Identifying the St. Lucia King George V Pictorial Set issues is very simple. There are no listed color shades, all of the stamps have the same watermark, so you only need to sort by perforations on the three lower values which were issued in a different perforation for use as coils. This set of stamps that has always been one of my favorites because of it's designs and color coordination.

Identifying perforations can be done using several methods. Technically, the perforation number listed is based on the number of holes in a 2 centimeter length. To measure this, you can use a ruler and count the holes; or there are gauges that identify the number. Stanley Gibbons makes the Instanta Gauge that is a continuum of lines. This is fairly accurate because you can slide the stamp along the gauge until the perfs line up with the lines. It will give you a measurement anywhere along the scale, so it is very good for stamps that seem to fall between one or another perforation. Other gauges are based on the size of the hole. These have pre sized black dots that can be inserted behind the stamp. To measure the perforation you simple find the set of holes that best match up with the stamp. Personally the Instanta Gauge is my favorite because of it's greater level of accuracy.

Unlike modern stamps which are issued in the millions, definitive sets from this time period were issued very conservatively. I do not have the print quantities for these issues. This set was issued in 1936 and replaced in 1938 with the King George VI set, so there was not a lot of time for many printings. Please feel free to supply the print quantities if you have them.

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 dates are 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.

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