A Christmas seal design that was test marketed in a selected area. Since 1980, the ALA has tested several designs each year for possible use as the national seal in the following year. Usually there is no printers mark on test design sheets.
1979-T4 2000-T14 (Chanukah Seal)
You may have wondered what's behind the note in the Scott Specialized Catalogue which says:
"Beginning in 1979 there is no longer one national issue. Additional designs are issued on a limited basis to test seals to determine the designs to be used the following year."
Without the words "no longer" (our emphasis added) the statement would be correct. There still is a national seal which is sent to most of the ALA customers. However, there are also a few (usually 4-5) seals that are test marketed for the following year. A particularly interesting variety is the seal each year which "won the popularity contest" and became the national seal the following year. The two seals will have basically the same design but different dates, and the Test Seal is usually without a printer's mark. And then there are all the "runners up" which may never be seen again.
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