Personal seal

Personal seals are used as handstamped signatures in Japan and elsewhere in east Asia. They are considered to be legal signatures. They are meant to be unique and made of durable materials like ivory, jade or hardwood. These were also called "chops" by westerners.

Personal seals have been used as control marks on stamps, most notably for Ryukyu Islands provisionals and occupied areas during World War II.

These have been forged, but the genuine seal's uniqueness will tell the difference. The problem comes when some of the seals used on stamps wore out and were replaced by new also unique seals.  File:Penang Okugawa forgery.jpg|Penang Malaya, forgery of Okugawa personal seal handstamp. See: Penang File:Ryukyus miyako.jpg|Ryukyu Islands, provisional issue with Tomiyama personal seal for Miyako District. See: Ryukyu Islands 

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