Colorado 1974 Debossed Plate
1974–1974Colorado · annual · “Colorful”
Debossed rather than embossed: the characters are pressed INTO the plate and sit below its surface, the opposite of every other plate in this archive. Colorado did it for two years, 1972 and 1974, and stopped. The mountain range that has been on Colorado plates ever since sits above the serial here rather than along the top. The plate shown is a reconstruction carrying an invented serial, so no real registration is depicted.
A plate for one year only
Colorado replaced its plates every year in this era, which is why 1974 is stamped into the design rather than carried on a sticker. The plate was the registration: it was surrendered and replaced twelve months later, and the colour pairing usually changed with it so an officer could date a plate at a glance. That is also why plates from these years are scarce, each one having been current for a single year.
Stamped, not printed
Every character here is pressed into the metal and stands proud of the surface, along with the raised rim just inside the edge. Run a hand across it and you feel the whole design. The plate was struck from flat stock in a press, then the raised faces were rolled with paint, which is why wear shows first on the tops of the characters.
Sources
Reference photograph of an issued plate, from the Colorado Department of Transportation (Public domain). The debossed construction, the mountain graphic and the serial format (CC BY-SA).
- Issued
- Standard issue
- The plate you received by default when you registered a vehicle.
- Serial format
- AA-9999
- Material
- Debossed aluminium with reflective sheeting
- Source license
- Public domain
- Reference
- View original