Page 2 - The Rouletted Issues of Chile

THE ROULETTED ISSUES OF CHILE 1877-1903

1877 Issue (American Bank Note Co.)

Up to 1877 Chilean postage stamps had been printed and perforated by the American Bank Note Co. in New
York but from I 877 to I 903 the stamps were rouletted. The new design was executed by a Chilean artist and
only five values were printed initially (l,2,5,10 & 20 centavos) as a direct follow on to the 1867 issue. A 50
centavo value was added later in 1878 to satisfy parcel post requirements. Chile did not join the Universal Postal
Union until 1881 and so the colours of the 1877 issue were not in line with UPU directives.
Nine million of the stamps were ordered and they were received in August 1877, although their use was not
authorized until Sept. l 4th 1877.

1880 Issue (American Bank Note Co.)

In 1880 Chile joined the UPU and the colours of the low values had accordingly to be changed. In addition there
was a design change in that all the new supplies were to be the same design as the recently issued 50 centavos
stamp (that is without the bar across the value tablet). The 5 centavos carmine first appeared on Nov. l 6th 1880,
and was replaced by the 5c blue on July 1 Oth 1883. The 30c rose did not appear until May 1889.
All the ABN printings are of top quality with virtually no re-entries or plate scratches, although some shade
varieties do exist, especially on the 5c blue and IOc yellow.

1900 Issue (Waterlow)
This issue represented a complete break from the preceding ABN stamps and was used on mail well into the
first decade of the 20th century. Unlike the ABN stamps, the Waterlow stamps exhibit many plate scratches and
re-entries. In addition, a design error by Waterlow gave rise to two distinct forms of shading above the head.