Oops! US post service prints THREE BILLION stamps using the wrong Statue of Liberty
By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 2:38 PM on 16th April 2011
Last updated at 2:38 PM on 16th April 2011
You'd think it would be pretty straightforward to choose a photo of one of the world's most famous landmarks.
But against all the odds, the United States Postal Service managed to print the wrong Statue of Liberty on three billion stamps, accidentally picking a replica outside a Las Vegas casino instead of the true Lady in New York Harbour.
The embarrassing mistake was only spotted with an eagle-eyed stamp collector - and Liberty 'superfan' - noticed something just wasn't quite right.
Embarrassing slip-up: USPS's Lady Liberty 'Forever' stamp accidentally featured the wrong Statue of Liberty
He contacted Linn's Stamp News, the bible for philatelists, which gleefully ran a photo of the two statues side by side.
Red-faced USPS officials are determined to stick with the original design for the Lady Liberty 'Forever' stamp, which was printed in December using a picture chosen from a photography service.
Spokesman Roy Betts told the New York Times: 'We still love the stamp design and would have selected this photograph anyway.'
He did admit the post office regretted the error, and is 're-examining our processes to prevent this situation from happening in the future.'
Spot the difference: The real Statue of Liberty, left, looks out over New York Harbour - the replica, right, looks down on gamblers in front of a Vegas casino
To visitors, differences seem obvious. The 14-year-old replica outside the New York-New York Casino in Vegas is only half the height of the original, and of course it's several thousand miles away in Nevada.
But on a stamp-sized photo, it took a true expert to notice the difference. The hair is different, there's a a rectangular patch on the replica's center spike and the Vegas version has more sharply defined eyes.
The mistake was made even worse by an informational leaflet released this month with a sheet of 18 Lady Liberty and flag stamps. It includes a short history of the Statue of Liberty - but makes no mention of the replica.
Officials have now said they will change the brochure to explain the photo features a replica rather than the real 125-year-old statue.
The real Lady: An eagle-eyed stamp collector noticed subtle differences between the two statues, including the replica's more sharply-defined eyes
It may have caused embarrassment for USPS, but the slip-up has created nothing but pride in Las Vegas.
Gordon Absher, spokesman for MGM Resorts International, said: 'Everyone thought the post office was honouring just one great American institution when in reality they were honouring two - the Statue of Liberty and Las Vegas.'
The news was not quite so well received in New York, where Edward Koch, who famously declared the city was the centre of the universe when he was mayor, told the Times: 'It simply means the post office is doing a stupid thing.'
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1377259/US-post-service-prints-3-BILLION-stamps-using-wrong-Statue-Liberty.html#ixzz1Jh3AjwIA
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