A letter at Christmas time

The letter cover is really thin and grey, an old fashion ink pen was used and it looks like the sender maybe was a little bit uncomfortable using a pen. Hardly any capital letters were used. The sender was Mr. Emil Göransson living in the small hamlet of Fagerhult, about 10 km north of the Post Office Göteryd.

The letter was handled by the Göteryd Post Office on Thursday 6 December 1945. The postal fee was 95 öre and indicates that the weight was under 5 g.

International letter  air mail, fee: 0.30 kr  + 0.65 kr = 0.95 kr, max 5 g.
1941, 26 April. Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 18,600,000
1940, 8 April. 40 öre olive-green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 84,100,000
Commemorative stamp:                                                                            
1945, 29 May. 5 öre green Tercentary of Swedish Press. Qty: 80,600,000

The clerk at the Post Office had good use of the Gustaf V, right profile, series in this case, but a commemorative stamp sneaked in at the right corner. They could have used the 5 öre green Gustaf V. Note that the commemorative stamp is also coloured in the correct UPU-colour - green for international printed matter. Göteryd Post Office closed its door for good in spring 1967.

The letter went by air to Mrs. Antosa U. Johnson living in Minneapolis, MN, in U.S.A.

The letter went from this Post Office to America. (Photo: Google Maps).

. . .  and ended up here in the household of Mrs. Johnson in Minneapolis. (Photo: Google Maps).

Where is the place:
Göteryd is situated 394 km SW of Stockholm, the distance by road is 472 km.

Relatives on 55th Street

It seems like Mrs. Bertha Ahl mailed  a letter to a relative in New York City on Wednesday 9 March 1949. Maybe Mr. Walter E. Ahl was her brother that immigrated to America some decades earlier? We do not know . . .   but it looks like an older person's handwriting and an old fashioned ink pen was used as well. According to the backside of the letter Mrs. Ahl lived in a village called Skruv just north of Klavreström, a small place between Växjö and Vetlanda in the province of Småland, (299 km south west of Stockholm, 380 km by road.)

It is an air mail letter and the fee paid by Mrs. Ahl was 95 öre which indicates that the letter was weighing 5 g or less.

Air mail  - 5 g, fee: 95 öre
1941, 23 January. 35 öre carmine-violet Gustaf V, right profile, type II. Qty: 20,000,000.
1939, 10 February. 60 öre red-carmine Three Crowns. Qty: 77,900,000

The clerk at the Post Office in Klavreström used two stamps; the 35 öre carmine-violet Gustaf V, right profile, type II and the 60 öre red-carmine Three Crown. The 60 öre Three Crowns was a pretty common stamps in the forties, its main purpose was to be used for domestic parcels weighing up to 1 kg. It was also the first stamp in the long running Three Crown series - read more about that series here. The 35 öre carmine violet is a little bit rarer, in 1949 there was no obvious single use, but earlier it could be used as a single stamp for registered domestic letter - 20 g until April 1942.

From the first one

Six stamps on a letter cover and the sum is 85 öre. This letter was bound for U.S. via airmail in December 1948. After some research I can not confirm any 85 öre postal rates for airmail to North America in 1948. The nearest I got is 80 öre for the weight class 5 - 10 g which was the rate effective from 1 January 1947 to 30 November 1949. My guess is that the sender did not have the right denominations at hand for exactly 80 öre and had to over frank the letter. The letter cover is not marked "5 g" which also indicates the higher weight class 5 - 10 g.

International letter fee 30 öre + airmail 5 - 10 g fee 30 öre,
over franked with 5 öre.
1948, 1 April. 10 öre green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 82,600,000, 3-sided perforation,
. . .  from the 84th booklet.
1945, 14 February. 15 öre brown Gustaf V, right profile, version I. Qty: 18,400,000 (pairs), 3-sided perforation,
. . . from the 71 th booklet.

According to the back side of the letter cover the sender was Professor Nanna Svartz, Stockholm. Mrs. Svartz was a pioneer in Swedish academics and she actually became the first female Professor in Sweden in 1938 at 48 years of age. She was a Professor in general medicine with a specialization in intestinal and rheumatic diseases.

To me it looks like it is a private letter to Dr. Amandus Johnson at Pennsylvania University. However that was apparently not the right address, some one has changed the address to 1300 Locus Street with a pencil. The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is residing at that address which indicates that Dr. Johnson is not a medical doctor. He was not, Dr Johnson was an American historian, author and the founder of the American Swedish Historical Museum. He came with is parents to Minnesota in 1880 when he was three years old. He became a quite famous Swedish-American, at least in Sweden.

Gustaf V right profile - quantities

A look at some statistics . . .

First place. 1,076 millions issued.
April 1940 to approx. June 1951.

The stamp of the Gustaf V right profile series that was issued in the greatest number including all varieties, was the 20 öre red Gustaf VI right profile type II. Which should not be a surprise to hardly anyone. After all it covered the rate for the most common postal item - the domestic letter first weight class (up to 20 g), international postcard and the extra fee for registered mail until April 1948. In addition, during a time when the postal rates were not changed that often. It was hence around for a very long time period compared to commemorative stamps and other definitive stamps further on.

Second place. 563.5 millions issued.
January 1941 to April 1948.

As a good number two is the 5 öre green. It was around from January 1941 until April 1948 when it was replace by the 5 öre orange. The 5 öre green covered printed matters.

Third place. 506.4 millions issued
November 1939 to April 1948.

It was a hard struggle about the third place, but the 10 öre violet type II was issued in a mere million more than the 15 öre brown. The 10 öre violet was used for local letter  - 20 g until July 1944 as well as for domestic postcards until April 1948.

The quantities issued of Gustaf V right profile series type I and II

The 15 öre brown was used for domestic letter  -20 g until April 1941, local letters after June 1944  and also for domestic postcard after April 1948, that is an explanation why the number was pretty high.

The 10 öre green replace the 10 öre violet in April 1948 because the rate for international printed matter (and domestic) was raised from 5 to 10 öre. Since Sweden still complied to the UPU-colouring principle the 10 öre stamp had to be green. The old 5 öre green was replaced by the 5 öre orange.

Among the higher denomination the 40 öre olive-green sticks out. I think the main reason is that 40 öre was the total fee for registered domestic letter  - 20 g until April 1948 and also it covered domestic letter second weight class (20 - 125 g) from April 1942, as well as local letter  - 500 g until July 1944. To me it was a little bit surprising that the 30 öre blue was issued in a comparatively small number. After all it covered the rate for international letter first weight class for a long time, from April 1940 until approximately June 1951.

Lastly, there are the two stamps that were issued in really small number and they are of course the only two stamps in the type I series issued in spring 1939. They were withdrawn and re-engraved.

Least quantity. 8 millions.
February 1939 to April 1940.

One went flying, the other went by ship

These two letters were sent the same day Thursday 3 August 1950 by the same sender. The peculiar thing is that one was sent as an air mail letter and the other one as an ordinary international letter to the same address. The airmail letter has three  20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile. They are all perforated on three sides, one pair and one single stamp and hence came from a booklet, actually from the 64th booklet by Swedish Post first issued in 1942. It contained 20 stamps and the cost was 4 kr. Three 20 öre stamps makes 60 öre and that was the fee for   - 5 g air mail to North America in 1950. The other letter, which is a  - 20 g international letter, has two 15 öre brown Gustaf V, right profile. They are also perforated on three sides and they are from the 71st booklet first issued in 1945. A closer look at the 15 öre stamps tells me that these are of version I. For example the band of medals on the king's chest are less detailed and light. (This post deals with the two versions.)

Top: airmail letter to North America fee: 60 öre
7 March, 1942, 20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 98,000,0000 (pairs), 3-sided perforation
Bottom:  - 20 g international letter fee: 30 öre
14 February, 1945, 15 öre brown Gustaf V, right profile, version I. Qty: 18,400,000 (pairs both versions), 3-sided perforation

The letters were taken care of the Post Office Stockholm 1, the Post Office was co-located with the head quarters of the Swedish Post at 28 - 34 Vasa Street (Vasagatan 28 - 34), where the Swedish Post filled up two blocks.

On the the other side of the letter covers the following is printed "Josef Kastengren, Buhlsjö, Österbymo". It turns out that Mr. Kastengren got the first formal driver license in Sweden in January 1907. Well, people were driving along without a license in those days, but this guy was the first one to get a permit the right way. He was a driving instructor and taught the Swedish royals to drive as well, actually he taught the king on the stamps, he was also a car salesman and a business man in the Swedish car industry. Quite a legend.

Eventually both letter reach their destination. 1100 E. Hector Street, Conshohocken, PA.
(Google street)

43 years after he got his license he still seemed to be in the business because the letters were sent to the well known Lee Tire and Rubber Company in maybe less known Conshohocken, Pennsylvania. Famous for its car tires.The factory was built in 1910 by John Ellwood Lee, in 1965 it was bought by Goodyear and it closed down in 1980. But it did not end there. The old factory ground was turned into offices and called Lee Park and lately it has undergone some major renovations. It got a new name too, Spring Mill Corporate Center. In 1984 it was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

The odd thing is that the letter that not was sent as an air mail letter has "5 gr" written by hand, indicating that some one bother to put in on a scale. It seems like it was supposed to be sent by air too, the way that the stamps are applied and that they are from booklets indicates to me that it was most likely not done by Swedish Post.
. . . ah well, the mystery will remain unsolved.

Postage rates effective April 1942

Raises of the postage rates were still decided by the Swedish Parliament in the 40s and it was not always that they granted a raise. In spring 1942 the second world war was going on in Europe and sometimes the war was awfully close to the Swedish border. Both fiscal years 1940 and 1941 had meant drastically increased defense costs and a higher inflation. The Swedish government introduced in 1942 both a price and a wage freeze to get control of things. They also wanted to raise the postal rate for domestic letters in order to bring in more income to finance the defense. The Swedish parliament granted that request. This raise was therefore unique since it was not required to cover increasing costs for Swedish Post and also it only affected a few postage rates.

Domestic Postal Rates

From left to right:                                                                                             

1939, 12 November. 10 öre violet Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 367,000,000
1940, 13 April, 20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 880,000,000
1940, 8 April. 40 öre olive-green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 84,100,000
1939, 10 February 10. 60 öre red-carmine Three Crowns. Qty: 77,900,000
1941, 23 January. 5 öre green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 415,000,000
1940, 13 April, 20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 880,000,000
1940, 8 April. 30 öre blue Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 57,300,000

The Gustaf V right profile type II definitive series covered well almost all rates except one, the heaviest weight class that required 60 öre. There was no 60 öre in the series and there were not supposed to be one either. The reason was that one of the purposes of the Three Crowns definitive series was to cover the three lowest weight classes for parcels. 60 öre was the rate for a parcel  - 1 kg, as well as for domestic letter  - 500 g. Besides the raise of the  - 20 g letter from 15 öre to 20 öre the  - 250 g weight class vanished and the rate for  - 125 g was raised from 30 to 40 öre.

Local Postal Rates

From left to right:                                                                                          
1939, 12 November. 10 öre violet Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 367,000,000
1940, 13 April, 20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 880,000,000
1940, 8 April. 30 öre blue Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 57,300,000
1940, 8 April. 40 öre olive-green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 84,100,000

This is a beautiful suite of Gustaf V right profile type II, 10 - 20 - 30 - 40 öre in a row. The special postal rates for local letters still existed in 1942 and would do so for ten years more. There is an extra weight class compared with the domestic postal rates. The   - 125 g weight class was kept for local letters, to the benefit of the customers. There were no changes of these rates either.

International Postal Rates

From left to right:                                                                              
1940, 13 April, 20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 880,000,000
1940, 8 April. 30 öre blue Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 57,300,000
1940, 8 April. 40 öre olive-green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 84,100,000
1939, 10 February 10. 60 öre red-carmine Three Crowns. Qty: 77,900,000
1939, 12 November. 10 öre violet Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 367,000,000
1939, 22 September. 90 öre light blue Three Crowns. Qty: 29,700,000
1939, 22 September.1 kr orange Three Crowns. Qty: 141,000,000
1939, 12 November. 10 öre violet Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 367,000,000

So far single stamps have covered each rate. In 1942 there was not yet a 70 öre Three Crown nor a 1.10 kr stamp either so two stamps were required for  - 60 g and  - 100 g letters. As you can see the stamp for postcard and letter  - 20 g are UPU-coloured. Red for postcard and blue for letter. The rates were not changed.

From left to right                                                                                    
1941, 23 January. 5 öre green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 415,000,000
1940, 13 April, 20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 880,000,000
1939, 10 February 10. 60 öre red-carmine Three Crowns. Qty: 77,900,000

The stamp for printed matter has also the right UPU-colour which is green in this case.

Parcel Postal Rates

From left to right
1939, 10 February 10. 60 öre red-carmine Three Crowns. Qty: 77,900,000
1939, 22 September. 90 öre light blue Three Crowns. Qty: 29,700,000
1939, 22 September. 1 kr 20 öre rose-lilac Three Crowns. Qty: 9,200,000
1939, 20 November. 1 kr 45 öre yellow-green Three Crowns. Qty: 2,800,000
 1941, 23 January. 35 öre carmine-violet Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 20,000,000
2 x 1939, 22 September.1 kr orange Three Crowns. Qty: 141,000,000
1940, 8 April. 40 öre olive-green Gustaf V, right profile. Qty: 84,100,000

The parcel rates were not raised and they had been the same since 1922. As mentioned above one of the purposes with the Three Crown definitive series was to cover the most common parcel weight classes and it did for many years.

Overview

Domestic [öre]

Postcard	- 20 g*	- 125 g*	- 500 g	Printed matter	Registred fee	Express fee
10	20	40	60	5	20	30

*) raised from 15 öre to 20 öre and from 30 öre to 40 öre

Local [öre]

- 20 g	- 125 g	- 250 g	- 500 g
10	20	30	40

International [öre]

Postcard	- 20 g	- 40 g	- 60 g	- 80 g	- 100 g	Printed  matter	Registred fee	Express fee
20	30	50	70	90	110	5	20	60

Parcels [öre]

- 1 kg	1 - 3 kg	3 - 5 kg	5 - 6 kg	6 - 7 kg
60	90	120	180	240

Read more:

You can read more about the Gustaf V right profile type II series - here and 

more about the Three Crowns series - here.

As good as new

Imprecise Address

Here is a letter cover that resisted time. It looks almost like it was mailed a few weeks ago, white and shiny. Actually it was posted late in the afternoon on  Friday 23 July 1937. It was received at the Post Office Stockholm 16 at 3 Ore Square Street  (Malmtorgsgatan 3) and started its journey to far away Portland, Oregon, from there. This was an international letter    - 20 g and the rate was 30 öre. The stamp used is the 30 öre blue Gustaf V, left profile. The blue colour was the correct UPU-colour for international letters of the first weight class which was  - 20 g in metric Sweden.

International  - 20 g letter fee: 30 öre.
1923, 28 November, 30 öre blue Gustaf V left profile. Qty: 20,700,000 (white paper)

The 30 öre blue Gustaf V left profile was issued the first time in November 1923. The paper used then was not as white as the one above, instead the paper was tinted. In October 1925 the rate for international letter  - 20 g was lowered to 25 öre and since Swedish Post was compliant to the UPU-colour a new blue coloured stamp had to be issued with that denomination and the 30 öre blue was withdrawn, also the old red 25 öre Gustaf V left profile had to be withdrawn as well. The 30 öre brown Gustaf V left profile replaced the 30 öre blue for the time being. In July 1936 the rate for international letter  - 20g was again raised to 30 öre and the 30 öre blue Gustaf V left profile made a come back but now printed on white paper. Finally the 30 öre blue was replaced by the Gustaf V right profile type II in April 1940. You can read about the Gustaf V right profile type II - here.

The sender is the incorporated company Nilsson & Blide, they were in the fruit import business and they also imported coffee. It was only wholesale, no retail. In those days they called fruit and coffee colonial merchandise even if Sweden did not have any colonies. Mr. Wilhelm Nilsson and Mr. Ivan Blide founded the company in 1925 and it seemed to have been pretty prosperous.

The letter is addressed to Balfour, Guthrie & Co. That company was a shipping company based on the west coast of U.S. (offices in San Francisco, Tacoma and Portland). It also operated other kind of businesses like a cement plant in Bellingham, Washington.

The letter ended up here: 733 SW Oak Street, Portland, Oregon. In the corner of Park and Oak. (Google Street)

The address on the cover is "Park and Oak Street", what the Swedes meant was the corner of Oak and Park Street. Obviously they did not know the precise address to Balfour, Guthrie & Co. The address should have been 733 SW Oak Street. Maybe there was no need to be precise, the building is still called the Balfour-Guthrie building. It was built in 1913 and represents somewhat of a milestone in the concrete industry. It was the first office building on the American west coast to be constructed with reinforced concrete. Probably with cement from the Bellingham plant . . .   it is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. The building looks well kept.

Read more about the building: www.portlandoregon.gov/bps/article/112500

Immigrant Documents

Flip side of a coin

Most letter covers tell a story, and if there are gaps, just fill in with your imagination. However this letter cover does not tell us much. It is definitely a registered mail and it went over the Atlantic. Furthermore the letter was handed over to the Post Office Stockholm 15 located at 1 - 5 Katarina Road (Katarinavägen 1 - 5) on Saturday 20 February 1939. There are two 35 öre violet-carmine Gustaf V, left profile, stamps and the total sum is 70 öre. In 1939 the fee for registered international  mail was 20 öre, 50 öre is hence the fee for international letter  - 40 g.

International letter  - 40 g fee: 50 öre + registred mail fee: 20 öre
1930, 14 March, 35 öre violet-carmine Gustaf V, left profile. Qty: 7,900,000 (white paper)

The letter is for the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Washington, D.C., the for bearer of today's U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. There are not any more information on the front. Lets look at the back for a sender or something useful.

The back of the letter cover.

There is some kind of seal on the back, that looks promising.    . . .  a closer look tells us that an ordinary 1 krona coin was use as a stamp for the seal. That was disappointing. U.S. officials have stamped at the back when the letter arrived in New York on Wednesday 3 March and also when it reached its destination some times later (the stamp is blurry).

I wonder what kind of documents that were mailed and from whom?

Airmail letters to Hagerstown

Two letters - two orders - from two different decades

W. H. Reisner Manufacturing Company Inc. in Hagerstown, Maryland manufactured mechanical and optical instruments, stamped metal works, and did nickel plating, and in addition manufactured pipe organ hardware and accessories, the firm founded in 1902. They sold their products throughout the United States, and to many foreign countries, including England, France, Germany, Japan, Mexico, Cuba, Australia and even Sweden.

The letter cover at the top is from the firm Nygren's Fishing Equipment Shop at the Warehouse Street 12 (Magasinsgatan 12) in Göteborg (Gothenburg). Apparently they urgently needed new gear and sent an order by air mail to W.H. Reisner. I wonder what kind of products they ordered from far a away America? Nygren's was still in business in the seventies.

Top letter cover:

Air mail letter  - 10 g, letter fee: 30 öre + air mail fee: 20 öre

1921, September 6. 50 öre grey Gustaf V, left profile. Qty: 10,700,000 (white paper)

Bottom letter cover:
Air mail letter  - 10 g, letter fee 40 öre + air mail fee: 50 öre

1951, November 29.  5 öre red-violet New Numeral Type, type I. Qty: 140,000,000
1954, January 20. 40 öre olive-green Gustaf VI Adolf, type I. Qty: 24,300,000

Göteborg is the second largest city in Sweden and situated 397 km south west of Stockholm at the Atlantic coast of Sweden. The stamps were cancelled on Thursday 23 August 1945 at the Post Office Göteborg 2 at 3 Oak Groove St. (Ekelundsgatan 3) It is also stamped with the text "By air to the United Kingdom" which meant that the letter went by air to U.K, but by boat over the Atlantic.

The second letter cover is from 1954 and the sender is Hans Christian Schuster,  he was a pipe organ builder. Mr. Schuster was also a quite succesful long-distance runner. He won the Swedish championship 20,000 m in 1922 and participated in the marathon at the 1920 Summer Olympics, Antwerp, Belgium. The letter started its journey on Tuesday 6 April 1954 at the Post Office Stockholm 9 at 160 - 168 Horn's St. (Hornsgatan 160 - 168). This time the letter went by air all the way to North America.

Mixed stamps from Stockholm to Malmö

New and old stamps meet

Parcel address cards are of course more interesting than clips. A card gives you much more information. However there are much more clips around and why not study them as well. Sometimes they might give you some new insights or different perspectives. Lets have a look at two clips stamped Wednesday 6 December 1939.

Domestic Parcel 5 - 6 kg fee: 1.80 kr

Left: 60 öre red-lilac Crown and Posthorn. Issued 6 March 1925 and
1 kr 20 öre pink Three Crowns. Issued  22 November 1939

Domestic Parcel 3 - 5 kg fee: 1.20 kr
Right: 1 kr orange Crown and Posthorn. Issued 17 November 1921 and
20 öre red Gustaf V, right profile , type I. Issued 10 February 1939

The left clip is from a parcel address card covering the 1 kr 80 öre fee for a parcel 5 - 6 kg. The right one is from a parcel address card covering the 1 kr 20 öre fee for a parcel 3 - 5 kg. Pretty heavy parcels, but it was getting close to Christmas and the gifts have to be sent all over Sweden. These two clips from the parcel address cards were sent the same day from Stockholm and arrived the next day at the Post Office Malmö 1 Skeppsbron 1 (1 Ship's Bridge) in Malmö 514 km south west of Stockholm.

The left one was sent from Post Office Stockholm 9 Hornsgatan 160 - 168 (160 - 168 Horn's Street). At that office they apparently had to mixed the old series for parcel fees the Crown and Posthorn with the successor the Three Crown. Maybe they still had a big surplus of  the old 60 öre Crown and Posthorn? Considering that the new 60 öre red-carmine Three Crown that replaced it by that time had been around for almost 10 months it is a little bit puzzling that the old one is still used. It seems like the 120 öre Crown and Posthorn was already replaced by the brand new definitive stamp 120 öre Three Crown. The 120 öre had been in use just for two weeks that day.

The right clip was also sent from Stockholm but from the Post Office Stockholm 7 Norrlandsgatan 11 (11 Norrland Street). Here the 1 kr orange Crown and Posthorn was still in use but they had started to use the new definitive stamp of king Gustaf V, type I. The latter had been around since February so that made sense, but the type II was in progress with the first release on 11 December (the 10 öre violet) and the new 20 öre red type II would show up in April 1940. The new 1 kr orange Three Crowns was issued in September but not used yet at Stockholm 7, apparently.

It is interesting to see that the post offices first had to use the old stock of stamps before they could use the new ones. There were a lot of parcels sent in December so my guess is that pretty soon both Post Offices were using the new definitive series.

Read more about the Three Crowns series - here, and about the ill fated Gustav V, type I series - here. The Crown and Posthorn is briefly described - here.

Here is the beautiful building where the Post Office Malmö 1 used to be (Google)

Above is a street view from Google Street View showing the building were the Post Office Malmö 1 used to be. There are no Post Offices left in Sweden for the public anymore. All postal services can be found in corner stores, gas stations and other kind of convenience stores.

15 öre brown Gustaf V, version I or is it version II?

15 öre brown Gustaf V, right profile, type II - varities

The 15 öre brown came in two varities because two different dies were used. Actually three dies were made but one of them was not used at all. The first die was used in late 1939 to print the special war stamps. These stamps were the 5 öre green, 10 öre violet and the 15 öre brown. They were transported away from Stockholm and the purpose was to use them in case the Swedish Post's printing-shop at the headquarter in Stockholm would be destroyed because of the war. Die number one was used for this special issue. The war stamps were printed in sheets of a 100 stamps and they had 4-sided perforation. The difference between the dies is that die one resulted in a more deeper brown colour were the base of the figure 1 is narrower and the oak leaves on the collar are more detailed (more lines).

Maybe the easiest way is to use a 4-sided perforated as a reference because we know for sure that were are looking at version II. Lets have a look at the war issue. It has a distinct brown colour.

15 öre brown, Gustaf V, right profile, version II. Qty: 48,300,000. 4-sided perforation.
The war issue was printed in 1939, but released in 1946

Enlarge the picture above by clicking at it and 1)  look at the base of the numeral at the figure "1" and 2) look at the oak leaves of the collar. 3) Note that the medal band on the king's left side is more detailed as well in version II.

Compare it with the stamp below which is of version I.


Remember that a four sided perforated stamp always is a version II.

15 öre brown Gustaf V, right profile, version I. Qty: 306,000,000 (both dies included) 2-sided perforation.27 January, 1942

Version I has definitely a lighter brown colour and the collar is less detailed, the base of the figure "1" is more distinct. The medal band is light and less detailed, right?

Version I came in a 2-sided perforation (coils) and in a 3-sided perforation. The 3-sided perforated stamps could be find in booklets. Below is the version II which 2-sided variant was released as late as 1950, version II came in a 3-sided perforation in booklets already in 1946.

15 öre brown Gustaf V, right profile, version II. Qty: see version I above. 2-sided perforation.25 April 1950

Read more about Gustaf V, right profile, type II series - here.


Test your self, which one is version I and II?