Description: This vintage semi-postal stamp from New Zealand features a beautifully engraved dual portrait of the youthful royal siblings, Princess Elizabeth (the future Queen Elizabeth II) on the right and Princess Margaret Rose on the left. Line-engraved in a vibrant bright blue monochrome ink, the sisters are depicted in their formal Girl Guide uniforms, elegantly framed in the upper corners by cascading sprays of native New Zealand Clematis (Clematis paniculata) blossoms. The lower-left corner displays the postage value as "2D POSTAGE", balanced on the right by the charity surcharge badge reading "HEALTH 1D" to denote its semi-postal fundraising utility. This specific specimen showcases exceptional fresh preservation, boasting clean comb perforations along all four margins and a pristine face completely free of commercial postmark ink cancellations.
Circa: 1944
Condition: Good.
Notes:
This stamp belongs to New Zealand’s highly famous, long-running annual Health Stamp series. The mandatory 1-penny premium collected from every stamp sold bypassed standard postal coffers to directly fund the national Children's Health Camps movement, providing restorative outdoor summer vacations for underprivileged and malnourished youth across the dominion.