A Guardsman at the ready, flanked by scenes of war and peace, honoring the oldest military organization in the country.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Catalog Number: Scott #1017

• Denomination: 3 cents (3¢)

• Date of Issue: February 23, 1953

• Printing Method: Rotary Press, Engraved (Intaglio)

• Perforation: 11 × 10½

• Color: Bright Blue

• Subject: A National Guardsman, with scenes representing service in war and in peace

• Format: Commemorative single

CONDITION ANALYSIS (Seller-Assessed)

• Status: Used

• Grading: Fine

• Postmark: Machine postmark of parallel wavy lines across the design. The Guardsman and the tribute inscription remain clearly readable.

• Obverse: The central Guardsman with his rifle, the combat and disaster-relief background scenes, and the denomination are all identifiable.

• Reverse: No original gum present, as expected for a used stamp. The paper shows light age toning, with no tears or thinning visible.

• Centering / Margins: The design sits comfortably within its frame with subtle rightward and downward shifts.

• Perforations: Intact on all four sides.

• Other Findings: This stamp retains attached right and bottom sheet selvage (the imperforate corner margins from the edge of the sheet).

HISTORY

The National Guard makes a strong claim on this stamp: "The Oldest Military Organization in the U.S." That is not just a slogan. The Guard traces its roots to the colonial militias of the 1630s, more than a century before the nation itself existed, when able-bodied men were required to keep arms and train to defend their towns. Every American war since has drawn on that citizen-soldier tradition.

The design captures the Guard's distinctive double life. A modern Guardsman stands at the center holding his rifle, and the scenes flanking him spell out the two halves of his duty, marked "In War" and "In Peace." On one side, troops in combat; on the other, the Guard's civilian mission, responding to floods, storms, and other disasters at home. That dual role, ready for the battlefield but also the first called when a levee breaks, is exactly what sets the Guard apart from the regular forces.

Issued February 23, 1953, in bright blue, during the Korean War when Guard units had again been mobilized, the stamp gave the organization its own recognition. It honors the long American idea that ordinary citizens, trained and ready, are themselves a pillar of national defense.

STEVEN SAYS

The stamp calls the Guard "the oldest military organization in the U.S.," and it is right, the roots go back to colonial militias in the 1630s, before there even was a country. I like that the design shows both sides of the job: war on one side, disaster relief at home on the other. This copy kept its corner sheet margin too.