A selection of Hong Kong postage stampsThe Penny Black, the world's first postage stamp1897Spanish stamp depicting King Juan Carlos I
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Postage

A postage stamp is an adhesive paper evidence of pre-paying a fee for postal services. more...

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Usually a small paper rectangle or square that is attached to an envelope, the postage stamp signifies that the person sending the letter or package may have either fully, or perhaps partly, pre-paid for delivery. Postage stamps are the most popular way of paying for retail mail; alternatives include prepaid-postage envelopes and postage meters.

History

Although there have been several claimants to priority, it is generally held that postage stamps were first introduced in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland in May 1, 1840 as part of the postal reforms promoted by Rowland Hill. With its introduction the postage fee was now to be paid by the sender and not the recipient as heretofore, though sending mail prepaid was not a requirement. The first postage stamp, the Penny Black, while put on sale on the 1st of May, was postally valid from May 6, 1840; two days later the Two pence blue was issued. Both stamps show an engraving of the young Queen Victoria and were an immediate success though refinements like perforations were instituted with later issues. At the time of the Penny Black, there was no reason to include the United Kingdom's name on the stamp, and to this day the UK remains the only country that does not identify itself on its stamps.

Other countries followed suit by introducing their own postage stamps: the Canton of Zürich in Switzerland issued the Zurich 4 and 6 rappen on 1 March 1843. Although the Penny Black could be used to send a letter weighing less than half an ounce anywhere within the United Kingdom, the Swiss continued to calculate mail rates based on the distance travelled. Brazil issued the Bull's Eye stamps on 1 August 1843. Using the same printer as that used for the Penny Black, the Brazilian government opted for an abstract design instead of an image of emperor Pedro II so that his image would be not be disfigured by the postmark. In 1845 some postmasters in the U.S. issued their own stamps, but the first officially issued stamps came in 1847, with the 5 and 10 cent stamps depicting Benjamin Franklin and George Washington. A few other countries issued stamps in the late 1840s. Many more, such as India, started in the 1850s and by the 1860s most countries of the world had issued postage stamps.

Following the introduction of the postage stamp in the United Kingdom the number of letters mailed increased from 82 million in 1839 to 170 million in 1841. Today an average of 21 billion items are delivered by post every year in the UK alone.

Postage stamp design

Stamps have been issued in other shapes besides the usual square or rectangle, including circular, triangular and pentagonal. Sierra Leone and Tonga were among the first countries to have issued self-adhesive stamps in these instances some in the shapes of fruit; Bhutan has issued a stamp with its national anthem on a playable record, etc. Stamps have also been made of materials other than paper, commonly embossed foil (sometimes of gold); Switzerland made a stamp partly out of lace and one out of wood; the United States produced one made of plastic, and the German Democratic Republic once issued a stamp made entirely of synthetic chemicals. In the Netherlands a stamp was issued made of silver foil.

Read more at Wikipedia.org


Us Mh Mnh $50 Value Of An Excellent Variety Pt.3 $1.00 New Us Postage Stamps 2 Rolls of 100 @ .42 Each $30.00
Us Mnh Postage + Blocks + Singles + $50 Value! $1.00 J* 42 Page Usa Stamp Album Dates Range 1931-1990 $9.99
100 Unused Forever Stamps (5 Books) - Free Shipping $24.48 $6.00 Face Value Mint Old Us Stamps 742, 875, 894 & C48 $5.88
300 Unused .41 First Class Stamps - $123 worth $10.49 3 statue of liberty 3 cent postage $25.00
22kt Gold Usps Stamp Collection + Album - Mint $24.99 $52.54 Face in postage / Some Collectible / All Useful $34.99
1984 usa Maximum Cards Winter Olympics $3.00 1984 usa Maximum Cards 4 cards $3.00
100 Stamps Unused (42 cent) $38.00 Us Postage Stamp Kit Counted Cross Stitch-Reindeer-New! $8.99
20 Heart Wedding 42 Cent Stamps Book Green Mint Unused $7.97 Lot # 429 U.S Mint No Gum Postage 18.67 $ Face Value $12.50
100 Postage Stamps Unused 100 41 cent and 100 1 cent $4.25 United States 1894 One Cent Franklin Used Sc #246 $2.00
United States 1895 Ben Franklin Vfnh Sc #264 $13.00 Us stamps space achievement holographic value $38.50 $80.00
U. S. Stamp Prices Catalog–1St Printing 24Th Ed.-Minkus $1.99 Scott C10a (Ap6) 10c Airmail Booklet- 6 Stamps $49.00
10 Different U.S. Self-Adhesive Panes $44.99 cancelled U. S. postage stamps $6.00
1911 Message Card -- reply $2.50 Mint Nh Og Us Stamp Sheet Collection Cv$1300 No Reserve $299.99
400 New U.S. Statute of Liberty postage Stamps on paper $10.50 Postage Stamps / Frank Sinatra & Alfred Hitchcock $1.99
The U.S. Military Historic Stamp Collection $19.99 Lot of 100 Liberty Bell Forever Stamps $38.00
Usa postage stamps Us 2 mint sheets Civil War 1994 See $19.99 Us stamp booklet-fish $6.00
Usps Postage Stamps The Art of Disney Romance $1.55 ►►New 1000 Purple Heart Stamps .42 cent 42 ¢ Postage ◄◄ $2.75
Cleveland Browns Photo Stamps Actual .41 Cent Stamps $8.00 Usps Postage stamps Ogden Nash $3.25
Usps Postage stamps Southeastern Lighthouses $5.50 Usps Postage stamps Ronald Reagan $5.50
Usps Postage Baseball Sluggers $2.65 August 08, 2008 Hand Canceled Envelope 08-08-08 $3.50
Usps Postage Stamps American Indian Art $1.29 Usps Postage Stamps 50's sporty cars $5.65
Usps Postage Stamps American Treasures Quilts $2.06 Discount Postage, $42.00,, All Full Gum , 42c Stamps $26.51
Usps Postage stamps Frank Lloyd Wright 2-cent $3.25 Us Booklet Lot Face Value $60.50 L13 $44.99
37 cent postage stamps $49.99 First Issue 2001 Gold Stamp $5.50
Ten 10 Priority $4.80 Stamps $48 self-adhesive postage $40.00 100 New unused Usa First Class Forever Stamps $42 $32.69
Unused Us Postage Stamp Lot Strips Blocks Worth $100 Fv $58.78 Us Stamp #893 American Inventor 10C Alexander G Bell Mh $2.25
Golden Replicas Of Us Stamps $25.00 $100.00+ Face Value Postage Lot- Starts 99 Cents $21.50
1991 World War Ii Mint Set Of Stamps Item 8842 Nip Book $9.99 100's Metered Postage $5.00
$100+ in face value postage, mostly blks of 4,Free Ship $46.00 Us Postage Lot Mint Nh Lots Plate Blocks Below Face $49.00
20 cent Mnh Plate Block Collection $6.50 Blocks of 4, 3 Diff, Mnh Og Fv=$3.72 $1.64
Scott 2624-2629 Voyages of Columbus Mnh sheets $15.35 Mnh Postage, 42 cent combos, Face $31.08 $10.45
Thurgood Marshall 1st Issue Stamp Scus Court Envelope $9.99 6 Lighthouse postage stamps $5.00
Lot of $ 316 Face - 13c to 18c U.S. Postage Stamps Mnh $157.90 Lot of $ 254 Face - 29c to 37c U.S. Postage Stamps Mnh $178.50
2000 Us "Landing On The Moon" Hologram #3413 Mnh Nip!! $11.75 U.S. Fun group of Mnh Airmails - face value $18.75 $14.75
U.S. Premium Mnh Definitive Postage, $20 Face Value!! $18.39 Us postage Stamps 41 cents, roll of 100 New $36.99
100 ( 5 Books ) Postage Stamps Forever $38.00 U.S. Mnh Postage Lot - 13c. Se-tenants, Face $16.12 $11.95
U.S. Mnh Postage Lot - Over $17.00 face value $12.25 U.S. Mint Postage Lot - Face value is over $16.00 $11.75
U.S. Postage Lot - Over $35.00 Mint Nh, mostly commems. $24.95 U.S. Postage Lot - 15c. x 200 = $30.00 face value $21.50
25c(100)13c(100)4c(100)St ampsogvfnhface$42.00 $19.51 18c(200),6c(100) Stamps Og Vf Nh Face $ 42.00 $33.78
Page Of Elvis Presley Stamps ~40 Stamps~29 Cents Each $24.99 Lot Usa United States America At 30% Face Nominal Value $35.00
Lot #443 United States Postage Mint $10.00 Lot $9.99 Us Stamp Collection - all Mint! Huge Us Philatelic Lot $40.15
Rock & Roll Sheet of 25 stamps (29 cents) 1992 Sealed $7.99 Stamp Collectors Starter Set of 330 Stamps on 12 Pages $4.99
Variety of Foreign and U.S. stamps nice $11.99 2000 Us "Exploring The Solar System" #3410 Mnh Nip!! $5.00
1989 Dinosur & 1991Desert Storm & sheld unused stamps $28.00 Tropical Fruit (coil of 100) 27 cent postcard stamps $23.00
100 Unused First Class Stamps = 100 x 42c = $42 postage $31.99 2001 Great Plains Prairie #3506 Sheet of 10 Mnh Nip!!! $3.40
Lot of 100 Forever Us Postage Stamps 42 cents $37.41 2002 Longleaf Pine Forest #3611 Sheet of 10 Mnh Nip!!! $3.40
2 used ben Franklin stamps $4.95 Discount Postage Us mint never hinged $14.50
3 United States Postage Stamps - Scott #232 $5.98 Unused New Stamps Save On U S Postage $100.99
1 Roll of .42 Postage Stamps $33.50 First Class Stamps Usps New 100 Total .39 Stamps $15.50
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Prices current as of last update, 08/20/08 1:33pm.


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