Identifying stamps from the Jamaica King Edward VII Coat of Arms issues is a matter of determining between two watermark options, and then sorting the color of the stamps. The image was redrawn in 1906, but it is easily determined because the colors were changed to a single color instead of a blackish center. The design used was a replacement for the keyplate design that used for the stamps issued during and after Queen Victoria's reign. The stamps were initially issued beginning in 1903 until they were replaced by the King George V issues in 1912.

If you have trouble determining the watermarks, try looking at them face down against black paper. The stamps watermarked Crown CA will always be centered fairly well on the stamp, and the design does not repeat, so even if you can not see the entire watermark, the CA will always be toward the bottom, instead of letters to the sides for the watermark Multiple Crown CA. See the images of the two watermarks below for reference. They are shown as normally seen from the back.

Color shades can be difficult to sort, especially when you only have a couple of stamps to compare. They typically occur when the stamps are printed after the initial printing. Today we have computer color matching, but during this time it was done by hand with components that might differ from the original ink formula. I like to place the stamps against black and then white paper and view them under a strong light. The images shown attempt to show the colors, but they do not show them as well as viewing the stamps in person. So use the images as relative indicators. I do not agree with the color descriptions of every stamp, but they were copied as they were written for consistency purposes.

Unlike modern stamps which are issued in the millions, definitive sets from this time period were issued very conservatively. A total of 17,040 of the 5/ stamps in both color shades were produced, so this is a fairly uncommon set.

The catalog numbers are from the 1980 Commonwealth Five Reigns Catalogue (CW), 2013 Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue (SG) and the 2011 Scott catalog (ST). The description and print quantity is from the Commonwealth Catalogue. Please contact Bridger & Kay to obtain a copy of this publication. You can access the other publishers using the "Links to British Colonial Stamp Sites" at the bottom of this page. The catalogues list these stamps by watermark, so you will note the order seems different than you might be used to seeing. For this article, the stamps were listed by value and in order of the date they were issued.

The images were saved in a larger size and at a higher resolution so you can more easily see the details used in sorting them. Please be patient if it takes a few minutes for this page to load.

This article was written to help you identify your stamps.
Please feel free to ask a question, or include a correction.