A chronological listing of world postage stamps depicting design errors.
1951 January 2
Indonesia
Five semi-postal stamps commemorate the First Asian Games, wrongly called the "Asiatic Olympic Games 1951", and wrongly displaying the Olympic Games five-ring logo.
Catalog numbers: Scott B58-62
Approximate value: US$1.85 (Scott 2010).
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1951 December 10
United States of America
175th anniversary of the Battle of Brooklyn.
3-cent postage stamp depicts General George Washington evacuating the army from the Brooklyn Hieghts to Manhattan. The stamp clearly shows a well-lit daytime scene with clouds in the sky, but the evacuation was done under cover of the night of August 29-30.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1003; Michel 621; Yvert 554
Approximate value: US$0.25 (Scott 2018).
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1952 January 28
San Marino
2- and 25-lira stamps depict Christopher Columbus with his hand on a globe of the Earth showing what appear to be modern outlines of the complete North and South America. The globe itself would not have existed for Columbus at the time, either.
Catalog numbers: Scott 309,316; Stanley Gibbons 426,433
Approximate value: US$6.30 (Scott 2010).
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1952 February 1
Ceylon
35-cent stamp has Tamil language inscription missing a dot over a character; inscription corrected in 1954.
Catalog numbers: Scott 314
Approximate value: US$1.50 (Scott 2014).
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1952 April 15
Virgin Islands
$4.80 stamp depicts map of the Virgin Islands, with Virgin Gorda erroneously spelled "CORDA".
Catalog numbers: Scott 113
Approximate value: US$21.00 (Scott 2010).
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1952 May 14
Belgium
2.50-franc stamp depicts Count Lamoral I de Tassis with incorrect birth year 1567 instead of 1557.
Catalog numbers: Scott 438; Stanley Gibbons 1401
Approximate value: US$1.65 (Scott 2010).
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1952 June 13
United States of America
3-cent stamp commemorates the arrival of the Marquis Lafayette in America in 1777, but depicts flags of USA and France current in 1952, rather than flags of 1777.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1010; Stanley Gibbons 1007
Approximate value: US$0.25 (Scott 2018).
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1952 June 14
Italy
25-lira stamp depicts the statue of the Lion of Saint Mark, but the right-side wing should also be showing.
Catalog numbers: Scott 605
Approximate value: US$1.25 (Scott 2010).
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1952 August 18
Poland
1-zloty stamp depicts Niedzica castle, misspelled "NIEDZIGA".
Catalog numbers: Scott 556; Stanley Gibbons 777
Approximate value: US$1 (Scott 2010).
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1952 October 25
Afghanistan
35- and 125-poul stamps spell the country name in all upper case except the "i".
Catalog numbers: Scott 400-401
Approximate value: US$1.75 (Scott 2018).
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1953 February 23
Monaco
8-franc stamp depicts gymnastics athlete performing impossible or very painful spreading of fingers.
Catalog numbers: Scott 299
Approximate value: US$1 (Scott 2010).
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1953 May 29
United States of America
50th anniversary of (manned) powered flight.
6-cent airmail stamp is captioned "50th anniversary of powered flight", but the word "manned" should be included, as powered flight was first achieved in 1848, 105 years before this issue date.
Catalog numbers: Scott C47; Stanley Gibbons A1018
Approximate value: US$0.25 (Scott 2018).
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1953 June 15
Aden
35-cent stamp depicts sails with no attachments to the masts.
Catalog numbers: Scott 52; Stanley Gibbons 56
Approximate value: US$1.50 (Scott 2018).
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1953 (month unknown)
Egypt
10-millieme stamp depicts a soldier and misspelled caption "DEFENCE", which is soon corrected.
Catalog numbers: Scott 326
Approximate value: US$0.25 (Scott 2014).
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1953 July 1
Tonga
1-shilling stamp depicts map of the islands of Tonga. At the top, Toku and Fonulei are placed way too close to Vava'u; Toku should be as far away as Late island.
Catalog numbers: Scott 109; Stanley Gibbons 110
Approximate value: US$0.40 (Scott 2010).
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1953 November 9
Bermuda
3-pence stamp depicts map of Bermuda, with label for "SANDY'S PH." which should be "SANDYS PH.". A corrected stamp was issued January 2, 1957.
Catalog numbers: Scott 148; Stanley Gibbons 140
Approximate value: US$0.25 (Scott 2010).
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1953 November 29
Afghanistan
35-poul stamp with arabic digits for "23" instead of correct "22" for 22nd anniversary; 125-poul stamp with three errors: "XXIII" instead of "XXII", "ANNIVERAIRE" instead of "ANNIVERSAIRE", and "MADECINE" instead of "MEDECINE". Replacements of both stamps correcting the errors were soon issued.
Catalog numbers: Scott 417-18; Stanley Gibbons 379-380
Approximate value: US$4.50 (Scott 2018).
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1954 September
Greece
2-, 2.50-, and 4-drachma stamps depict English version of proposal to unite Greece and Cyprus, but a line of the document between the 8th and 9th last lines on the stamp is omitted.
Catalog numbers: Scott 569,572-73
Approximate value: US$10 (Scott 2010).
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1954 December 5
Hungary
30-filler stamp depicts Janos Irinyi, with birth year 1819 instead of correct 1817.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1102
Approximate value: US$0.20 (Scott 2010).
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1954 December 5
Hungary
60-filler stamp depicts Karoly Than, with death year as 1904 instead of correct 1908.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1105
Approximate value: US$0.20 (Scott 2010).
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1954 December 5
Hungary
2-forint stamp depicts Endre Högyes, with death year as 1921 instead of correct 1906.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1108
Approximate value: US$0.40 (Scott 2009).
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1955 January 1
Egypt
5-, 10-, 37-millieme stamps depict the globe focussed on the Middle East, but omitting the Persian Gulf.
Catalog numbers: Scott 375-77
Approximate value: US$1.75 (Scott 2014).
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1955 August 14
Pakistan
2 1/2-anna stamp with arabic denomination written in opposite order, "1/2 2". A corrected version was released in December 1956.
Catalog numbers: Scott 73; Stanley Gibbons 73
Approximate value: US$0.65 (Scott 2010).
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1955 October 24
Austria
2.40-schilling stamp marks 10th anniversary of United Nations, showing flags circling the globe. But, what planet is this? The continents of Earth do not exist like this.
Catalog numbers: Scott 608
Approximate value: US$3.50 (Scott 2010).
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1955 November 28
Vatican City
20-, 35-, and 60-lira stamps depict Pope Nicholas V, with error in caption of "ESCOLUIT" instead of "EXCOLUIT".
Catalog numbers: Scott 197-99; Stanley Gibbons 220-222
Approximate value: US$0.80 (Scott 2010).
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