SUPREME RARITY - 2 mils coil stamp of the Pictorials series (Ba #90), in grey-blue on thick vertically ribbed paper, perforated 14 x 15; used, tied by 30 March 1930 dated JERUSALEM postmark; exhibiting the classic hallmarks of a machine-vended stamp, with 'shark teeth' deformity at the bottom resulting from the manner in which these stamps were dispensed and detached from vending machines ("gripper mark"). This is the only definitively known 2 mils coil stamp: Bale/Dorfman recorded one known such stamp - but solely based on its paper type, presumed by them to have been used exclusively for machine-vended stamps; this present stamp is confimed by way of its physical hallmarks.
Of note, as per research by this cataloguer (to be published in a forthcoming issue of "JerusalemStamps Bulletin"), contrary to what is written in the philatelic literature that coil stamps were uniquely produced on "vertically ribbed thin semi-transparent paper", this type of paper was also used on ordinary postage stamps and cannot therefore alone be used as a criteria as to whether such a stamp was prepared for vending machines; indeed this cataloguer has also found vending machine coil stamps produced on thick vertically ribbed and even woven paper - the key is to find identifying characteristics of stamp machine dispensation as on this example here. Of note, as per this stamp, the vertical perimeters do not necessarily have to appear guillotined (as a result of their production process into coiled strips of stamps). The only other supposed 2m coil stamp is illustrated at the end of this display, for comparison - it exhibits no characteristics of being a vending machine stamp (note the uncropped vertical perimeters) and was deemed a coil stamp by David Dorfman solely based on its paper type; an illustration of vending machine damaged stamps is also shown at the end. Ben-Arieh certificate enclosed.
