Collecting By Engraver

You know cynical when you mentioned John le Carré I right away
remembered the BBC TV production Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy
which was shown here in Canada in the early eighties I believe on CBC.
Great stuff, I loved those spy stories then, not so much
now since the Cold War ended and the threat gone.

Alec Guinness as George Smiley, now that's acting.

I have to try and find a nice engraved stamp of Goethe.

The only engraved stamp of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe I can find
at the moment is this one from the 1961 West German definitive
set famous Germans.

Engraver : Hans Joachim Fuchs

Scott 833

That stamp by Colombati on Eleonora Duse is absolutely stunning. I could easily hang a large version on a wall and become lost in her sad, perhaps longing expression. Wow!

I had no clear idea who she was, so as is usual with this marvelous hobby, a search had to be done to find out more. Apart from a long career as a famous actress, on July 30 1923, she became the first woman (and Italian) to be featured on the cover of Time magazine.

A link on engravers, passed on to me by Roos, may prove interesting to some of you, altough, I suspect that most of you already have it:

http://www.graphics-stamps.org/pghessler.pdf

Please keep on posting, thanks

cynical & lithograving - Last autumn I treated myself to a month-long John le Carré DVD marathon, courtesy of Netflix, including: TTSS, Smiley's People, A Perfect Spy, and the Spy who came in from the Cold. I would enthusiastically agree that Sir Alec was a first class actor.

Perf14 - For me, one of the best aspects of this hobby is the educational opportunity it affords. I had never even heard of "Duse" before I encountered that moody and bluesy Colombati stamp.

Here are images of some well-designed stamps engraved by another ace USA vignette specialist, Joseph S. Creamer, Jr., who was active from the mid-1960s to the late 1980s. Enjoy!

- nethryk

Henry David Thoreau, designed by Leonard Baskin (1922-2000), sculptor and graphic artist, lettering by Robert G. Culin, Sr., issued on July 12, 1967, Scott No. 1327.


Wood ducks, designed by artist Stanley W. Galli (1912-2009), lettering by Culin, issued on October 24, 1968, Scott No. 1362. This one is obviously partly lithographed, but I think it is quite beautiful anyway.


Retarded child, designed by the late Paul Calle (See: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/31/a...31calle.html ), lettering by Howard F. Sharpless, issued on October 12, 1974, Scott No. 1549. One of my favorites.


Marquis de Lafayette, designed by Bradbury Thompson, lettering by Albert Saavedra, issued on June 13, 1977, Scott No. 1716.


Pap test, designed by Paul Calle, lettering by Culin, issued on May 18, 1978, Scott No. 1754.


Paul Dudley White, MD, designed by Christopher Calle (Paul's son), lettering by Culin, issued on September 15, 1986, Scott No. 2170.

I'm going to add a bit of colour to this thread with these
multicolour engraved 1962 Czech beetle stamps.

Four different engravers worked on this set which indicates
the talent that was available to the Czechoslovakian State
Printer at that time.

Ladislav Jirka
Jan Mracek
Josef Hercik
Bedrich Housa

There is some information about these and other Czech & Slovak
engravers & designers on this site http://www.batz-hausen.de/stampeng.htm


Scott 1144 - 1149

The engraver's name is on the lower right.
Sorry about the bad scan for the 20h but sometimes due to
the quality of paper used for engraved stamps that's
what I get.

Another one engraved by Bedrich Housa.

Millennium of the Hradcany (Castle District) Prague

Scott 1257

Lithograving - those beetle stamps are absolutely great. As a teenager I was into collecting insects and I used to draw beetles as a preference, but mine never looked to as good as those, not even close! :)

The Thoreau is a great engraving, but if I had that one hanging on my wall, I might have to shoot myself - what a depressing expression!

The little girl is beautiful, but how we have changed - just looking at the word "retarded" really grates on me. Political correctness has done its job very well!

:)

Perf14 - Yes, I'm afraid we now live in a "challenged" age, in more ways than one. And as for the crazed expression on Thoreau's face, I suppose that's what living alone in the woods without the internet for a year will do to you. P.S. I have visited Walden Pond, and it's not exactly out in the wilderness.

lithograving - What lovely creepy crawlies. Here's another image of an engraved stamp featuring a big, big bug: Goliath beetle, engraved by Jean Pheulpin, and issued for use in Togo on May 5, 1955, Scott No. 330.

- nethryk

Thanks Perf14. Yes PCism is something I've been struggling with
for the last few years and it seems to get worse as I get older.
Many times I have to think hard if a particular
word or phrase is suitable or whether (heaven forbid) I have
offended someone or something.
Anyway back to stamps before I say something that might
get me in trouble here.

This 1948 semi-postal set was issued to commemorate
80 Years of the Künstlerhaus and portrays famous Austrian
Artists.

Four different engravers worked on the set. Ranzoni & Lorber
have already been mentioned before on previous pages here.

There is nothing about Herbert Toni Schimek (1905-1982) on the net.

Hubert Woyty-Wimmer was born 1901 in what is now Roumania but
at the time of his birth was part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
After WWII he engraved stamps for the Austrian State Printer
but left Austria in 1950 and worked for Thomas De La Rue until
his retirement in 1965 when he returned to Vienna and
died in 1972.

Scott B245 - B251

lithograving - Splendid facial hair on all those gents!

While we're visiting Austria, here are images of seven more stamps designed by Adalbert Pilch and engraved by the magnificent Rudolf Toth (1918-2009), some of which everyone here may not have seen yet.

- nethryk

Capercacaillie, issued on May 20, 1959, Scott No. 640.


Reservoir, issued on March 26, 1962, Scott No. 676.


Forests Set, issued on October 12, 1962, Scott Nos. 685-87.
Lowlands

Deciduous

Fir & Larch


Schubert, issued on November 17, 1978, Scott No. 1095.


Haydn, issued on May 19, 1982, Scott No. 1210.

George Arthur Gundersen (1910-1975) was a Canadian stamp engraver and designer,
and the art director of the British American Bank Note Company from the 1950s until his retirement in 1974.
During a two-year stay (1948-1950) at the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Washington,
he engraved 11 USA stamps, including one celebrating U.S.-Canadian friendship.
Here are images of seven of Gundersen's engraved USA stamps showcasing his talent for rendering fine details.
Lettering engraving was done by J.S. Edmondson (961, 983, 987 & C46) and E.H. Helmuth (966 & 984); lettering on 974 uncredited.

- nethryk

Whirlpool Rapids Bridge, designed by noted Mexican artist Leon Helguera (1899-1970), and issued on August 2, 1948, Scott No. 961.


Mt. Palomar Observatory, issued August 30, 1948, Scott No. 966. One of my personal favorites; it's a natural high.


Juliette Gordon Low, issued on October 28, 1948, Scott No. 974. Down to earth?


Puerto Rico Gubernatorial Election, issued on April 27, 1949, Scott No. 983.


Annapolis Tercentenary, issued on May 23, 1949, Scott No. 984.


American Bankers Association, issued on January 3, 1950, Scott No. 987.


Diamond Head, Hawaii, issued on March 26, 1952, Scott No. C46. Often
used to ship fresh flowers to the mainland.

Pilch and Toth were a great team and together worked
on dozens of Austrian stamps.
IMO Rudolf Toth should be included in any list of the
the top 15 engravers.
His engravings were usually very fine lines compared to the
coarser appearance of some other engravers.

Speaking of George Arthur Gundersen, here are some of the
Canadian stamps he engraved for British American Bank Note, Ottawa.

Scott 504



Scott 512



Scott 662



Scott 663

The most prolific Canadian engraver was of course Yves Baril.
Yves Baril has engraved 146 Canadian postage stamps all for the Canadian Bank Note Co Ottawa,
6 for the United Nations and 11 for the United States.
As well, all Canadian bank notes issued from 1955 to 1996 display his engravings.

See here from Canadian Postal Archives Database http://data4.collectionscanada.ca/n...html&r=1&f=G

Shown below is Baril's first stamp during an apprenticeship under Silas Robert Allen where he engraved only the background.

Scott 354 ICAO 1955





The Alberta & Saskatchewan stamp was Baril's first stamp where he was the main engraver for the vignette/picture.
Lettering by John F Marsh.

Scott 355 1955





Yves Baril's David Thompson stamp below was actually designed by George Arthur Gundersen who
was also an engraver for the British American Bank Note Co Ottawa.

Scott 370 1957

Here are a couple of my favourite Yves Baril stamps which
shows his skills.
Both honouring Queen Elizabeth II for
her Royal Visits in 1959 and 1964.

Scott 386 1959
Lettering by John F Mash.





Scott 433 1964
Lettering by Donald J Mitchell