Types of Stamp Cancellations & Postmarks: Part II


What in the world is a "favor cancel?" And how is a favor cancel different from a philatelic usage, since they're both for stamp collecting purposes?

Favor Cancels:

Favor cancels are applied by post office works at the specific request of a stamp collector. The cover or stamps that are favor canceled are never mailed. Favor canceled stamps are different from CTO stamps in two ways, even though neither type is ever used in the mail: The difference is intent. The post office sells the stamps intending that they be used in the mailstream. The stamp collector intentionally asks for the cancellation, never intending the stamps or cover to actually be mailed. The post office cancels the stamps or cover as "a favor."

Many First Day Covers (FDCs) fall into the favor cancel classification.

Philatelic Usages:

Philatelic usages result when someone mails an envelope intending that the recipient receives a collectible stamp, group of stamps or a specific collectible stamp usage. Although the mailer's decision of which specific stamps are used to mail the envelope revolves around stamp collecting rather than just the delivery of a mailpiece, unlike favor cancels and many FDCs, philatelic usages are in fact mailed. People sending mail with philatelic usages are usually stamp collectors, friends or relatives of a stamp collector, or stamp dealers. Used stamps from some tiny island countries would probably never be seen by a collector were it not for philatelic usages.

Types of Stamp Cancellations & Postmarks: Part I


Precancels vs. Cancelled-to-Order (CTO) stamps:

Some stamp collectors may be a bit unclear about the difference between these two types of cancelled stamps, so we thought we'd give a bit of information about both of them. The key difference is that precanceled stamps are actually used on the mail.

Precancels:

Precanceled stamps are stamps that are cancelled before they're used on the mail. We know this might not make much sense, since stamps normally are cancelled after the mail they're on arrives at the post office for processing. But precancels were used in order to make mail processing faster - since the stamps were already canceled, the canceling process at the post office was bypassed.

Precancels were applied in one of two ways, either printed on the stamp or handstamped using a rubber stamp. In the US, precancels were printed by the federal government (usually called Bureau precancels, after the Bureau of Printing and Engraving), printed locally by local post offices, or handstamped at local post offices (not surprisingly, these latter two types are called local precancels). In the US and Canada, precancelled stamps were used for first class mail, parcel post and bulk mail. Some larger companies used them as a substitute for perfins - a security device to stop their employees from using the stamps for their personal mail or to sell. Precancels were generally used in other countries to mail newspapers.

Thousands of different precancels and varieties exist, and collecting precancelled stamps is both challenging and rewarding. Catalogs and lists of town precancelled stamps are readily available.


Canceled-to-Order (CTO) Stamps:

CTO stamps have been canceled by the issuing country's postal authority before their sale and are usually sold to stamp dealers for a reduced price. The stamp dealers then sell them to stamp collectors, often passing on their savings in the form of reduced prices. CTO stamps are not valid for postal use. They generally still have their full original gum, and the cancellations are almost always very neat and clear; often just a corner of the stamp is canceled so that the stamp design is not impacted. Many people collect CTO stamps because of their lower cost, and in fact the catalog prices for the stamps of some countries is for canceled-to-order stamps rather than postally used (which have a higher catalog value and cost more).

Many beautiful topical stamps are mainly available in CTO form. Don't turn your nose up at them, because they can be a way to inexpensively build a beautiful stamp collection.

How Postmarks Can Affect Stamp Values





Stamp cancellations can significantly affect the value of postmarked stamps. Stamp collectors who don't collect cancels usually prefer lightly cancelled stamps with postmarks on a corner or a small portion of the stamp, so that the stamp design isn't obscured. All other things being equal, lightly cancelled stamps are ordinarily more valuable than stamps with heavy or smeared postmarks.



But the presence of cancellations themselves may increase the value of stamps. Many unused stamps are more valuable than their used counterparts. An example is the British Penny Black, which has an unused value that's almost 20 times higher than the used value. But the opposite is true for some other stamps, such as the Germany hyperinflation stamps - these have a value that's much highe if they're postally used.



Some collectors are far more interested in the cancellations than the stamps. Those stamp collectors prefer bold, clearly struck and highly legible cancellations instead of the light postmarks preferred by other collectors. It's possible to specialize in cancel collecting: you can collect the cancellations of a particular country or city, different cancels on the same stamp issue, or a specific type of cancellations, such as fancy cancels.

Types of Stamp Cancellations

• A Bullseye cancellation (also called Socked on the Nose or SOTN) is a stamp collecting term for a typically circular cancellation that was struck on or very near the center of a stamp's design. Well-struck bullseye cancels are popular with some stamp collectors because of their neat appearance.

• Cancelled-to-order stamps (also called CTOs) are stamps that have been cancelled by a postal authority, but were never used to transmit mail. They are created by postal authorities in order to sell them cheaply to stamp collectors. Many Eastern European countries and others sold great numbers of CTOs to collectors in the 1950s - 1990s strictly for revenue. CTOs still retain their original gum. Some authorities use the same canceller for all CTOs, and apply it very neatly in the corner of four stamps at one time. In some instances, the "cancellations" are actually printed as part of the stamp itself.

• Deferential cancellations are designed so as not to deface the image of the ruler or regent on the stamp.

• Fancy cancels were produced during the last half of the 19th century by postmasters in the United States and Canada. They carved or cut their own cancellers from cork or wood in various designs such as stars, circles and flags. Fancy cancels are extraordinarily popular and are highly sought after.

• First day of issue cancels (FDC cancellations) are special cancellations with the date the stamp was first issued for sale and the words "First Day of Issue" or the equivalent in the issuing country's language. Some include an illustration related to the subject of the stamp.

• Flag cancellations are a US machine cancel that uses the design of the United States flag. The stripes of the flag serve as the killer portion of the cancellation.

• Handstamped cancellations are applied by a hand stamping device rather than a machine.

• Highway post office cancels are applied in transit by portable mail handling equipment in trucks.

• Machine cancellations are added by high-speed processing machines.

• Mute cancel refers to a cancellation that includes no text and "does not speak."

• Pen cancels (or handwritten cancels) refer to the use of a writing pen to deface the stamp. They were more common in the 19th and early 20th centuries, but are still used by postal workers who notice a stamp that missed being machine cancelled.

• Pictorial cancellations include illustrations that are related to some event, person or anniversary.

• Precancels or precancelled stamps bear pre-printed cancellations. Unlike CTOs, precancelled stamps are intended for use in the mailstream and are typically used by mass mailers. Precancels typically cannot be used without a special permit so are not normally used by the general public.

• Railway post office (R.P.O.) cancels are applied on mail that's sorted on trains. They typically include information about the specific railroad and train as well as the date. The last Railway Post Office operated by the United States closed in 1977.
  

• Ship cancels are added to stamps that were mailed on or carried on a ship, often a steamer ship in the late 19th to early 20th centuries. They typically include information about the specific ship and sometimes the steamship line as well as the date. In French, the cancellation reads "Paquebot."

• Slogan cancellations include an advertising or patriotic slogan.

Cancellations



Many people call them postmarks, but the philatelic term is "cancellation." A cancellation (or cancel for short) is a postal marking applied on a postage stamp or a piece of postal stationery in order to deface the stamp and prevent its re-use in the mails. They come in a wide variety of styles, shapes, sizes and even a few different colors. Modern United States cancellations, as well as those from many other countries, commonly include the date and post office where the mailing took place, in addition to lines or bars designed to cover the stamp itself.



The portion of a cancellation that is designed to deface the stamp and does not contain any information is also called the "killer" or "obliteration." Some stamps are issued pre-cancelled with a printed or stamped cancellation and generally do not receive any additional cancellation. Cancellations can affect the value of stamps to collectors, either positively or negatively. The cancellations used by many countries have been extensively studied by philatelists and many stamp collectors and postal history collectors collect cancellations in addition to the stamps themselves.



We'll talk more about cancellations in the next few days.