Great Britain SC#353p/368p SG#610/618 1/2d Orange - 1/3d Green Queen Elizabeth II, 1960-1967 Wilding Issue, Multiple Crown Watermark, Phosphor Tagged Issue, Partial Set, Blue Phosphor on White Paper, Many Fluorscent Varieties, Fine to Very Fine NH

A fine to very fine NH partial set of the 1/2d orange - 1/3d green Queen Elizabeth II stamps from the Multiple crown watermark on dull fluorescent and fluorescent white papers. Although not listed in Gibbons Specialized both the cream and white papers on the multiple crown watermark can be found with wide differences in fluorescence when viewed under long-wave UV light. The cream papers generally are either non-fluorescent or dull fluorescent with fluorescent flecks that make the paper appear LF. The white papers exhibit a much broader range, from dull fluorescent all the way to hibrite, with many of the fluorescent papers having fluorescent flecks of varying concentrations and brightness levels in the paper. Phosphor bands reacting blue under short wave UV light. On this issue, there are three colours of phosphor bands, depending on when the stamps were issued. The first phosphors used between 1959 and 1961 gave a green afterglow under short wave UV light. These were replaced in 1961 by a chemical giving a blue reaction under short wave UV light. These were replaced in 1965 by a violet phosphor, which was initially applied in 8 mm bands, and later 9.5 mm bands. Gibbons values this at £16.45. This translates to approximately $32.90. The stamps offered here grade between 70 and 84.

We have written a post that gives a good overview of this issue, explaining how the different varieties fit into the whole. The post identifies the key points of interest and explains how you can turn it into a super specialized collection. You can access that post here.