was the first time I went to the post office and bought stamps for my collection. Got them home and found I had the third leg, obviously not called that at this point (but I knew it was different). I was quite excited (13 yrs old). Since them I have always given a stamp the third degree.

I saw my same block of 4 in the window of a stamp dealer (Woden Plaza - fancy having a stamp shop) about four weeks later and it was on sale for $15. I'll add it hasn't appeared to change in all that time (still outlay of 64 cents to $15, pretty good, not that the price matters).

Would love to find a used example.....

What was the first stamp you bought and why?

Castor,
you could do a 5 page album study of that stamp/s.

They replaced the violet roller, as you obviously know,
so we have dies 1 and 2 of the new colour shade, toes on the Emu, differing eyes on the kangaroo,
pink gums etc & etc.

To all those that have only a few of each stamp do not despair - I have thousands of one type of stamp and find one interesting variation, then I have eight examples of a stamp and find two different types. So whatever you do you might have a variety even though you have only two examples.

Thanks Rod, I don't yet have the ACSC catalogue for that stamp, if the ACSC says it's a third foot, then it's a third foot, still quite an interesting variety.

Rob,
Hope you didn't take that as an upbraiding,
These "varieties" always have , I think strange names to ID them,
but I guess if we all use the similar adoption, we know what we are talking about, and becomes lingua franca.

Great pages Rod
I enjoyed looking through them. I think I will take out my own Australian collection later today.

Dianne

Hehehe...glad we sucked you in Dianne.

Drop us a suitable address, and I'll pop some Freebies in the mail...I have squillions of duplicates, (some gifts from member "Aussie Al" ) that will otherwise go to the Red Cross.

Hi Rod
I'm a big boy (though my fiancee thinks I've started my second childhood). We all make mistakes in stamp IDing, and that is how one learns about stamps, I didn't see your comment as an upbraiding, and I had to look up the word "lingua franca".

And I agree, that certain varieties do have strange names to ID them.

Rob