Mistake, thanks.....

Most Dutch people are still familiar with this phrase (in Dutch: Foutje, bedankt.....) from the TV commercials of an insurance company in the 1990s. However, this phrase is so well established that it is now universally used in case of serious mistakes.
Also at the Swiss post they must have uttered a similar cry in May 1951 when they discovered a disturbing error in a special flag stamp, made to announce the "Grosser preis der Schweiz" in May of that year.

Ad van Tiel has 2 postal items with this flag stamp. An envelope, stamped 9 May 1951, with the correct text.

The flag stamp with the correct text

However, the other, a postcard stamped 1 May 1951, reads "Grosser preis der Scweiz", so without the H in the country name.

The flag stamp where the H in Schweiz is missing

On the internet I found another image of an erroneous flag stamp of 2 May, so the error was not immediately discovered.
Are they lucky that it is not the W that accidentally disappeared....

With thanks to Ad van Tiel

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