Protected animals series, no’s 6-17

Original printed for the Belgium Congo, 15^th October 1959 (no’s 350-361)

Date of issue: 19 September 1960

Expiration date: 1 July 1961

Design: Jean van Noten (1903-1982)

Paper with silk threads

Printer: Hélio Courvoisier, s.a., La Chaux De Fonds, Switzerland

Overprint by: IMBELCO in Elisabethville (KATANGA)

Perforation: 11.5 x 12

Size: 32.5 x 22.5 or 22.5 x 32.5 mm

Sheet: 100 (10 x 10) <in several catalogue wrongly as 50>

Marginal inscriptions no’s 7, 9, 11, 13, 15 and 17: in color of the stamps on right and on the left margin “Impression Courvoisier S.A., La Chaux – De – Fonds (Suisse).

Marginal inscriptions no’s 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 and 16: in color of the stamps on top and on the bottom margin “Impression Courvoisier S.A., La Chaux – De – Fonds (Suisse).

Circulation: 17.100 series

Remark: no 16 is wrongly (Katanga printed in the bottom) published in O.B.C.

The background color is only indicated

No 6. 10c, blue. Roan antelope-Hippotragus equines

No 7. 20c, orange. White rhino- Ceratotherium simum

No 8. 40c, blue. Giraffe-Artiodactyla

No 9. 50c, blue. Galogo (Bush baby)

No 10. 1F, green. Gorilla

No 11. 1,50F, ochre. Black buffalo-Ictiobus niger

No 12. 2F, red. Colobus monkey-Colobus guereza caudatus

No 13. 3F, lilac gray. Elephant-Loxodonta Africana

No 14. 5F, green. Okapi-Okapia johnstoni

No 15. 6,50F, brown yellow. Impala-Aepyceros melampus

No 16. 8F, lilac. Pangolin-Manis temminckii

No 17. 10F, brown yellow. Moose and zebra

The series:

Varieties:

The whole series exists in reversed overprint (overprint on top), no 16 is the only one known of this series to have also a reversed overprint on the bottom (see scan).

Remark: no’s 10, 12 & 17 of the reversed overprints show the bar directly under KATANGA, if you look at the original overprint, the bar should be placed on the bottom for no 10, and on top for no’s 12 & 17.

Most probably a forgery:

Forgery?. Value not in O.B.C.: