Czechoslovakia 1919 50/50h Red Surcharge on Austrian Newspaper Stamp

Czechoslovakia · 1919 · 50h on 50h

This is a provisional postage due stamp created by overprinting an existing Austrian newspaper stamp. The original design features the head of Mercury, the Roman messenger god. A red surcharge of '50' was applied over the original '50' denomination, along with a 'Pošta Československá 1919' overprint.

Issued shortly after the formation of Czechoslovakia in 1918, this stamp is an example of the provisional issues created by overprinting readily available Austrian stamps until new national designs could be produced.