Below are three examples of one of the "keys" to the Danish West Indies. In Scott, it is #23 for the first two, and #23a for the third, which has the "2 in the date with straight tail." In Facit, they are listed as #24a for the first two, and 24av1 for the "straight tail" copy.

There were four sheets of 100 of this overprint on the 8th Printing, which is perforated 14 x 13.5.

The common overprint was on the 9th Printing, which was perforated 12.75 x 12.75.

There were eight positions per sheet featuring the "straight foot," for a total of 32 examples that can exist.

There is one "Normal Frame" per sheet, Position 91, for a total of four, which I am still looking to acquire.

Effective January 1, 1902 there was a rate reduction lowering the domestic letter rate and the rate for foreign postcards from 3 cents to 2 cents. There weren't, however, any 2 cents stamps available in DWI, so the now-obsolete 3 cent stamps were overprinted. These were later replaced by the 2 Cent "Coat of Arms" issue of 1903.

It is believed that the 4 sheets that were overprinted on the 8th Printing were simply part of the stock on hand when the overprints were being produced.

The very first example I discovered many years ago was a nice NH copy searching a dealer's box of 102 cards at a show, and I picked it up for $8. Having acquired three more copies, I sold it to raise cash to purchase other items. For sentimental reasons, I wish I still had it, but the gentleman who purchased it was quite happy with the deal, so it's all good!

This is truly one of those stamps lurking in old collections and misidentified in dealer's stock, though none of these three were!