Perforation Variety on Energy Saving Building Stamps

Pos Malaysia released a set of stamps (30s, 50s and RM1) on topic of Energy Saving Buildings on 9 September 2009. These stamps come with two types of perforation size - P13.25 X 13.75 and P14 x 14. The quantity of each perforation size should be the same because both perforation types can be found on a single stamp sheet in equal number. 

perforation size: P13.25 X 13.75

horizontal edge has 19 pin holes and vertical edge has 33 pin holes

type A stamp

perforation size: P14 x 14

horizontal edge has 20 pin holes and vertical edge has 34 pin holes

type B stamp

30 sen stamp sheet

The stamps were printed in the format of 20-stamp sheet (four rows with 5 stamps in each row). The top two stamp rows have type A stamps (P13.25 X 13.75) and the bottom two stamp rows have type B stamps (P14 X 14). Therefore, the two perforation types are in equal number. This type of perforation arrangement is applied on all the 30s, 50s and RM1 stamps.

stamp sheet with perforation arrangement 1

the top two stamp rows have type A stamps (P13.25 X 13.75) and the bottom two stamp rows have type B stamps (P14 X 14)

red line indicates perforation P13.25, blue line indicates perforation P13.75 and green line indicates perforation P14

Nevertheless, I acquired a 30s stamp sheet with only type A stamps (P13.25 X 13.75). I am not sure if this type of perforation arrangement also applies on the 50s and RM1 stamp sheets. I am happy to know if you come across this type of perforation arrangement for 50s and RM1stamp sheet.

30 sen stamp sheet with perforation arrangement 2

all the four stamp rows have type A stamps (P13.25 X 13.75)

red line indicates perforation P13.25 and blue line indicates perforation P13.75

1-Malaysia Stamps - Pin Hole Arrangement

The perforation of the 1-Malaysia stamps is of elliptical pin hole format (at vertical side), and they come with type different types of pin hole arrangement according the number of pin holes above and below the elliptical pin hole (see below). 

Sources:

A = 20-stamp sheet

B & C = stamp booklet

Special Stamps of Malaysia - Spiders

Tiger Stamps - Watermark and Perforation Varities

The tiger stamps issued on February 23, 2010 have varieties of watermark and perforation. A complete collection for all the watermark and perforation varieties consists of six stamps.




50s Siberian/Korean Tiger
- P13.5; wmk sideway up
- P13.5; wmk sideway down

50s Malayan Tiger
- P13.5; wmk sideway up
- P13.5; wmk sideway down
- P13.5 but P14 at right; wmk sideway up
- P13.5 but P14 at right; wmk sideway down

My Favourite Choices of Malaysia 2009 Stamp Sets

I put up a poll for Most Favourite Malaysia 2009 Stamp Sets, and the results can be viewed here. I was the person who originated the poll, therefore I did not cast my vote.

Well, I think I should voice up my own favourite stamp sets, shouldn't I? My choices of stamp sets are:
i) Unique Birds
ii) Garden Flower State Definitive MS
iii) UNESCO WHS

Bird stamps are always my favourite topic. The bird stamps from Pos Malaysia are always gorgeous, particularly those designed by Teh Yew Kiang. These unique bird stamps and miniature sheet are work of Teh Yew Kiang! The miniature sheet portrays hornbills, which is another scoring point because I just love hornbills. The hornbill species in the stamp of the miniature sheet is a plain-pouched hornbill, and this is the first time plain-pouched hornbill being depicted on Malaysia stamp! Apart from all these, the unintentional error (missing the country name Malaysia) created on the miniature sheet has made this stamp set well known throughout the world. So, this stamp set is definitely my first choice.

My second choice is Garden Flower State Definitive MS. Well, this is actually a re-issued stamp set. The original stamp set was released on December 31, 2007. Many collectors find this stamp set was unneccessary. I do agree with them. For me, however, these Garden Flower State Definitives are just too gorgeous to be resisted, and I always have deep passion on definitive stamps. The Agro-Based Product State Definitives are one of those challenging ones for many collectors. It looks like the Garden Flower State Definitives are going to be on the same path as the Agro-Based Product State Definitives - posing same challenging task for collectors. All the stamps in the Garden Flower State Definitive MS are considered new stamps for serious collectors because the gum used in these stamps (brown gum) is different from the one (green/creamy gum) in the original stamps. Furthermore, the change of ruler's portrait for Negeri Sembilan on the re-issued stamps makes a bonus point to this stamp set. Now, many serious collectors are eagerly waiting for the reprints (100-stamp-sheet) of the Garden Flower State Definitive stamps.

My third choice is UNESCO WHS stamp set. These UNESCO WHS stamps are absolutely beautiful. The bonus point is the use of UNESCO WHS logo on the stamps. It is just like the WWF stamps with WWF logo. I foresee the popularity of UNESCO WHS (with logo) stamps in future as those of the WWF stamps. I particularly like the stamp showing Mt. Kinabalu. It reminds me very much my experience of climbing the Mt. Kinabalu in April 2003..... I reached the top of the mountain..... it was a tough and joyful experience for me, and it will stay deep in my memory for the rest of my life......

Stamp Poll - Favourite Stamp Sets of Malaysia Issued in 2009

I put up a poll roughly one and a half months ago on the most favourite stamp sets of Malaysia issued in year 2009. Visitors to the blog were asked to choose three most favourite stamp sets. After one and a half long months of polling, 37 times of vote casting had been recorded. I noted that not all vote casting followed strictly the instruction (some only chose one stamp set). Nevertheless, I thank all of you who had taken part in the poll. Here is the result:




The Spider (Arachnid) stamp set is at the top of the ranking (17 votes), this followed closely by Unique Birds (15 votes) and the Traditional Houses (11 votes). The most unfavourite stamp set is the Installation of Yang Dipertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan (0 vote). The stamp set on Silver Jubilee of Sultan of Perak is also not doing well with only 1 vote. The other not popular stamp sets are Tuber Plants, Submarine and Zero Energy Building (2 votes each).

The Spider stamp set tops the list may due to the hexagon shaped of miniature sheet and the nice design of the stamps. The stamp set was the last issue of year 2009, and the collectors (strictly speaking the visitors who had taken part in the poll) have fresh memory of the stamp set. I would not be surprised to see the Unique Bird stamp set is also in the top list. The "error" miniature sheet must still have the effect on the mind of the vote casters! 1-Malaysia stamp set is attractive, and the stamps are just cute and the die-cut "1" shaped of miniature sheet tends to attract attention.

I shall conduct similar stamp poll for year 2010. I sincerely urge those who had taken part in this poll to continue doing so in the coming stamp poll (most likely I will put up the poll in the end of December 2010). Those who has not taken part are encouraged to do so for the next poll as well.

Happy collecting.......

Malaysia 2009 Issues - Conclusion

Malaysia stamp issueing programme for 2009 has come to an end. Altogether 16 stamp issues, two overprints for stamp exhibitions and one souvenir cover had been released for year 2009. So, how do you grade the stamp issues of 2009 by Pos Malaysia? I'm doing a survey on the favourite Malaysia 2009 stamp issues. I'll be grateful if you could take some of your time to fill up the survey form on the right side of the blog.


1. Unique Birds - 21.01.2009 [set + ms]
2. Silver Juilee of Sultan Perak - 03.02.2009 [set]
3. Traditional Wedding Costumes - 23.03.2009 [set + booklet]
4. UNESCO World Heritage Sites - 09.04.2009 [set + ms]
5. Engineering Excellence in Nation Building - 20.04.2009 [set]
6. Palm Trees - 19.05.2009 [set + ms]
7. Conservation of Nature - 18.06.2009 [set]
8. Traditional Houses - 09.07.2009 [set]
9. Tuber Plants - 23.07.2009 [set + ms]
10. Malaysian Unity: 1-Malaysia - 31.08.2009 [set + booklet + ms]
11. Malaysian First Submarine - 03.09.2009 [set]
12. Zero Energy Building - 09.09.2009 [set]
13. Caring Society: Rights of the Child - 09.10.2009 [set]
14. Installation of Yang DiPertuan Besar Negeri Sembilan - 26.10.2009 [set]
15. State Definitive Stamps - Collection Series - 24.11.2009 [ms]
16. Stamp Week 2009 - Arachnid - 07.12.2009 [set + ms]

17. Overprint China 2009 - 10-16.04.2009 [ms]
18. 35 Years of Diplomatic Relationship of Malaysia-China - 31.05.2009 [cover]
19. Overprint Philakorea 09 - 30.07-04.08.2009 [ms]

Malaysia 2009 - Stamp Week 2009: Arachnid

Pos Malaysia released a set of 4 stamps and a miniature sheet on December 7, 2009. This stamp issue is for the annual programme - Stamp Week. This year Stamp Week programme is being held at Dataran Pahlawan, Melaka on December 7-13, 2009. The 4 stamps depict 4 different spider species (Gasteracantha arcuata, Thiania bhamoensis, Argiope versicolor and Nephila maculata) while the miniature sheet has a scopion stamp (Heterometru longimanus) and a spider (Cyriopagopus schioedtei) on the border. The RM5 stamp in the miniature sheet has a hexagon shape and the scopion image is embrossed on the stamp. Different types of perforation occur on these stamps. I will talk about it in another blog entry.

Malaysia 2009 - State Definitive (Re-issued)

Pos Malaysia released state definitive stamps on November 24, 2009 for all the 13 states (Perlis, Kedah, Pulau Pinang, Perak, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan, Melaka, Johor, Pahang, Terengganu, Kelantan, Sabah dan Sawarark) and federal territory (Wilayah Persekutaan). The stamps are issued in format of mini sheetlet containing six stamps (5s, 10s, 20s, 30s, 40s and 50s). This stamp issue is a re-issue of the stamps released on December 31, 2007. Actually, all the stamps in this re-issue are the same as those issued on December 31, 2007 except the stamps for Negeri Sembilan. In the original issue, the portrait of Tuanku Jaafar was on the stamps, but for this issue the portrait of Tuanku Muhriz appears on the stamps. Apart from this, the gum used in this mini sheetlet is brown colour compared to those original ones in creamy green colour. Basically, the Negeri Sembilan stamps are considered as "new" stamps in strict sense. These mini sheetlets were sold in package. One package is priced at RM25 containing 14 mini sheetlets (one mini sheetlet one state) and a blank first day cover. The 14 mini sheetlets are presented in a small cute envelop.


portrait of Tuanku Muhriz is on the stamps for Negeri Sembilan set


the small cute envelop containing 14 mini sheetlets

Malaysia 2009 - Installation of Yamtuan of Negeri Sembilan

Pos Malaysia released a set of three stamps on October 26, 2009 to commemorate the installation of Yamtuan of Negeri Sembilan. This issue is important as it signifies the use of Tuanku Muhriz portrait in the next coming issue of state definitive (re-issue of Garden Flower stamps). This is to replace the late Tuanku Jaafar portrait in the state definitive issue for Negeri Sembilan.

Malaysia 2009 - Rights of the Child

Pos Malaysia released a set of 5 stamps on October 9, 2009 to commemorate 20th Anniversary of Convention on the Rights of the Child. One of the stamps with denomination RM1 is special because the stamp bares braille emboss. This is the first time for Malaysian stamp to have braille emboss. These stamps have also the inscription of UNICEF logo. They are simply gorgeous, I think.

Malaysia 2009 - Energy Efficient Buildings

Pos Malaysia released a set of three stamps on September 9, 2009. The 30 sen stamps depicts Green Energy Office (GEO) Building in Bandar Baru Bangi; the 50 sen stamp on the Low Energy Office (LEO) Building in Putrajaya; and the RM1 stamp on Diamond Building Suruhanjaya Tenaga in Putrajaya. All the three stamps have two types of perforations which can be found in a single sheet.

Malaysia 2009 - The 1st Submarine of Malaysia

Pos Malaysia released a set of three stamps (one type in denomination 30 sen and two types in denomination 50 sen) on September 3, 2009 to commemorate the first submarine of Malaysia. The submarine is named as Kapal Diraja Tunku Abdul Rahman (KD TAR).

Malaysia 2009 - 1-Malaysia

Pos Malaysia released a stamp issue on August 31, 2009 on topic of 1-Malaysia on occassion of National Day. All the post offices throughout the countries were close for business on August 31, 2009 except the philately counter at Pasar Seni. So, the stamp issue was launched on August 31, 2009 at Pasar Seni. However, the sale of stamps was mainly done on September 1, 2009. Five types of stamps (all in denomination 30 sen) and one miniature sheet were released. Three types of stamps were printed in sheet-of-20 format while these three types with additional of two types of stamps were printed in booklet format. The minature sheet (denomination RM5) was in format of die-cut with a shape of "1". The five types of stamps are interesting because they come with different watermark and perforation. I shall explain these watermark and perforation varieties in another blog entry later.

three types of stamps from sheet-of-20 format

die-cut miniature sheet

a strip of 5 stamps from stamp booklet

the front of the stamp booklet

Malaysia 2009 - Tuber Plants

Pos Malaysia released tuber plant stamps on July 23, 2009. The stamp issue contains four stamps (two types of each of 30 sen and 50 sen) and a miniature sheet (RM3). Five tuber plants appear on the stamps and miniature sheet, i.e. sweet potato, cassava, yam bean, yam and cocoyam. The stamps and miniature sheet are printed with unwatermarked paper and flourescent makred with Pos Malaysia logo of that of the palm tree stamps.

cassava (Manihot esculenta)
sweet potato Ipomoea batatas
yam (Dioscorea alata)
yam bean (Pachyrrhizus erosus)
cocoyam (Colocasia esculenta)

Malaysia 2009 - Traditional Houses

Pos Malaysia released her 8th stamp issue on July 9, 2009 on theme of traditional houses. Altogether 16 different stamps with denomination 50 sen each (face value for one single set is RM8) are printed in a single sheetlet. This issue is one of the most expensive commemorative stamp sets Pos Malaysia has ever issued. SPM watermarked paper was used in the printing of the stamps. The 16 stamps portraying 16 traditional houses were issued as follow:

1) Malaya traditional house - Selangor
2) Dusun lotus traditional house - Sabah
3) Kutai house - Perak
4) Twelve pillars house - Kelantan
5) Iban long house - Sarawak
6) Semai house - Pahang
7) Limas house - Johor
8) Long house - Kedah
9) Limas bungkus house - Terengganu
10) Adat Minangkabau house - Negeri Sembilan
11) Elephant milking verandah house - Pulau Pinang
12) Long roofed house - Perak
13) Melaka Malay house - Melaka
14) Bajau Laut house - Sabah
15) Verandah house - Pahang
16) Bidayuh headhouse - Sarawak

Malaysia 2009 - Conservation of Nature

Pos Malaysia released a set of three stamps on June 18, 2009 illustrating the importance of nature conservation. Three elements of nature are portrayed in the stamps - air, water and forest. By the way, these stamps also have the same flourescent mark as that of the palm tree stamps.

Clean Water - Conserving Marine Life
Fresh Air - Conserving Air
Go Green - Conserving Rainforest

Malaysia 2009 - Palm Trees

Pos Malaysia released a set of three stamps and a miniature sheet on May 19, 2009. This is the 6th stamp issue of Malaysia for year 2009. The stamps have denomination 50 sen depicting three different palm species and the miniature sheet with denomination RM3 depicting two palm species. The stamp in the miniature sheet is in L-shape. I've learnt that the miniature sheet will be overprinted for Korean stamp exhibition in August 2009.

Caryota mitis
Livistona saribus
Licuala grandis
Livistona endauensis and Johannesteijismannia altifrons

Malaysia 2009 - Engineering Excellence in Nation Building

Pos Malaysia released her 5th stamp issue for year 2009 on April 20, 2009. A set of 6 stamps (3 setenant pairs) portraying highway, bridge, dam, sea port, airport, railway, telecommunication and power were issued.

telecommunication and power
sea port, airport and railway
road, bridge and dam

Malaysia 2009 - UNESCO World Heritage Sites

Pos Malaysia released her 4th stamp issue for year 2009 on April 9, 2009 on topic of UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Four stamps (all with denomination 50 sen) and one miniature sheet (containing four stamps and also all with denomination 50 sen) were issued. These stamps and miniature sheet portray the three UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Malaysia namely Mulu Park (listed in 2000), Kinabalu Park (listed in 2000) and Historic Cities of the Straits of Malacca (listed in 2008). I have to say that I love these stamps because they are just simply beautiful!


left: Banda Hilir, Melaka; right: George Town, Penang
left: Mulu Park; right: Kinabalu Park
from top to bottom: Bandar Hilir, Melaka; Kinabalu Park; George Town Penang; Mulu Park