Banknotes : Security marks 2c (part 2)

In my previous post I explained about the printing codes on the Euro banknotes.
I only showed the lower denominations.
Of course, also the higher notes have those codes.
The problem is, I don't have those notes in high amounts :-)

for the € 100,- note :

1 : P008F2 : Printed in Germany

 for the € 200,- note :

2 : G001E3 : Printed in the Netherlands
3 : E001F1 : Printed in France

for the € 500,- note :

4 : R019F1 : Printed in Germany
5 : R013G3 : Printed in Germany

For collectors who are in search of one note of each country ... good luck.
And of course as with the smaller notes, each printing code should correspond with the letter proceeding the serial number.

Odd stamps : 07 e Stamps (sheets) with special cuts

In the last few years, the number of 'odd stamps and odd sheets' is increasing.
Whoever starts collecting nowadays, might think that 'oddness' is the general rule.
Each country must have it's odd stamp or sheet at least once a year.

Well recently I was sent a beautiful sheet from Indonesia, and this from my Filippina friend.
Of course I can't resist in posting it here in my blog for you.

the leaf shaped sheet, can be taken out of a rectangled sheet

On the sheet, we find 2 stamps.
The first one shows the "Leptophryne cruentata" better known as the 'bleeding toad' or the 'fire toad'. It's an critically endangered toad that can be found on the Malay peninsula and suthern Thailand.
Due to the eruption of the Mount Galunggung in West-Java (Indonesia) in 1982, this toad is critically endangered.

Bleeding Toad or Fire Toad

The second stamp, shows the "Nymphoides indica", also known as the White Water Fringe or the Water Snowflake.

Bleeding Toad or Fire Toad and the White Water Fringe or Water Snowflake

This waterplant thanks its name to its resemblance to the water lily (Nimphaea) and is therefore called "Nymphoides".

The sheet was only issued 40,000 times, and bares a number on the sheet.

Although this sheet is rare, please bare in mind that that the animal depicted is in higher need of conservation then any of the above stamps.
Hopefully issues like this will draw the attention on the need of wildlife conservation.

Odd stamps : 08 Stamps with special cuts - 01 g

I don't know if the sun has something to do with it, but I'm in a 'round' mood today.
It's not really about the sun that I'm going to write, but at least we're up in space.

The first man in space was the Russian cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin.
In English we would call him an astronaut, and the Chinese would even say a taikonaut.
Whatever you call him, he was the first man ever leaving the earth' athmopshere and entering space.

In fact, it wasn't ment to be at first. However his colleague's name : German Titov wasn't sounding "russian" enough and that gave him the chance to meet history in April 1961.
Although he was the first human in space, some living animals get the credit of being in space before him.

Already in the late 40's of the 20th century, some fruit flies were launched into space (1947).

Yury Gagarin used to joke: "I could never understand if I was the first human or the last dog in space". The dogs Dezik and Gypsy were the first to travel to space on a rocket launched successfully in 1951. "The most lonely and unhappy dog" was Layka ("Barker" in Russian, a term used for several breeds of dogs) who went to space in 1957 on Vostok, which at that time didn't have the slowdown and heat protection systems. Layka had a one way ticket. She was a stray dog captured on the streets of Moscow, trained, and sent up into space. She died only a few hours in, due to overheating and panicking.

Layka - on a romanian (CTO) stamp

The first living thing to complete an orbit and return alive were two dogs named Belka and Strelka ("Squirrel" and "Little Arrow" in Russian).

Belka & Strelka

They were launched by the USSR in 1960 and spent a day in orbit before their capsule was returned to Earth with the dogs still alive. They landed safely on a designated territory on August 19, 1960.

Belka & Strelka - bulgarian stamp

The dogs on the orbit were followed by apes, cats, tortoises, mice, birds, fish... A whole zoo travelled to space over the past 50 years.


But now back to my intended topic ...
Yuri Gagarin was honoured 50 years after his flight, with a round stamp issued by Sri Lankan post.
In the same year of his flight, (1961) he also visited Sri Lanka, so the stamp is a double celebration.
For the stamp, a round shape was selected (lucky me) and the sheetlet has 12 round stamps and 3 round labels with pictures of Yuri Gagarin.

We see Gagarin depiced the way he was dressed as an astro-/cosmonaut.

Yuri Gagarin photo

Yuri Gagarin stamp

On the 3 labels we see Gagarin dressed as a (decorated) civilian, and in an air force uniform.

3 labels with Yuri Gagarin

Gagarin numerous decorations

Yuri Gagarin died in an MiG 15 training jet, on March 27,1968 at the age of 34.
He was burried in the Kreml in Moskou.

Odd stamps : 08 Stamps with special cuts - 06 f

I'm posting this second set of Malaysian 'odd stamps' as it's the second issue.
The first stamps (my previous post) was with round stamps, and coins on stamps.
This second emission shows also coins on stamps, but hurray, it's with hexagonal stamps.

The stamps show 5, 10, 20 and 50 sen from the new series of coins.
They are in fact very similar to the Euro coin designs.

5 sen and 10 sen on hexagonal stamps

20 sen and 50 sen on hexagonal stamps

Each coin is depicted on two stamps (front and back side).
The face value of each stamp is the same : 60 sen.

Each of those stamps is issued on sheets containing 20 stamps. (10 front side - 10 back side).

Because of the odd shape of the stamps, the sheets are also worth collecting.

The first two sheets :

full sheet of 5 sen

full sheet of 10 sen

The second two sheets :

to be continued..

Odd stamps : 08 Stamps with special cuts - 01 f

I was nicely surprised by a wonderful set of Malaysian stamps showing coins of Malaysia.
Coins on stamps is a topic that is quite popular among stampcollectors. Also coin collectors sometimes have a small stamp collection with coins on stamps.

For me, this post is extra special, as the stamps are 'round' stamps, so they fit into my collection of 'odd stamps'.

In this set, 3 coins are depicted. There are 6 stamps, two for each coin.
One stamp is showing the front side of the coin, the other stamp shows the back side.

First coin (KM#51) is a 10 sen coin, issued from 1989 on.
On the back a ceremonial table is shown.

10 sen coin (KM# 51) on stamp

The second coin is a 20 sen coin (KM#52) -
The front shows the value, the back shows a basket, containing food and utensils.

20 sen coin (KM#52) on stamp

The third and last stamp, shows a 50 sen coin (KM#53), on the front we see another flower,
the back shows a ceremonial kite.

50 sen coin (KM#53) on stamp

This set of stamps was issued in 2009.
It was followed by another set of coins on stamps, but I tell more about them in my next post.

Odd stamps : 03c 3D stamps (moving)

Once in a while, I get new material for previously posted items.
Today, I 'm happy to show you another 3D sheetlet.
It was issued in Malaysia in 2011, to promote and show the Excellence of Underground Engineering.

The issue commemorates the Kuala Lumpur SMART Tunnel construction
As Malaysia suffered in the past from many floodings, a solution was sought to keep traffic going on.
Tunnels used to flood, roads as well.
A special tunnel was designed and constructed between 2003 and 2007.
It is called the 'SMART' tunnel : Storm Management And Road Tunnel. (smart, isn't it?)

entrance of the SMART tunnel

The purpose of this tunnel is to keep traffic going on under normal conditions even with small floodings of the city. The tunnel is designed to divert the floodwater.

There are 3 modi in which the tunnel can be used :

1st modus: normal conditions, no storms, traffic can use the tunnel, no water is diverted
2nd modus: small storms and flooding, water is diverted, but cars can still use the tunnel
3rd modus: heavy storms and floodings, all water is diverted, cars can't use the tunnel, until 48 hours after the tunnel is cleared again.

Only few weeks after opening the SMART tunnel, modus 3 was already activated!

testing the tunnel in modus 3 - diverting the water

Now back to the stamps...
A sheetlet of 6 stamps were issued, as well as 2 auto-adhesive 3D stamps.
I only have the 3D stamps so far, but in order to show the images that appear when moving the 3D stamps, I'll show a picture of the regular stamsp, as those images are easier to post.

3D sheet - 2RM and 3RM auto-adhesive stamps

1st 3D stamp (2RM)

 Following images can be seen on the first 3D stamp :

construction of the SMART Tunnel

construction of the SMART Tunnel

2nd 3D stamp (3RM)

breakthrough of the tunnel

Sceme and tunnel in full operation

Banknotes : Security marks 2c (part 1)

Now we 'll have a closer look to some of the banknotes posted in the previous article...
We can determinate the country already by the first letter proceeding the serial number.

But there is more...

There is a second code on each banknote, and that's referring to the place the note was printed.

(Bank of England Printing Works)	(Loughton)	(UK)	(A)
not in use	---	---	(B)
(AB Tumba Bruk)	(Tumba)	(Sweden)	(C)
Setec Oy - Vantaa - Finland	Vantaa	Finland	D
F. C. Oberthur	Chantepie	France	E
Österreichische Banknoten und Sicherheitsdruck	Vienna	Austria	F
Joh. Enschedé	Haarlem	The Netherlands	G
Thomas de la Rue Gateshead UK	Gateshead	UK	H
not in use	---	---	(I)
Banca d'Italia	Rome	Italy	J
Central Bank of Ireland	Dublin	Ireland	K
Banque de France	Chamalières	France	L
Fábrica Nacional de Moneda y Timbre	Madrid	Spain	M
Bank of Greece	Athens	Greece	N
not in use	---	---	(O)
Giesecke & Devrient	München & Leipzig	Gemany	P
not in use	---	---	(Q)
Bundesdruckerei	Berlin	Gemany	R
(Danmarks Nationalbank)	(Kopenhagen)	(Denmark)	(S)
Nationale Bank van België	Brussels	Belgium	T
Valora	Carregado	Portugal	U

1 : T019G1 : Printed in Belgium
2 : M025F1 : Printed in Spain

3 : N006D5 : Printed in Greece
4: P016D1 : Printed in Germany

5 : J024H1 : ¨Printed in Italy
6 :   G007B6 :  Printed in The Netherlands

7 : L043H2 : printed in France
8 : L053C3 : printed in France
9 : F014E4 : printed in Austria
10 : E 005B3 : printed in France (Chantepie)

11 : L029H2 : Printed in France
12 : L027J2 : Printed in France
13 : L029J4 : Printed in France
14 : P011F2 : Printed in Germany

It sounds logic, that the letter before the serial number (see previous post) should correspond with the letter before the printing code.
i.e. a Belgian banknote (serial number starts with a Z) should have a printing code starting with a T.
However, some smaller countries (Luxemburg) does not print their own banknotes.
In case they would do, they might ask other countries (like Belgium or France) to print the banknotes for them.

to be continued ...

Banknotes : Security marks 2b (Part 2)

We can determinate a Euro banknote by the serial number.
However that is not yet a real 'security' mark.

Is there a way to find out if a banknote is real, by looking at the serial number?
No and yes...
At least we can find out if a serial number is real or fake.
A fake serial number means at least that the banknote might be false (or a misprinted number ?)

Let's go back to the list of serial codes I gave before :


Z is for Belgium = 9
Y is for Greece = 1
X is for Germany = 2
W is reserved for Denmark (but not using Euro yet) = 3
V is for Spain = 4
U is for France = 5
T is for Ireland = 6
S is for Italy = 7
R is for Luxemburg (Luxemburg is producing its banknotes abroad so far) = 8
Q is not in use = 9
P is for the Netherlands = 1
O is not in use = 2
N is for Austria = 3
M is for Portugal = 4
L is for Finland = 5
K is reserved for Sweden (but not using Euro yet) = 6
J is reserved for UK (but not using Euro yet) = 7
I is not in use = 8
H is for Slovenia = 9
G is for Cyprus = 1
F is for Malta = 2
E is for Slovak Republic = 3
D is for Estonia = 4

As you can see I added a number to the list:

1 = Y; P and G
2 = X; (O); and F
3 = W; N and E
4 = V; M and D
5 = U; L
6 = T; K
7 = S; J
8 = R; (I)
9 = Z; (Q) and H


Let's take some notes :

Z77927942547 => 7+7+9+2+7+9+4+2+5+4+7 = 63 => 6 + 3 = 9
Y02669777425 => 0+2+6+6+9+7+7+7+4+2+5 = 55 => 5 + 5 = 10 => 1 + 0 = 1
X31808174321 => 3+1+8+0+8+1+7+4+3+2+1 = 38 => 3 + 8 = 11 => 1 + 1 =  2
V26229374041 => 2+6+2+2+9+3+7+4+0+4+1 = 40 => 4 + 0 = 4
U55586646086 => 5+5+5+8+6+6+4+6+0+8+6 = 59 => 5 + 9 = 14 => 1 +4 = 5
T15550427427 => 1+5+5+5+0+4+2+7+4+2+7 = 42 => 4 +2 = 6

As you see, all banknotes above correspond to their controle numbers.
A logic consequence of this system is, that succeeding banknotes should always have a difference of 9 in the serial number :

See for these brand new notes, in order of printing :
as you see, each serial number has a difference of 9 with the previous number. The check sum always remains the same (2 in this case).

To be continued ...

Odd stamps : 08 Stamps with special cuts - 02 h

I'ts been agaes since I posted something on triangular stamps.
They do exist, and they are still produced, but somehow we hardly see them on letters.

Although this post isn't about a recently issued sheet, (1997), it's more then special.
I didn't know if I had to post it under 'special stamps' or 'special sheets' as both apply here.

New Zealand - triangular sheet with triangular stamps

It's a triangular sheet, with 4 triangular stamps in it.
Each stamp is repeated twice, so there are only 2 different stamps.

40 cents

80 cents

The sheet was issued for the Wold Philatelic Exhibition 'Pacific '97'. It celebrates the centenary of the first pigeon-gram. At the bottom of the sheet, the flight of a pigeon is drawn.

Commemorative coins of Turkey : 02

Athough the date on the next coins is 2010, these commemorative coins of Turkey were emitted in January 2011.
It's the second set of coins with endangered or extinguised species of Turkey.

Front side of the commemorative coin

Ankara Cat

Sivas Kangal Dog

Face Value: 1 Türkish Lira

Metal: CuprıNickel

Diameter: 26,15 mm

Weight: 8,3 gr

Bimetallic with plain edge

Max. Issue: 11.000 in Turkey, 4.000 to export

Design: Nalan Yerlibucak

Released : 03.01.2011 (till 03.01.2013)

The first coin (Ankara cat) is better know as the Turkish Angora Cat.

The name 'angora' comes from the Ankara region, historically known as Angora.

Turkish Angora cats are extremely active, intelligent, and involved.
The eyes may be blue, green, or amber, or even odd-eyed (one blue and one amber or green).

green eyes - blue eyes ...

... or one of each ?

The second coin depices the Sivas Shepard Dog that has its origine in the Kangal district in the Sivas province in Turkey.

This dog is not really a herding dog, but as a flock guardian that lives with the flock to actively fend off wolves.

Turkish Kangal Dog

to be continued...