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The task of printing the Machin high values was transferred from
Enschedé to De La Rue in 2000. De La Rue’s printing was issued on April 11, 2000.
The reprints were made from the same master die as the originals, so the portraits of the
two versions are identical. However, there are slight variations between the two printings in the
vicinity of the denomination. The reason is that Slania left an unengraved section in the die where
the denomination would go so that the die could be used for all four values. Each printer filled
in the denomination on each of the four values during the production process.
Also, the color of the fluorescence visible under ultraviolet light is different
between the two printings. The Enschedé printing is yellow-green and the De La Rue printing
is dark green. For more information on the differences between the two printings, including
illustrations of the differences in the denomination, visit the
high values page of
Robin Harris’ fabulous Machin site and follow the links to see each of the values.
Shown above are cylinder blocks of the original Enschedé 1999 printing
(at left) and the 2000 reprint by De La Rue. Differences are readily apparent in the marginal markings.
The printers’ names, the master engraving number and the boxed individual plate number
are located and oriented differently.
The De La Rue block is autographed by engraver Czeslaw Slania.
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