Danish Advertising Panes by James A. Gaudet. 8 ¾ by 11 ½ inches, 230 plus xxiv pages, hardbound, Scandinavian Philatelic Foundation, Exton PA 2005, ISBN 0-936493-19-4. $65 postpaid in the USA from Scandinavian Philatelic Foundation, PO Box 39, Exton PA 19341.

This book is the culmination of many years of collecting and researching these special issues of Denmark by the author. He has won gold medals and research awards for his exhibits of this material.

During the period 1927 to 1934, Denmark issued booklets of stamps that carried advertising labels se-tenant with definitive postage stamps. The collecting of pairs and multiples of these issues on and off cover has been a highly specialized niche among students of Danish philately.

The advertisers included automobile manufacturers, insurance companies, a coal and coke firm, a popular newspaper, a candy manufacturer, and a charity among others. Author Gaudet has built on the earlier work of Niels Finn Olsen and others on the plate flaws of the wavy-line definitives. He then takes these advertising issues to a new level of understanding.

Following a glossary of terms, the background of advertising stamps is presented along with observations on format and pricing. Production details include printing plate assembly, proofs, plate flaws, fabrication numbers, watermarks, perforation, and distribution and sale of the stamps. A chapter is devoted to the sponsoring advertisers and their booklets.

The bulk of the book details the plate flaws of the stamps as well as the advertising labels with excellent illustrations and tables. The vast number of varieties found and described in such detail reflects the serious study over many, many years that the author has invested in his subject.

One interesting chapter suggests ways for collectors to begin in this complex field by limiting focus to such areas as proofs, errors, on-cover usage, socked-on-the-nose cancels, etc. Some dazzling usages are shown near the end of the book such as Sunday covers, combination franking, and foreign destinations.

As detailed and seemingly complete as this book appears to be, the author suggests areas for continued study such as additional printing background-- possibly from the printer’s archives, earliest known uses, when the flaws first appeared, and census data among others.

References and sources appear at the end of the book. This highly specialized study, nicely laid out and illustrated, sets a good standard for detailed plate studies of other issues.

Alan Warren