Engraving, tagging and embossing on 2022-23 duck stamp

Philatelic Foreword by Jay Bigalke

In my Philatelic Foreword column in the June 27 Linn’s, I highlighted the fact that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Duck Stamp Office was bringing engraving back to the federal duck stamp for 2022.

Based on information from the duck office, the new 2022-23 duck stamp was to have engraved, repeating text in the water below the drake redhead. And that is true, but there is even more going on with the stamp.

The large $25 denomination is also engraved and looks crisp on the examples I have seen. And in person, the repeating text is lighter and very interesting to look at under a magnifying glass.

Another cool feature is the tagging. When viewing the stamp under shortwave ultraviolet light, you can see an oval shape with a textured pattern. A photograph, which doesn’t do the feature justice compared to seeing the actual stamp, is shown here.

Also evident was the use of embossing on the stamp, which is very small, but noticeable. One of the six small ducks in flight at the top of the stamp art is lightened and embossed. A photograph of that feature is shown nearby.

For the $25 price tag, and knowing the funds are going to a good place, this new duck stamp is a treasure for the stamp album.

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