Montenegro 1874-1913: varieties of postage stamps

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Issues depicting Prince Nikola I

Montenegro was the last country in Europe to adopt postage stamps. After signing a postal convention with Austria, the first post office of Montenegrin post was opened in Cetinje on the 10th of May 1874.

Stamps with an effigy of Prince Nikola I, were printed in Austrian State Printing Works in multiple printings that were issued between 1874 and 1898. Stamps were produced in the same way as contemporary Austrian stamps. They were printed in letterpress on BRIEF-MARKEN of ZEITUNGS MARKEN watermarked paper in sheets of 400 stamps that were divided into 4 panes of 100 stamps in 10 x 10 layout.

The first printing was unique in its appearance, but the latter printings exhibited certain similarities that enable them to be categorized into “groups of issues”. The literature on the subject differentiates between the first issue, followed by three groups of issues.

Such categorization is especially relevant in case of 1874/1898 issues as the stamps from this period are very similar in appearance, on the one hand, and, on the other, the scarcity of stamps between issues varies greatly.

DISTINGUISHING BETWEEN PRINTINGS 1874/1893
1874	1879/90	1890/93	1893
letterpress, fine printing: lines are thin, shading on Prince’s forehead and cheek absent watermark: BRIEF-MARKEN paper white and soft gum white perforation wide 10½ (varies between 10¼ and 11) big holes, teeth sharp horizontal distance between stamps in a pane between 1½ and 2 mm, therefore margins narrow	letterpress, coarse printing: lines thicker, shadings heavier watermark: BRIEF-MARKEN paper smoother and thicker gum yellowish and later also white perforation narrow, between 12 and 13 horizontal distance between stamps in a pane between 1¼ and 1¾ mm, therefore margins narrow	letterpress, coarse printing watermark: ZEITUNGS-MARKEN paper smooth and thick gum yellowish perforation 11½ or 10½ horizontal distance between stamps in a pane about 2 mm, therefore margins narrow	letterpress, coarse printing watermark: ZEITUNGS-MARKEN paper smooth and thick gum white, thin perforation 11½ or 10½ horizontal distance between stamps in a pane about 3 mm, therefore margins wide Note: width of the stamps of this group of printings is the same as the width of the 1898 issue in changed colors.

It seems that, for each value, the printing plates were produced from an original carving as there are small differences in design between values- At first, these were supposed to be “hidden signs” of the engraver, later it was stipulated that they are small errors that occurred during the engraving of the original carving.

CHARACTERISTICS OF PLATES
2 НОВЧ: colored dot on the frame below letter Н in НОВЧ, right leaf of the second pair of leaves on the right branch touches the petiole.	3 НОВЧ: point of the top left ornament touches the laurel leaf, branches below the top left ornament connected by a straight line, the second and/or the third right fruit on the right branch colorless.	5 НОВЧ: tiny dot at top of the first vertical stroke of letter Ш in ПОШТЕ, inner frame below between the dot and the letter Г in ЦР.ГОРЕ broken, inner frame above letter O in НОВЧ broken.	7 НОВЧ: curve, connecting the right circle with the left of the top right ornament, broken, left petiole of the second pair of fruits on the right branch broken.
10 НОВЧ: additional dot in the bottom left ornament, white bump on the left side of the letter T of ПОШТЕ, tiny dot on top of letter T of ПОШТЕ, tiny dot on top of letter Ц of ЦР.ГОРЕ.	15 НОВЧ: curve, connecting the right circle with the left of the bottom left ornament, broken, additional fruit between the third pair of fruits on the right branch.	25 НОВЧ: left circle of the top left ornament connected to the spike, tiny dot on the first inner leaf of the left branch, right leaf of the second pair of leaves on the right branch touches the petiole.	1 НОВЧ (1894): The form was modeled after 7 НОВЧ stamp and, therefore, exhibits the same characteristics: curve, connecting the right circle with the left of the top right ornament, broken, left petiole of the second pair of fruits on the right branch broken.
20, 30, 50 НОВЧ and 1, 2 ФИОР (1894): The forms were modeled after 25 НОВЧ stamp and, therefore, exhibit the same characteristics: left circle of the top left ornament connected to the spike, tiny dot on the first inner leaf of the left branch, right leaf of the second pair of leaves on the right branch touches the petiole.

These differences are significant in the study of these issues as some of them gradually disappear in later issues, but more importantly, contemporary forgeries don’t exhibit them.

CONTEMPORARY FORGERIES
	Allegedly originating from Germany, these forgeries are larger in size, printed on thin paper, having improvised perforation and fantasy cancellations. Moreover, they don’t exhibit any of the signs that are characteristic of printing plates.
	Probably the “Geneva forgery” (by Fournier), identified by lithography printing on thin, soft, porous paper. Plate characteristics, typical for these denominations, are also absent.

As the same forms were used for printing multiple issues, the same flaws might appear between different groups of printings.

CONSTANT VARIETIES
3 НОВЧ
I		White dot in front of numeral 3, letter Ч in НОВЧ joined with the bottom frame.
		Field №: 81
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: also on 3 НОВЧ carmine (1898 issue).
		Value €: 15
7 НОВЧ
I		White line between letters Г and O in ГОРА.
		Field №: ?
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: another example.
		Value €: 8
25 НОВЧ
I		Colored horizontal line on letter Ч in НОВЧ.
		Field №: ?
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: the same occurrence was noted on multiple stamps in a pane. This might as well be a type. Also on 25 НОВЧ dark blue (1898 issue).
		Value €: 4

UNLISTED VARIETIES
5 НОВЧ
1	Right frame, next to letters ГО in ГОРА broken.
10 НОВЧ
1	Numeral 1 connected to inner frame, on top.
2	Letter В in НОВЧ partially white.
3	White dot on the left side of the letter T in ПОШТЕ missing. (Note: noticed on multiple original stamps.)
15 НОВЧ
1	Frame above letter П in ПОШТЕ wavy. (Note: white inner frame, left from П in ПОШТЕ, not connected to top left ornament. This occurrence is was noted on all 15 НОВЧ stamps of the second group that we have.)
2	Big colored spot on letter O of ГОРЕ.
3	The lowest horizontal stroke of letter E in БИЉЕГА broken.
4	White spot on the lowest horizontal stroke of letter E in БИЉЕГА.

COINCIDENTAL VARIETIES
1	Gone through paper print. (3 НОВЧ stamp, 1898)

400 years from the introduction of printing in Montenegro.

The Crnojević printing house was founded by Đurađ Crnojević, the lord of Zeta, in 1493. To commemorate the 400th anniversary from founding, overprinted stamps were issued. There were three editions that differentiate by typography of letters in overprints.

Stamps were overprinted in State Printing Works in Cetinje with a form of 25 overprints in 5 x 5 layout. Letters and numerals in overprints were mostly damaged and the exact position in a pane can be easily determined.

TYPES OF OVERPRINTS
The 3rd overprinting form, all values			Field number
I		Letter ј of Штампарије damaged at the bottom.	1
II		Letter П of Прослава damaged at top,	2
IV		Dot on the letter П of Прослава.	4
XI		Letter в of Прослава damaged on top, letter j of Штампарије damaged at the bottom, numeral 9 in 1493 deformed.	11
III	Numeral 1 in 1493 damaged at the bottom.		3
V	Numeral 3 in 1893 damaged on top.		5
VI	Numeral 1 in 1493 larger, letter т Штампарије larger.		6
VII	Letter c in Прослава damaged on top, letter л in Прослава narrow, letter и in Штампарије with horizontal lines on top and at bottom.		7
VIII	Letter ј in Штампарије damaged at the bottom.		8
IX	Second part of the horizontal line of letter Ш in Штампарије missing.		9
X	Letter т in Штампарије large, letter м in Штампарије small.		10
XII	Dot inside letter e in Штампарије.		12
XIII	No flaws.		13
XIV	Letter л in Прослава damaged at the bottom, Second part of the horizontal line of letter Ш in Штампарије missing.		14
XV	The first letter a in Прослава damaged at the bottom, letter л in Прослава narrow.		15
XVI		Numeral 9 in 1893 in antique font, numeral 4 in 1493 larger.	16
XVII		Letter м in Штампарије without the right serif.	17
XXI		Numeral 4 in 1493 larger, the first letter a Штампарије deformed.	21
XXIII		Right vertical stroke of letter П in Прослава without serif.	23
XXIV		Letter л in Прослава damaged, letter т in Штампарије without top left serif, letter е in Штампарије damaged at bottom.	24
XXV		Letters Пр in Прослава larger, numeral 9 in 1893 prolonged at the bottom.	25

CONSTANT VARIETIES OF OVERPRINTS
The 3rd overprinting form (all values)
I		Distance between letters j and e in Штампарије wider (1½ mm).
		Field №: 11	Pane: N/A
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 35

UNLISTED VARIETIES
1	Colored dot in letter м in Штампарије.
2	Colored dot in letter л in Прослава.
3	Letter т in Штампарије small.

COINCIDENTAL VARIETIES
1	Shifted/tilted overprint.
2	Overprint partially missing.

The Constitution issue

In the year 1905 the sovereign prince Nikola I. Petrović introduced a constitution and Montenegro thus became a constitutional monarchy. The constitution was declared on 6 December, on the day when Serbian Orthodox Church celebrates Saint Nicholas day. (Interestingly, in available literature there is a discrepancy regarding the official date of issue: the Yugoslav stamp catalog states the 6 December, while in other sources, the 5 December is recorded.)

Se-tentant examples of mixed overprints of 1905 and 1906

To commemorate the event of the introduction of the constitution, the Montenegrin authorities ordered overprinting of stamps of the 1902 definitive issue, postage dues and stamps for return receipt (AR). The stamps were overprinted in letterpress in red or black color. The word УСТАВ means constitution and the word Никољдан refers to Saint Nicholas day. Stamps were overprinted in several runs which resulted in different types of overprints.

In the first run, stamps were overprinted in panes of 25 stamps by Type I overprint. Stamps of this run were first to appear in post offices, on the day of the issue. As the overprinting of stamps was progressing slowly, it was decided to start overprinting panes of 100 stamps with the same form (Type I), this is regarded as the second run, put in circulation on the 13 December 1905. Later, another form was used, in which Types II-V appear throughout the pane. The second form was used for the next three runs which were delivered to post offices on 16 January, 20 February and 5 September 1906 respectively. The setting of the second form was different for each of these three runs (types are appearing in different fields within a pane).

Very interesting are examples of se-tenant stamps with mixed overprints of 1905 and 1906. The examples presented in a box to the right have a certificate of examination.

TYPES OF OVERPRINTS – ALL VALUES
Type I (1905): letter C of Constitution not aligned with 1905 at the bottom	Type II (1906): letter C and 1905 aligned at the bottom, length of word УСТАВ 9¾, spacing between letters У and С in УСТАВ regular.	Type III (1906): letter C and 1905 aligned at the bottom, length of word УСТАВ 11¼, spacing between letters У and С in УСТАВ wider.	Type IV (1906): letter C and 1905 aligned at the bottom, length of word УСТАВ 10¼, letter С in УСТАВ opened.	Type V (1906): letter C and 1905 aligned at the bottom, length of word УСТАВ 8½, word УСТАВ smaller with in bold letters.

CONSTANT VARIETIES OF OVERPRINTS – THE PRINT RUN OF 1905 (TYPE I)
I		Letter Љ in НИКОЉДАН deformed.
		Field №: 45, 50, 95, 100	Pane: N/А
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: the last position of initial overprinting form of 25 stamps (5×5 layout).
		Value €: 10
II		Word НИКОЉДАН standing lower.
		Field №: 21, 46, 91, 96	Pane: N/A
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 10
CONSTANT VARIETIES OF OVERPRINTS – THE FIRST PRINT RUN OF 1906 (TYPE II)
I		Thick zero in 1905.
		Field №: 1, 19, 27, 38, 51, 53	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 3
II		Black dot on letter Т in УСТАВ.
		Field №: 6	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 6,5
III		Second letter n in Constitution short.
		Field №: 53	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 4
IV		Letter v instead of У in УСТАВ, letter С thin.
		Field №: 56	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 7
V		First letter i in Constitution missing – Const tution.
		Field №: 66	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 10
VI		Second letter i in Constitution missing – Constitut on.
		Field №: 69	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 10
VII		Letter t in place of the second letter i in Consistution – Consistutton.
		Field №: 79	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 15
VIII		First letter n in Constitution inverted – Coustitution.
		Field №: 86	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: also on 2 heller stamp.
		Value €: 10
IX		Word Никољдан positioned lower.
		Field №: 96	Pane: Return receipt stamp, first run of 1906
		Other nomenclatures: –
		Notes: –
		Value €: 10

COINCIDENTAL VARIETIES
1	Shifted overprint.

OTHER OCCURRENCES
1	Deformed letters.

References

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Bibliography

1. Katalog poštanskih maraka jugoslovenskih zemalja (1991), Jugomarka (Belgrade), YU ISSN 0351-4447.
2. Priručnik maraka Jugoslavenskih zemalja. Tome X. Crna Gora, 1954, Filatelistički savez Hrvatske, Zagreb.
3. Žiberna, Vid (2017): Priložnostna izdaja ob uvedbi prve ustave v Črni gori leta 1905 – sotiski pretiskov iz leta 1905 in 1906. Filatelistično društvo Ljubljana, Filatelistični zbornik XXVII/2017 (p. 103-115). ISSN: 0352-4175