The Offler Stamps

     As stated in the introduction the Offler stamps were originally prepared for both Klatch and Djelibeybi, but were dropped for the former state. Nevertheless, originals for this stamp have cropped up as imperforate single stamps, blocks, and entire sheets. Some singles were used to decorate post, while others have appeared in Wadfest goody-bags and at the charity auction there. It is not known whether the purple and grey colour scheme was the original, or whether that was the intended release colours. There does seem to be some examples with a variation on the colours, and the sheet is quite different in layout to the issued Djelibeybi stamp sheet, though some of the eastern style in the margins was retained and expanded upon. The sheet held one sport, where Offler had a black eye. The sheet image here is in too low resolution to show this.

    

     An earlier sheet may be this one; a colour option sheet, printed to help decide which colours or combination would suit the stamp best. Sometimes each stamp is a different colour, but here there are just six options, one for each row.

     The earliest examples of Djelibeybi Offler printings is this block of five stamps (part of an internal designer and artist test sheet with stamps from other states) showing the basic design and four proposed sports in shades of brown. None of these are exactly as on the two issued sports. They are in order the common stamp, missing beard, reversed bird, reversed beard, and mirrored border element. The bird was reversed on one of the issued sports, but here the other two birds rotate a few degrees clockwise, while on the issued sport they rotate anticlockwise a bit. The border element involved is the little twisty design next the the border sport of the other issued sport. Note, however, how the design fits the wording for Klatch, which would have issued the stamp, much better than Djelibeybi which looks too small for a country title.

                

      

      

       Eventually the Djelibeybi stamp was issued in shades of deep green on a pea green background. There was a reversed border sport and a reversed birds sport included on the sheet, which housed 24 stamps in two panels with a central gutter.

      
the common                                             border sport                                            bird sport

For those interested, the pictograms in the side border, when read downwards left side then right side, read the story of writing a letter, posting it, its delivery, and it being read.