First stamps issued for Israel's 1948 New Year from September 26th, 1948, until September 10, 1949; visit the Postage page of the LMLK Research website for more info!

Quality:  Some collectors affix stamps in albums using the original gum on the back of the stamps.  When removed from the album, a disturbance &/or stain is visible on the back as seen in the sample photo to the right:

Another philatelic factor is Centering.  Some were perforated near the edge of the image; others were well-centered leaving an equal amount of white border around the image.

Plain white gutters

Pane-2 margin triangles

Color-bar margins

Serial numbers:

Error dots:

This minor anomalous dot on the printing plate was located over the final Tet in the streamer, indicating these stamps were formerly adjacent to triangular Pane # gutters.  Furthermore, it demonstrates that the same engraving plate was replicated for all 6 panes used with all 5 denominations (colored blue for the 3-, 5-, 10-, 20-mil stamps, & red for the 65-mil).  In the photo to the right, one of the stamps from the set offered here is superimposed over a normal specimen without the Tet dot.

3-mil (Scott #10) with white gutter containing standard ink streak

10-mil (Scott #12) Vertical pair with smudged Haifa cancellation (date probably 1948, possibly 1949)

3-mil (Scott #10) tete-beche pair with Pane number "2" gutter

5-mil (Scott #11) tete-beche pair with Pane number "3" gutter

3-mil (Scott #10) with dove cancellation from Tabul exhibition

Note that many of the early LMLK researchers believed the 2-winged icon represented a dove, & some also believed it was a flying scroll (as it was named when these stamps were issued in 1948).  Both theories are represented here on this one philatelic gem!

20-mil (Scott #13) with partial Jerusalem cancellation highlighting "USA"

3-mil (Scott #10) Vertical Gutter pair with Tel Aviv Het "26.12.1948" Maccabi postmark

5-mil (Scott #11) Vertical Gutter pair with standard ink streak

3-mil (Scott #10) Vertical Gutter pair with serial #08034 from supplementary printing!

3-mil (Scott #10) Vertical Gutter pair with tabs, Haifa 20-10-1949 postmark

3-mil (Scott #10) Asterisk slug

For every 30 Tete-Beche pairs that were printed, only 1 of them had the asterisk slug, but unlike the first printing of 21,000 sheets, only ~3,000 asterisks were printed during the second run.

5-mil (Scott #11) horizontally imperforate vertical tab pair

A nearly identical specimen was published in The Israel Philatelist vol. 26, #5/6, June 1975, p. 843

20-mil with shifted stamp error

65-mil with shifted streamer error

Most of these errors are known on the 20-mil denomination!

5-mil, 20-mil Overlapping Trial Proof, Imperforated

Made under tight security guard before any other LMLK stamps were printed in August, 1948!

Special blue/green color mixture for LMLK seal, & royal purple banner!

Special mark of guaranteed authenticity by the Society of Israel Philatelists on reverse!

No gum--special proof paper!

Hebrew attachment to 1 out of every 5 stamps that were printed:

Flying Scroll:
"LMLK"
Seal Stamped
on the Wine & Oil
Jugs Given as Tax to the King

Half of the tabs were 2 1/4" with a color bar strip; the other half were only 2" with a plain white margin.

Set with 3 configurations of corner color-bar margins!

• 3-mil:  from Pane 3, Very Fine centering, hinged
• 5-mil:  from Pane 3, Fine centering, never hinged
• 10-mil:  from Pane 6, Very Fine centering, hinged, pinholes
• 20-mil:  from Pane 4, Very Fine centering, hinged
• 65-mil:  from Pane 4, Fine centering, hinged (still attached)