Max Ferré, who was wounded during World War One, which left him with a permanent facial disfigurement, came to England after the war. Initially, he worked for Waterlow & Sons. From the mid 1930s to his retirement in 1954, he worked for Bradbury Wilkinson. His first known engraved stamps are the 1935 New Zealand Silver Jubilee ones, which portray King George V and Queen Mary.
Ferré's work on the 1940 New Zealand Centennial issue involved a lot of work to get all the details right. The 2d, for example, needed quite a bit of extra work after the first die proofs were submitted. Signalling flags from the Heemskercq had to be removed and there was some confusion with regard to a mark on Tasman's chart which the engravers Ferré and Hall thought was a lake but should probably have been Mt. Egmont, even though its position on the chart was not correct.
The 9d, too, still needed work after the first die proofs were submitted. The handles of the axes had to be rounded at the ends and the panel backgrounds had to be merged to one skyline. That second problem was solved by adding a dividing emblem.
During his time at Bradbury, Ferré trained Alan Dow to be a portrait engraver, from 1944 to 1951. Dow described Ferré as being a very gifted and inspirational mentor. After his retirement in 1954, Ferré moved back to France.
You will find Max Ferré's database HERE.
The 9d, too, still needed work after the first die proofs were submitted. The handles of the axes had to be rounded at the ends and the panel backgrounds had to be merged to one skyline. That second problem was solved by adding a dividing emblem.
During his time at Bradbury, Ferré trained Alan Dow to be a portrait engraver, from 1944 to 1951. Dow described Ferré as being a very gifted and inspirational mentor. After his retirement in 1954, Ferré moved back to France.
You will find Max Ferré's database HERE.