{"product_id":"great-britain-1870-d-rose-p14-sg49apl4-24","title":"Great Britain 1870 ½d rose Plate 4 very fine used, SG49a","description":"\u003cp\u003eGreat Britain 1870 ½d rose Plate 4, SG49a.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA very fine used imperforate example lettered \"AX\", neatly cancelled by a N.P.B.O. handstamp.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eA major imperforate variety of the famous \u003c\/span\u003e\"Bantam\"\u003cspan\u003e issue. While the normal perforated Plate 4 is readily available used, imperforate examples are very rare genuinely postally used, the great majority of surviving examples having been preserved unused.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAccompanied by a 1978 Royal Philatelic Society (RPS) Certificate of Authenticity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSG Catalogue Value: £1,000.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe ½d stamps, first issued on 1 October 1870, were the first halfpenny stamp. It was introduced to cover a reduction in the postal rate for newspapers and postcards. It was designed to be approximately half the size of the penny stamps and is famous for being the smallest British postage stamp ever issued at 17.5mm x 14mm.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe stamps were given the nickname \"Bantams\" due to their small size. Because of their size, the sheets were perforated from side to side rather than top to bottom, with the A column normally inserted first.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThe stamps were watermarked with the word \"halfpenny\" that extended across three stamps. The ½d rose red stamps were replaced in 1880 by the surface printed halfpenny green stamps.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Paul Fraser Collectibles","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45501732192481,"sku":"P11210391","price":500.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1645\/0221\/files\/RS4086.jpg?v=1721054847","url":"https:\/\/www.paulfrasercollectibles.com\/products\/great-britain-1870-d-rose-p14-sg49apl4-24","provider":"Paul Fraser Collectibles","version":"1.0","type":"link"}