Odd Shapes On Stamps (Including Hexagons)

I thought that particular precancel might have been a bit rare, but I see you have six of them on display above. I really like the sharp definition or "crispness" of the Belgium precancels.

Yes, I don't think they were handprinted butterfly,
printed by press.

As I was rooting in my bedroom cupboard earlier for a magazine to read, I came across something I had forgotten about. Something that Puzzler might like to see...I will call it a joint issue, in more ways than one !

One rarely finds true bargains at big International shows. But last May in London I had one nice moment with a dealer. I was searching for Flags and Cinderellas in one of the £1 boxes on his stand. He also had £5 and £10 boxes too. I picked out two sheets of nice flags that were clipped together and stated to catalogue £22 in total. I got them for a quid !! I can remember at the time thinking that they had fallen into that pile from one of the more expensive boxes...but the dealer let me have them for a quid.
They were very large pages, I had no album big enough so they just went in the cupboard.....and promptly neglected !

Until today !

This is a joint issue to commemorate Spain and Portugal being admitted to the European Economic Community in 1986. Spain issued 4 stamps, including in booklet form, while Portugal issued just the two.The one large page [the other page was something different] had two booklets, 1 cover, 1 M/S and two stamps [different designs].

Not only did two countries issue stamps jointly, but there are also two of our popular Topicals....Flags and Strange shapes[Hexagons ++].
It was hard to decide where to put them !

Enjoy.















Londonbus1

Londonhexaflagonalbus1

Wow, those are nice london of the flags and hexagonal adjoining shapes bus type of guy.

Thanks for showing. Spain and Portugal do like their hexagons I have noticed.

Here is something unusual for your collection Mr Puzzler !

During the Civil War in Lebanon [Mid to late 70's] many stamps were stolen from Post Offices and other outlets through looting.
In January 1977, all previous stamp issues were made invalid and Meters and other means were used.
At the end of the Civil War, old stocks of stamps were revalidated by overprinting a 'net' across the whole stamp in various colours and of various designs. 16 designs were used in total including circles,Chevrons,triangles and rectangles.
On two of the values, the 2p and 25p values of the 1973 flowers and Fruits set, hexagons were used for the overprinting, and the Lilies [25p] are shown below.
In every other Hexagon on every other horizontal row, a Cedar of Lebanon is included !
I think I have a few of the other shapes too and this and the others will be winging their way to Puzzler in the not too distant future.





Londonbus1...I have an Aunt called Lily !

Here is the only other one of the revalidated stamps I have.
The overprint is the 'Scallop Shell' design.



Londonbus1....needs to be revalidated

That is cool. Very nice historical reference.

You know, when I started out collecting hexagons, I thought I was picking a topic that would have a few stamps from one country and a few cancels from another and colonies, but hexagons are everywhere. If this keeps up I will have stamps and cancels from almost every country in the world and all time eras. Amazing really. Quite an all-encompassing topic I've been attracted to.

Not a hex on a stamp but a hex cancel - does that count?

Here is my favorite set of odd shaped stamps from my collection, Portuguese Guinea, Sc. 306-317

Sure, why not? I had done a different topic earlier for cancels and hexagon shaped stamps themselves but afte awhile things got mixed up and all blended together. My fault for not starting out properly but how could I know the extent and vast amounts of hexagonss? I am gald I didn't pick pentagons or pentagonal shapes as that would be all flowers and nature almost.


Nice snakes Duarte, they are nicely designed stamps too, tahnks for sharing!

One of a series of honey bee stamps within hexagons (representing honeycomb most likely) from Bulgaria in 1987. Thanks to londonbus1 !

I have to search down and purchase the full set and possible FDCs.

1986 Japan Pill / Medicine
A triangular irregular hexagon inside a horizontally stretched hexagon. I wonder if this shape has a medical or pharmaceutical meaning?

Chemical bonds on the molecular level are usually drawn with hexagons I think.


edit: Got this at the stamp club tonight in a 10c per stamp stock-book with colourfully designed scrap-booked front cover with the owner's name so all his stock books had a common theme and you could tell whose they were. Better than paying someone in another part of the world $1 plus $3 shipping for a damaged stamp. My first local purchase and I hope not my last.

Germany Cinderella 1966

Google translation of German words on the stamp:
We exhibit, please visit us!
International Leather Goods Fair
Offenbach / Main

Before it went to the bad and sold out to the Poms, Jind State was big on hearts, or forerunners of the Paisley pattern if you prefer, on its stamps



(SG J11: the 4 Anna on laid paper of 1876)

and even on its postmarks as well