Definitive Tour.
The Universal/Dominion design remained the New Zealand 1d definitive for 25 years. During that period it appeared in three major designs. This post is intended to discuss these three designs but not get into the large range of paper, and perf varieties. These special varieties are beyond the interest of most collectors so they are beyond the subject of this blog.
We will view each of these three issues as I tell the story behind them and then we will consider the main theme of these stamps and discover who or what 'Zealandia' is. Finally, I will give you some tips on how to tell these three issues apart. Once you know what to look for it is easy and I will be using enlarged detail illustrations to show you.
1901 Universal.
Postmaster-General (and later Prime Minister) Joseph Ward had a plan to place New Zealand in the forefront of civilised countries in the world, by reducing postage charges for letters to one penny from New Zealand to almost any country in the world. Many countries were fearful of having to reduce their own postal charges to match, and for a while, some would not except the new rated letters. Finally, most of the countries who would accept the letters did, so without offering reciprocal postal rates.
Concern was raised in Government circles that Post Office revenues would fall substantially with the reduction in postage rates, but mail volumes increased sharply and 13 million more letters were sent in 1901 than in 1900. This increase in mail volume meant that by 1902 any loses had been recovered.
On New Years Day 1901, the first day of the 20th century and normally a bank holiday in New Zealand, Post Offices around the country were open for the initial launch and within half an hour of opening, the Wellington Post Office had sold around ten thousand of the new 1d stamps issued to meet this postal rate change.
1901 Penny Universal - 1d & Penny Universal - 1d (Official).
The stamp bears the female figure of 'Zealandia', intended to become a figure of national personification representing New Zealand in much the same way as 'Britannia' represents the United Kingdom. In the background, a mail boat is shown steaming past Mount Egmont / Taranaki. The globe beside Zealandia represents the universal nature of this stamp, 1d letter postage to most countries worldwide.
A postcard with the original 1901 1d Universal.
1907 Redrawn Universal.
By 1906 the printing plates for the 1898 Pictorial Issue - ½d, 3d, 6d and 1/- stamps were badly worn and in need of replacing. The 3d, 6d and 1/- stamps were reduced to the same size as the 1d Universal so that 240 stamps could be printed per sheet. In January 1907, new printing plates were also approved for the 1d stamp so that it could be surface printed, to reduce production costs. At this point, the opportunity was taken to make changes to the design. Most noticeable are the bow waves on the ship were made smaller and the globe was given diagonal shading lines instead of the original vertical ones.
1907 Redrawn Universal - 1d & Redrawn Universal - 1d (Official).
1907 1d Universal Redrawn on a 1909 Napier Gas Company Receipt.
1909 Dominion.
In June 1906 it was decided to issue a series of stamps depicting Edward VII but at the same time retaining the penny Universal design. The following year the status of New Zealand changed when the country was proclaimed a Dominion as opposed to a Colony.
As a result of the above, in March 1908, the Postmaster-General announced that the 1d Universal would be reissued with the words 'Dominion of New Zealand' in place of 'New Zealand' and that King Edward VII stamps would be issued in 1/2d, 2d, 3d, 4d, 5d, 6d, 8d, and 1s values.
1909 Dominion - 1d & Dominion - 1d (Official).
The 1909 King Edward VII Definitives, 1d Dominion has a similar design to the 1907 Universal issue with 'Dominion of' added at the top of the stamp and 'universal postage' appearing on a scroll at the bottom of the stamp.
1936 Postage Due Late Fee cover, 1d Dominion cancelled in Christchurch.
Flaws in the 1d Universal & 1d Dominion.
1901 Universal - Perf Shift Down. 1909 Dominion - The 'N' Flaw (R9/23).
I have found three interesting flaws from these stamps. In the left-hand stamp, the perforation has shifted so far that the top edge of the design has been cut off while the top of the stamp below can be seen at the bottom. On the right-hand stamp, there is a mark at the bottom across the second N in the word "PENNY". For obvious reasons, this is known as the 'N' Flaw.
1909 Dominion - The 'Q' Flaw (R10/19)
There is a mark through the 'O' of ONE that makes the O resemble a Q.
Special Overprints of the 1d Universal & the 1d Dominion.
1908 Edward VII Land.
(Shackleton Expedition to Antarctica 1907 - 1909)
Notice these were overprinted on the original 1901 Universal.
1910 Victoria Land.
(Scott Expedition to Antarctica 1910 - 1912.)
1913 Auckland Exhibition Overprint.
Zealandia.
Zealandia is a national personification of New Zealand. In her stereotypical form, Zealandia appears as a woman of European descent who is similar in dress and appearance to Britannia, who is said to be the mother of Zealandia.
Zealandia appeared on postage stamps, posters, cartoons, war memorials, and New Zealand government publications most commonly during the first half of the 20th century. Zealandia was a commonly used symbol of the New Zealand Centennial Exhibition, which was held in Wellington in 1939 and 1940.
Three large Zealandia statues exist in New Zealand towns or cities; one is in Waimate, one is in Palmerston North, and one in Symonds Street, Auckland. The first two (in stone) are Second Boer War memorials and the latter one (in bronze) is a New Zealand Wars memorial. Some smaller statues exist in museums and in private hands.
Some people think that the woman who appears on the left side of the coat of arms of New Zealand is Zealandia. There are strong arguments both for and against this being the case. Apart from the coat of arms, Zealandia is seldom depicted in works today, or indeed even referred to. In many ways, I think Zealandia is now an icon that has run its course and New Zealand has moved on.
Zealandia in the New Zealand Coat of Arms. Statue of Zealandia in Palmerston North.
Identifying Them.
The stamps of these three issues are easily confused. I hope with the aid of these three enlargements I can make it easier.
The 1901 Penny Universal has vertical shading on the globe. The bow wave of the steamer is also far more impressive as well. See that second wave is almost halfway to the deck.
Both the 1907 Redrawn Pictorials and the 1909 King Edward VII dominion penny stamps have diagonal shading lines on the globe behind the figure of Zealandia. The bow wave on the ship is a lot less too.
As well as the 1907 changes, the 1909 King Edward VII 'penny dominion' has the words 'Dominion of' added at the top of the stamp and 'universal postage' now appearing on a scroll at the bottom of the stamp.
Some of the images in this post were used with permission from the illustrated catalogue of StampsNZ
