A listing of postage stamps of United States of America depicting design errors.
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1893 (month unknown)
United States of America
3-cent stamp of Christipher Columbus' ship Santa Maria shows flag blowing in opposite direction of the wind.
Catalog numbers: Scott 232
Approximate value: US$15.00.
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1898 June 17
United States of America
$1 stamp with caption "Western Cattle in Storm" does not depict a scene from the USA, but is from a painting of cattle in the Scottish Highlands by John A. MacWhirter.
Catalog numbers: Scott 292
Approximate value: US$650.00.
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1926 October 18
United States of America
2-cent stamp depicts scene of the Battle of White Plains, October 28, 1776, but shows the "Stars and Stripes" flag of June 1777.
Catalog numbers: Scott 629
Approximate value: US$1.70.
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1944 May 10
United States of America
3-cent stamp marks the 75th anniversary of the completion of the first transcontinental railroad, showing the wind blowing the smoke and the flag in opposite directions.
Catalog numbers: Scott 922
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1948 May 28
United States of America
3-cent stamp depicts the sinking of the US Army Transport Dorchester, but the ship sunk bow first, not stern first as pictured.
Catalog numbers: Scott 956
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1952 June 13
United States of America
3-cent stamp depicts commemorates the arrival of the Marquis Lafayette in America in 1777, but depicts flags of USA and France current in 1952, rather than flags of 1777.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1010
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1970 November 21
United States of America
6-cent stamp commemorates the 350th anniversary of the Pilgrims on the Mayflower landing in America. The flag on the ship is the Union Jack as of 1801, incorporating the red "X" of St Patrick's Cross.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1420
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1973 July 4
United States of America
8-cent stamp depicts British 3-mast ship, with the Moon showing through breaks in the rigging.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1481
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1975 March 25
United States of America
8-cent stamp depicts Sybil Ludington as a "Youthful Heroine", a "Contributor to the Cause" of the American Revolution. Unfortunately, the only source of this legend is a book published by her family 125 years later, with no sources in the book for this information. Not a good choice for the stamp when a proven hero could have been the subject.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1559
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1976 February 23
United States of America
13-cent stamp depicts the state flag of Tennessee, upside-down. The state governor signed a resolution requesting a correction, but a new stamp was not issued.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1648
Approximate value: US$0.25.
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1980 February 1
United States of America
15-cent stamp commemorates the 13th Winter Olympic Games, depicting an ice hockey goalie at his net, but the net has no netting.
Catalog numbers: Scott 1798
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1981 May 21
United States of America
18-cent stamp depicts astronaut standing on the Moon, showing two white spheres in space; what are they?
Catalog numbers: Scott 1912
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1989 October 1
United States of America
25-cent stamp depicts the Apatosaurus dinosaur, but labels it "Brontosaurus".
Catalog numbers: Scott 2425
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1991 August 8
United States of America
19-cent stamp depicts fishing boat tied to pier with two loops of rope. The image was corrected to one loop of rope in 1994.
Catalog numbers: Scott 2529
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1993 January 8
United States of America
29-cent stamp depicts Elvis Presley with caption "ELVIS". Five months later same stamp is issued with caption "ELVIS PRESLEY" as part of series of entertainers.
Catalog numbers: Scott 2721
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1994 (month unknown)
United States of America
29-cent stamp with caption "Bill Pickett" actually portrays his brother Ben. The sheet of 20 different portraits was recalled and re-issued, but the originals with the error were sold at face value by the post office.
Catalog numbers: Scott 2870
Approximate value: US$275.00.
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1995 April 20
United States of America
32-cent stamp depicts an electrical cord from the Sun with a male receptical, and a house with a female electrical receptical. This is backwards, or dangerous, or implies the Sun gets its power from the house.
Catalog numbers: Scott 2952
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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1995 September 1
United States of America
32-cent stamp depicts Louis Armstrong with denomination "32" in white and name in black. 15 days later the same stamp is re-issued with black "32" and white name, along with nine other 32-cent (in black) stamps depicting American musicians (with names in white).
Catalog numbers: Scott 2982
Approximate value: US$0.25.
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1997 October 14
United States of America
32-cent stamp marks the 50th anniversary of the first supersonic flight by US Air Force Captain Chuck Yeager, depicting his "Glamorous Glennis" Bell X-1 aircraft, but the microprinting misspells the name as "GLAMOROUS GLENNA". The lower word is also curved instead of straight.
Catalog numbers: Scott 3173
Approximate value: US$0.20.
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2000 January 20
United States of America
60-cent airmail stamp depicts a mirror reversed image of the Grand Canyon in Arizona. The correct orientation is re-released as a 28-cent stamp in 2010.
Catalog numbers: Scott C135
Approximate value: US$0.25.
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2008 March 6
United States of America
41-cent stamp depicts Gerty Cori; the biochemical structure illustration is incorrect.
Catalog numbers: Scott 4224; WNS US004.08
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2008 April 18
United States of America
42-cent stamp shows US flag at night with 14 stripes instead of the correct 13 (7 stripes below blue canton instead of 6).
Catalog numbers: Scott 4229
Approximate value: US$0.40.
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2008 June 14
United States of America
42-cent stamp depicts flag of Colorado state and a mountain, but the mountain appears to be based on Mount Helen in Wyoming.
Catalog numbers: Scott 4280
Approximate value: US$0.25.
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2010 December
United States of America
1st-class stamp depicts close-up of face of Statue of Liberty, but uses the copy of the statue at the New York New York casino in Las Vegas. An indicator of this is the small rectangular plaque on the replica's center spike.
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Next country: Upper Volta.
Return to Postage Stamp Design Errors Home.
Other web pages of interest:
Coins on Postage Stamps
Corvettes on Postage Stamps
Walt Disney on Postage Stamps
Chronology of Postage Stamps
The Silly World of Postage Stamps
Ken P's Coin/Stamp/Bill Novelties
United States of America Coins: Type Collecting
The Silly World of Postage Stamps
This Day in History
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