Scott #662 F/VF Original Gum Non Hinged UR Plate Number Block of 4 NICE. #662 1929 Kansas-Nebraska Overprints 4¢ Kansas. The 4¢ Kansas stamp was overprinted on U. According to Mystic Stamp Company. During the 1920s, a rash of post office robberies baffled U.
As the Post Office Department searched for a solution to put an end to the problem, the robberies became more frequent and more widespread, especially in the Midwest. Once the stamp had been produced, the name of the state where the stamps were to be used would be imprinted over the design.
Such a move had been under consideration for some time, and it was hoped that the overprints would make it difficult to sell or use stamps from another state. Kansas and Nebraska were selected as trial states, since the postal inspector who had made the suggestion was in charge of inspections in these two states and would be supervising the experiment. The overprints were abbreviations of the states Kans. And were applied in the same manner as precancels. Each state received a small supply of stamps for each of its post offices. Fortunately for collectors, problems arose and the idea was abandoned - otherwise there could have been 48 different varieties of each stamp issued, which would have been a nightmare for philatelists.However, these overprints were very similar to the current precancels, which were not valid for use outside the intended area. Early on in the experiment, the idea was abandoned due to the ineffectiveness of the overprint issue. Consequently, not many of these stamps were produced. As early as June 1929, collectors were eagerly seeking this new and scarce variety. Various types surfaced, including the shifted overprints, which resulted in strips containing one stamp completely lacking the overprint.
Because there were so few stamps and such a great demand for them, these issues became a prime target for counterfeiters. The most common forgeries were known as the "California Fakes, " since they were first discovered in San Francisco. Since the genuine overprints were printed using electrotype plates and the forgeries were done using a typewriter, the difference between the two is easy to distinguish. On a genuine overprint, the image was printed on the surface rather than impressed into the stamp.
Thus, the ink lies flat on the surface and almost appears raised. Most importantly, if one turns the stamp over, the image doesn't appear impressed, and it never breaks the gum. We are full time coin dealers with a brick and mortar shop.In business at the same location since 1988. This item is in the category "Stamps\United States\Plate Blocks/Multiples". The seller is "dmpl70" and is located in this country: US. This item can be shipped to United States, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Wallis and Futuna, Gambia, Malaysia, Taiwan, Poland, Oman, Suriname, United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Argentina, Guinea-Bissau, Armenia, Uzbekistan, Bhutan, Senegal, Togo, Ireland, Qatar, Burundi, Netherlands, Slovakia, Slovenia, Equatorial Guinea, Thailand, Aruba, Sweden, Iceland, Macedonia, Belgium, Israel, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Benin, Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda, Italy, Swaziland, Tanzania, Pakistan, Burkina Faso, Panama, Singapore, Kyrgyzstan, Switzerland, Djibouti, Chile, China, Mali, Botswana, Republic of Croatia, Cambodia, Indonesia, Portugal, Malta, Tajikistan, Vietnam, Cayman Islands, Paraguay, Saint Helena, Cyprus, Seychelles, Rwanda, Bangladesh, Australia, Austria, Sri Lanka, Gabon Republic, Zimbabwe, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Norway, Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast), Kiribati, Turkmenistan, Grenada, Greece, Haiti, Greenland, Yemen, Afghanistan, Montenegro, Mongolia, Nepal, Bahamas, Bahrain, United Kingdom, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary, Angola, Western Samoa, France, Mozambique, Namibia, Peru, Denmark, Guatemala, Solomon Islands, Vatican City State, Sierra Leone, Nauru, Anguilla, El Salvador, Dominican Republic, Cameroon, Guyana, Azerbaijan Republic, Macau, Georgia, Tonga, San Marino, Eritrea, Saint Kitts-Nevis, Morocco, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Mauritania, Belize, Philippines, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Colombia, Spain, Estonia, Bermuda, Montserrat, Zambia, South Korea, Vanuatu, Ecuador, Albania, Ethiopia, Monaco, Niger, Laos, Ghana, Cape Verde Islands, Moldova, Madagascar, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Lebanon, Liberia, Bolivia, Maldives, Gibraltar, Hong Kong, Central African Republic, Lesotho, Nigeria, Mauritius, Saint Lucia, Jordan, Guinea, Canada, Turks and Caicos Islands, Chad, Andorra, Romania, Costa Rica, India, Mexico, Serbia, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Lithuania, Trinidad and Tobago, Malawi, Nicaragua, Finland, Tunisia, Luxembourg, Uganda, Brazil, Turkey, Germany, Egypt, Latvia, Jamaica, South Africa, Brunei Darussalam, Honduras.