Philatelic Foreword by Jay Bigalke

Scott catalog editors knew something was going to be different about the coil versions of the Wild Orchids forever stamps issued Feb. 21. Because the coils consist of 10 stamp designs with a plate number interval of 27, we knew a decision would have to be made quickly to alert collectors and dealers what a plate number strip and strip of 10 would look like.

An article by Scott new issues editor Martin J. Frankevicz with the details of that decision, “Wild Orchids coils challenge Scott editors,” was published in the March 16 monthly Linn’s Stamp News.

I thought it might interest collectors to know what when on behind the scenes in order to make this decision and make it public just days after the stamps were issued.

On Thursday, Feb. 20, I placed an order for a strip of 500 Wild Orchids coil stamps. The order was promptly shipped that day and arrived in Ohio on Saturday, Feb. 22. First thing Monday morning, Frankevicz, Linn’s editor Michael Baadke, Scott album team members, and I met in a conference room to determine what a plate number would be and how we would show the stamps in the 2020 album pages.

I have to admit it was pretty cool to unroll a large part of the coil across a boardroom table to look at it.

By midmorning Frankevicz completed the article. It was then edited and promptly posted online so collectors and dealers could use it as a reference point for trimming down the stamps they had purchased.

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