Jewish National Fund (Keren Kayemet L'Israel)

'And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water,
that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall
not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper'

Psalms 1:3

JEWISH NATIONAL FUND- France Branch Office.

One of only three items to be issued out of the French Branch Office in Paris was this lovely sheet from 1978.
The central stamp is rouletted and there are border inscriptions together with the Jewish National fund logo.
Next to the quotation from Psalms is a drawing which tries to depict this.
Below the scene is inscribed- 'KKL FNJ FRANCE'. (Fonds National Juif).

The sheet commemorates the 30th Anniversary of the State of Israel.

Maccabiah to Massacre.........

The Maccabiah Games, aka the Jewish Olympics, were first held in 1932. Athletes from all over the world take part. The only non-Jews allowed to take part are those who reside in Israel, including those from the Arab population.
The third Maccabiah was held between September 27th and October 8th 1950. These were the first games in the new State of Israel.
Most events were held at the Ramat Gan Stadium in Tel Aviv.
The Jewish National Fund commemorated the event with the issue of  labels depicting the Stadium together with relevant logos. The design is by W.W.Wind.
Printed in sheets of 5x5, Perf 11, the labels exist both with and without values.




Below is an example of the 50Pr Blue type (as above) together with a complete offset example (on the gummed side).




On September 5th-6th 1972, 11 Israeli Athletes and one German Police Officer were killed after an attack by the Palestinian 'Black September' group at the Olympic Village in Munich. The summer Olympics continued after a short 1½ day suspension.
Unused stocks of the 1950 Maccabiah issue were overprinted in both black and red on all types as a memorial issue to mark this sad occasion. Later, special Memorial issues were printed.

'1972, In memory of Israeli Sportsmen massacred in Munich'.

clivel.......Yes, like yourself I find the JNF stamps a trifle dull at times but I find myself attracted to them in other ways and they have been my main search item of late. They do not come cheap most times.
Regarding the Rochlin Catalogue I had a bit of luck there when a fellow collector mentioned a family member was visiting Israel so I had it sent to him and she sent it to me here upon her arrival. I too baulked at the postage costs to Israel......but got lucky !

I am trying to post one item/set/sheet a day for as long as I can (until I get to the end of the album). I recently made a separate thread for these as some of the items are not from Israel and it can be a bit confusing.

Glad you are enjoying the topic.

Londonbus1

HISTADRUT COMMEMORATIVE. 1951

To commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the Worker's Organization (Histadrut HaOvedim), a single design set was issued which had many varieties.
I can show examples of the 30, 50 and 100 Prutot stamps, there is also a 10Pr value in vermillion or reddish-brown.
All stamps exist on both white and off white (Greyish) papers; all stamps exist both with and without watermarks except the 10pr vermillion which has been found only without. There are a number of shade varieties too.
Some of the above you will see in the images below, note both the paper and colour shades.
These were all issued in sheets of 2x5 with serial number and asterisk by stamp No.9.
They were also produced in sheets of 8x5 made up of 4 panes of 2x5 with separating gutters. It is quite possible therefore that the former were simply cut out from the latter. The Catalogue gives no indication of separate printings !
Perf 11.

Baron Edmund James de Rothschild (Benjamin Levit Rothschild) was from the French branch of the Jewish Rothschild Family. During the 1880's he donated millions of pounds to consolidate struggling settlements and set up new ventures in Palestine.
He became known as 'Father of the Yishuv', which broadly speaking refers to the Jewish Community in Pre- State Palestine.
He is largely responsible for the growth in the wine trade which is thriving in Israel today.
He died in France in 1934 and in 1954 his remains were reinterred at Ramat HaNadiv in Central Israel, a settlement and beautiful Garden area which he funded. (It was also one of the first sites I visited during my first visit here in 1986!)
To commemorate the event (1954) the JNF issued a stamp in his honour. Printed in sheets of 10x4 (2 panes of 10x2 separated by a gutter) in dark blue. Perf 11½.
Shown below are the stamp and two proof copies, a blue (shade) on cream paper and one in brown.

THE THIRTEENTH ANNIVERSARY OF ISRAEL.

1961, The Bar Mitzvah year of the State of Israel. Commemorated by the JNF with these two simply-designed stamps
The two Hebrew letters in the design denote the number 13.
Printed in sheets of 5x6, Perf 10½.
What you see here are Imperfs with colour shifts, Progressive Proof types and shade differences.
Finding normal copies has thus far proved difficult !! 

Previously..........

' Theodore Herzl was the founder of the World Zionist Organization and did much to promote Jewish immigration to Palestine. He was also a writer and journalist and politically active, especially in the years leading up to, and just after, the 1st Zionist Congress in Basle, Switzerland in 1897. It was at this first Congress that the idea of a National Fund (Keren HaKayemet/Jewish National Fund) was discussed.

Herzl was born in Pest, Hungary (Austrian Empire) in 1860 and died in 1904. He was buried in Vienna but his remains were taken to Jerusalem and reinterned on Mount Herzl in 1949.'

Theodore (Benjamin Ze'ev) Herzl has appeared on a number of JNF stamps and sheets and the examples shown here are all similar in design to each other.
They show an iconic image of the man leaning on the railings of the Three Kings Hotel in Basle, Switzerland during the that aforementioned 1st Zionist Congress in 1897.
The design is by Hans Dieters from a Photograph taken by artist E.M.Lilien. The Hotel, which is one of the oldest City Hotels in Europe,  overlooks the River Rhine and still stands today.
However, in the stamp design, Dieters replaced the Rhine with a vision of David's Tower in Jerusalem.

The Three Kings Hotel, Basle, Switzerland.





The first of these stamps were issued in 1909 to mark the 5th Anniversary of Herzl's death. Under his image is a Hebrew version of a quotation from Psalms (137:5) 'If I forget thee O Jerusalem, may my right hand forget it's cunning'.
The stamps are the first issue from the JNF Head Office in Cologne, Germany and are printed by Deutsche Photogravur A.G., Siegburg (near Cologne). Printed in panes of 2x2, ten panes to a booklet which had text in Hebrew and in the language of it's intended destination. Perf 11½.
There were 6 colours to the set plus a number of handstamps and overprint varieties.
 
½ violet (England); 1 Grey-Green (USA); 2 Light Green (Russia); 5 Indian Red (France); 5 Blue (France); 5 Brown (Germany).




The next issue, taken from the 1909 design is from the Head Office in The Hague, Netherlands. 1918 'Herzl Issue'. Printed in dark Brown on light brown paper. There is no quotation and the JNF inscription is at the bottom. Booklet panes 2x2, 5 panes to a booklet. These are scarce !!




The Herzl issue of 1938, from the Head Office in Jerusalem, is in 3 colours and with and without a number of handstamped values in different colours. They were printed by the Goldberg Press in Jerusalem. Panes 2x2, 6 panes to a booklet. Perf 11½.




The 1941 issue has values printed on them. They can be found in booklet panes of 4x4, 4 panes to a booklet. The top and bottom two rows are Tete-Beche.
One of the Tete-Beche pairs shown below is handstamped 'doar (post)' in a circle for use during the Interim Period during the 1948 War of Independence. It would have been for use in the North of the country for Haifa/Kiryat Motzkin.





The 1960 issue from the New York Head Office is from the series of 'Purim' issues (1927-62).
The top panel has changed to include 'Jewish National Fund' in English. The stamp comes from a special Souvenir sheet of 7x5 which includes the title 'JNF Purim Gift Stamps', text and JNF logo. Perf 12.



I will add more from this series as and when I find them.......but it isn't that simple !!

Londonbus1

PERSONALITIES & LANDSCAPES.

This 1927 issue commemorates the 10th Anniversary of the Balfour Declaration. There are 12 designs across 2 Se-Tenant panes of 6 and each pane exists in 6 different colours making 12 panes in total. These are produced in 2 booklets of 6 panes each and 3 of each type in different colours.
The panes shown here are from Booklet No.2. In booklet No.1 the designs and colours are changed. Each pane is separated by interleaving.
They were printed in Germany and similar booklets, but with different pane arrangements, were produced by the Head Offices in Poland.
Perf 11.

Personalities.

1. Benjamin Ze'ev Herzl
2. (Rabbi) Shmuel Mohliver
3. A.D.Nordau4.
4. Zvi Hermann Schapira
5. Josef Trumpledor.
6. Ahad Ha'am

Landscapes.

1. Technion Institute (Haifa)
2. David's Tower (Jerusalem)
3. Map of Eretz Israel
4. Ein Harod
5. Mikve-Israel
6. Hebrew University (Jerusalem).

My apologies for the poor scans (lines) which were taken from the eBay listing. I did not want to explode the booklet because the cover is a bit fragile as it was when I tried to take a photo. I will, hopefully, place better images when possible.
The panes (stamps) are in excellent condition for their age with perfect gum and no visible defects whatsoever. But they don't come cheap. Booklets from the Jewish National Fund do not exist at bargain prices in my experience !

Here's another Weizmann issue, this time from 1962 commemorating the 10th Anniversary of his death.
Printed in sheets of 12x10 there exists colours ranging from Black to Grey, Orange to yellow and all in between !!
Perf 10½.
Those here are varieties/errors. I do have a normal copy........but cannot find it !! oops ! 

This 1958 issue celebrates the opening of Heichal Shelomo, the building of the Chief Rabbinate of Israel and the stamps are inscribed thus.
Translated it means 'Palace of Solomon'.
In 1992 the building became part of the Herzog College Campus and today is a Heritage Centre and Museum for Jewish Art.

The Stamps were printed in sheets of 5x5 and stapled in batches of 50. Each sheet had a control number (see below). A number of shades exist as do Imperforate types. These here are Perf 10½.

After a Christmas break, let's go back in time to 1911 and one of my favourite JNF issues.

The design shows a typical Palestine landscape from an engraving by Herman Struck. The set was issued by the Head Office in Cologne, Germany but printed by Bruckman of Munich. The stamps were produced for booklets in panes of 3x2 and one pane of each colour to a booklet with interleaving. Perf 11½.

They also exist Imperf and handstamped 'Dienstmarke' in Violet, but I have yet to see any examples of these.

For some reason they do give me a festive feeling, like a winter scene without the snow. Or is it just me ? Most likely ! 

The sheet below was sold on the JNF stand at 'Jerusalem 73' Stamp Exhibition.
It depicts JNF labels overprinted for use during the War of Independence in 1948 (Minhelet Ha'am period).
The sheet was designed by 'Graphic Yoav' and printed by Nachtigal Printers of Tel Aviv.
They were printed in sheets of 12 Souvenir sheets, one of which had a serial number as in the sheet shown here.

The 1971 issue shown here celebrates the 70th Anniversary of the Jewish National Fund.
At top right you will see a reproduction of one of the first issues from 1901 and which can be seen on the first post on page 1.

Designed by Naomi Zamir and Prois Eliyahu, they were printed in sheets of 5x6 with Tabs on the bottom row. Perf  10½

This 1975 issue was used to make aware of the need to fortify and improve the Northern Border communities.

The stamps in the sheet shown here are rouletted. Sheet stamps were also issued Perf 11. (sheets of 10x4)
Stamps were designed by Asaph Berg and printed by Ziv of Jerusalem.

From left: Rosh Hanikra, Northern Border and Metzudat Yesha. Together the stamps form a composite design. The selvedge inscriptions are in Hebrew and English.