Collecting By Engraver

Japan 1975-76
From a series of 12 stamps depicting Historic Ships
Engraver: ????

Scott 1219-1220


Scott 1227-1228

The red stamp, SG1406 Scott 1219, was designed by Yasuko Sunagawa and engraved by Katsuzo Oshikiri.
The brown stamp, SG 1407 Scott 1220 was designed by Reiko Murayama and engraved by Shou Aizawa.
The green stamp, SG 1409 Scott 1221 was designed by Yasuko Sunagawa and engraved by Maseo Orihara.
The blue stamp, SG 1410 Scott 1222 was designed by Reiko Muruyama and engraved by Tsuneo Kasano.

Here is today's little mystery.

France issued this stamp in 1939 to raise money for the children of the unemployed. It was designed by René Grégoire who, apart from designing stamps was a well known sculptor who had won the Prix de Rome in 1899. The stamp was engraved (according to Gibbons) by Jules Piel and is SG 639 and Scott B84.



Just above the R and the F are two small initials which we can guess were the engraver and designer. The letters are "D" and "G". G seems OK as that would be René Grégoire but "D"?

Three other engravers spring to mind here, assuming that Gibbons has it wrong. René Grégoire had worked the year before with Antonin Delzers. (He had also worked with Piel on a 1936 stamp for the same fund which could have led to confusion).

Also at the same time engraving for France were Georges-Léo Degorge and Albert Decaris. My pick, just looking at the style, is for Decaris but this is purely a guess. What do other catalogues say?

Well, I checked the Patrimoine book I have and they too mention Piel as the engraver, but the designer as D. Grégoire, which would fit the initials. But figuring you wouldn't get the name wrong, I went to the Phil-ouest website, where I could not find D. Grégoire but only your R. Grégoire, but the 1939 stamp was not on his list. So I checked the stamp itself and found Phil-ouest also mentions Piel as the engraver, but the designer as Démétrius Galanis, which of course also fits the initials so it looks like Phil-ouest could be right.

Good Grief! The plot is certainly a thick one. As I said, the 1936 one has Gregoire/Piel in Gibbons so that probably caused the confusion. It sounds as if Piel is everybody's choice for engraver and Demetrius Galanis would have to be the best bet for designer.

I have him in the database as the designer for the 1952 Greek King Paul stamp with this note: "Demetrios Ghalanis was a Greek artist and friend and contemporary of Picasso. He moved to Paris at the age of twenty and spent the rest of his life based there. In later years he became Professor of the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris and a member of the French Academy. His name is sometimes spelt Galanis."

He was in the right place at the right time so I reckon you have nailed it. Phil-ouest seem to be accurate on French stamps.

Just to add more confusion the 2015 Maury catalogue
states that D.Grégoire designed France Scott B84



Maury # 428



I'm actually more interested as to why Jules Piel didn't add his name or initials on this stamp whereas he did on other stamps he engraved.

Speaking of Piel here is a set of definitives
of Maréchal Pétain from 1941

France 1941

Scott 415 - 418

Designer and Engraver : Jules Piel 1882 - 1978

One more catalogue reference for France SG 639, Scott B84
and Maury 428.
Here is what Michel Europa 1968 says about who designed
this stamp.



Michel states France 447 was designed by Gregone
Who the heck was Gregone ?
Just shows how catalogues don't always get it right.

I can see how someone setting type could get Gregone from Gregoire but I can't find any trace of D. Gregoire. I think that perhaps catalogues copy each other or use the same incorrect sources. Of all the above, the Phil-ouest seems the most likely but it would seem that we need a different source than catalogues to confirm it. At least they all agree on the engraver. I also wonder why Piel didn't sign it. It seems coarser than his best stamps. Perhaps he was not satisfied with the end result.

jjarmstrong47, that might be the reason but keep in mind
that even the master engravers didn't always produce
masterpieces.

Look at the great Slania who engraved a lot of pedestrian
looking stamps, especially for Denmark.
And he always signed his work.

You want weird? I'll give you weird! Here is the list of Piel stamps as mentioned in the 'Ceux qui créent nos timbres' booklet of the 1950s, when Piel was still alive and interviewed for the publication.



No mention of the stamp at all!

Maybe Piel never signed the stamp 'coz he never engraved it! I presume we'll have to wait until a signed proof turns up somewhere sometime.

As for Gregone: yes, that could easily be a mistaken Gregoire. The initial D could easily have been a D as in short for Design mistaken for an initial.

I notice that he does list the 1936 stamp though and lists Gregoire as the designer. I can't imagine that he would have left the stamp out as he would have probably checked his list for the interview.

I said once that France was one of the easier countries as the information was all there. I may have to rethink that idea.

Does France have a philatelic museum?

Yes, I saw that too and wondered whether maybe the 1936 info was foolishly thought to apply to the 1939 stamp as well?
Yes, there is a postal museum in Paris. They do have a website but a quick look does not yield any information. Anyone going to Paris any time soon?
:-)

Back in 2005 while in Paris, I visited Le Musée de La Poste (now closed for renovation and accessibility improvement works) and in its reading room I could consult "Le patrimoine du timbre-poste francais" by Jean-Francois Brun et al., in two volumes, published in 1999, over 900 pages, giving details of every issue since 1849, on sale for only 20 Euro in the boutique downstairs just then. Not exactly volumes I needed but highly recommended to those looking for details.

There you go then Adrian. You'd better nip over on the weekend and get one!