Tannu
Tuva Collectors' Society, Inc. APS Affiliate #235 |
THE RECENT STAMPS of TUVA
Tuva's
recent stamps have been criticised by many both for
their proliferation, and their origin.
Here
is a report by Les Winick, published in The Philatelic
Exporter, February
1999.
Label
distribution network There have been several letters to the editors of various philatelic publications stating that the writer has a registered letter bearing this label, therefore the label and the cover are legitimate. Unfortunately, this type of registered letter has never seen postal service, no matter what the cancel reads. Here's the entire story. The story begins in England, where the labels originate. The manufacturer decides as to the popularity of which subjects should appear on a stamp, series of stamps, or souvenir sheet. A decision is made whether the WWF (World Wide Fund for Nature) 'Panda' logo, should appear on some issues, how the sheets should be formatted, and any other factor that would help sell the stamps to the consumer. Various postal administrations issue statistics on which stamp issues have sold best and this information can be used as a guide. What appears on the labels is strictly a marketing decision based on the sales of legitimate stamps. One does not have to be a nuclear scientist to know that Princess Diana, space activities, rock and roll stars, and animals are popular subjects. You won't find dull pictures of the political leaders of any of the so-called Russian Republics on any of these spurious issues. Even the legitimate nations of St Vincent and Nevis have had their legitimate stamps reprinted and distributed in this manner. The postal officials tried tracing the origin of the reprints in order to take the people involved to court, but could not confirm the source. Once the decision is made as to format and subject, the sheets are then printed by high quality presses as perforated or imperforate souvenir sheets and miniature sheets. To the best of my knowledge, they are never offered as sheets of ten or twenty. The purpose of the small sheetlets is that the entire set can be sold as a collectible. Photocopies of the new products are sent to four or five major distributors in large cities in Russia. The distributor is usually not told how |
many were printed, but my information is that the normal printing quantity ranges from 1000 to 5000 copies of each sheet. Orders are faxed back to the manufacturer in England, and the labels are sent to the distributors. It was not disclosed how the payment is arranged for the merchandise, but payment is always prompt. I am not certain, but if any issue is a sell-out, I assume additional copies can be printed. The
manufacturing process The covers are then brought in bulk to Kyzyl, the capital city of Tuva. An obliging post office clerk in Kyzyl then applies the sending postmark and a registered rubber stamp if requested. Different numbers are always written in the registration space for the appearance of legitimacy. In some cases, for an additional over-the-counter cash payment, the post office clerk will cancel the covers and slip them in the mail stream for delivery to another country, if so addressed. The registration stamp may be left off in overseas mail. The bulk of the registered covers are then hand transported to the city appearing as the recipient's address for a receiving cancel on the back of the cover. In the case of the covers from Kyzyl, the receiving city happens to be Kiev. An obliging Kiev postal clerk dates the receiving cancel a few days after the sending postmark. You now have a "postally used" registered cover. The merchandise is now ready for sale. |
The
distribution network distribution system has now extended to Germany and several other nations, who also buy the stamps and covers at "wholesale" prices. The dealers at this level often exchange covers and stamps with each other to get a wider variety of merchandise. The dealers set up shop in parks and streets in order to sell their merchandise to the collector. Many have also sent covers and labels to Russian émigrés in the United States, United Kingdom, Israel and other nations for retail sale. Some legitimate dealers in different countries have jumped on the label bandwagon and may order direct from the distributors in Russia. The size of the market is not known. There have been many discussions on how to stop the producer, but no positive decision has been made. Postage stamps of the home country are never duplicated, so the UK suffers no loss of income. Other legitimate countries whose stamps have been counterfeited have been unable to prove who the manufacturer is. The postal officials of the Russian Republics continue to issue statements stating that the labels are not a product of their postal system, but they have done nothing to stop the process within their own country. Meanwhile, the flood of these labels takes money out of the pockets of legitimate stamp dealers who can't compete with the frequency and low price of the product.
The bilking of the unknowing collector continues. Perhaps this black market
in labels has affected the legitimate market for new issues? Every dollar or pound
or ruble spent on these fictitious items is money that did not go to the normal
stamp dealer. This may be one of the reasons for the decline in new collectors,
who can't tell the difference until they try to sell their purchase.
|
Philately's Rough Trade a report on illegal stamps. Part One (from TbBA #26) Philately's Rough Trade a report on illegal stamps. Part Two (from TbBA #27) |
See
some other questionable recent Tuva stamps
all these are considered spurious, and may be the work of
three different producers: Butterflies 1,
Butterflies 2, Dogs
2, Dogs 3, Dogs 6,
Dogs 7, Gemstones, Astronauts,
Dinosaurs, Mushrooms,
Mushrooms souvenir sheet, Kittens,
Kittens souvenir sheet, Filmstars
4, Filmstars 5, Filmstars
6, Filmstars 7, Filmstars
8, Mao Tse-tung, Leonardo
di Caprio, Star Trek, Xena
the Warrior Princess, Xena souvenir sheet.
For more information on these illegal stamps, read our in-depth exposé
click here.
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