Overrun Countries Stamps Appraisal

1943-44 United States Overrun Countries Issue Stamp Set

This is a collection of 13 United States postage stamps, known as the 'Overrun Countries Series,' mounted on a philatelic album page. Issued between 1943 and 1944, each 5-cent stamp features the national flag of a country occupied by Axis powers during World War II: Poland, Czechoslovakia, Norway, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Greece, Yugoslavia, Albania, Austria, Denmark, and Korea. The stamps are characterized by a standardized grey-violet frame border depicting the Phoenix (symbolizing rebirth) and a kneeling figure breaking the chains of oppression. The center flags are printed in their natural multicolored format via a flat-bed press process, while the borders were printed via rotogravure, making these the first multicolored stamps produced by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing since the 1869 pictorials. The album page is white with black typographic headings and subheadings. The stamps appear to be in Mint Hinged (MH) or Mint Never Hinged (MNH) condition, displayed within protective mounts or directly hinged. There is no visible foxing on the paper or significant perforation damage common to this age. The centering of the stamps appears mostly 'Fine to Very Fine' (F-VF), with the French and Austrian stamps showing slightly better margin symmetry than the Polish issue. This set represents a significant piece of WWII-era propaganda and philatelic history.