First day of issue
A first day of issue cover or first day cover (FDC) is a
Postal authorities may hold a first day ceremony to generate publicity for the new issue, with postal officials revealing the stamp, and with connected persons in attendance, such as descendants of the person being honored by the stamp. The ceremony may also be held in a location that has a special connection with the stamp's subject, such as the birthplace of a social movement, or at a stamp show.
History
Prior to 1840, postage costs were very high and they were usually paid by the person who received the mail. The cost was measured by how many sheets were in the letter and how far the letter had to go. Sometimes this amounted to a very considerable sum.
Types
Event covers
Philatelic covers
Philatelic covers are envelope prepared with a stamp(s), addressed and sent through the mail delivery system to create a collectible item. Information about philatelic covers is available online in catalogs and collector websites.[6]
Other types
Features of a cover
Postmark
The postmark is one of the most important features of a cover. Stamps are cancelled by a postmark, which shows they have been used and can’t be re-used to send a letter. Circular Date Stamps (CDS) are the 'bread-and-butter' postmarks used on everyday mail by Post Office counters across the UK. A CDS postmark is very straight forward and only features the town’s name and the date. There is no picture. If one wanted to use a CDS postmark from a town relevant to the stamp's issue, one would have to go to the town’s local Post Office to get it. On a cover, the postmark should touch each stamp and link them to the envelope. Postmarks came to the foreground in the early 1960s, when collectors started to demand more interesting cancellations on their first day covers. For the Red Cross issue in 1963, a special
Special handstamps
With postmarks becoming more and more important to the covers, pictorial postmarks became very popular. Pictorial postmarks are also known as Special Handstamps/Postmarks. In 1924, the first commemorative set of stamps for the British Empire Exhibition had both special postmarks and a special slogan, but it was not until the late 1960s and early 1970s that dealers and organisations really caught on that you could sponsor/design a connected postmark and it would make an ordinary cover something special.[citation needed] These days anyone can sponsor a postmark. They need to design the postmark, get it approved by Royal Mail and then pay a fee. The postmark then becomes the property of Royal Mail and anyone is allowed to use it on their covers. This means that to a certain extent, most cover producers “borrow” other people’s postmarks. However, to be an “official” cover, a postmark has to be on the cover produced by the organisation that sponsored the postmark in the first place.[10]
Cachet
As the collecting of first day covers became more popular they began to appear on prepared envelopes, often with an illustration (commonly referred to by collectors as a
See also
- Earliest reported postmark on stamped envelopes
References
- ^ Bennett, Russell and Watson, James; Philatelic Terms Illustrated, Stanley Gibbons Publications, London (1978)
- ^ Miller, Rick. "Insights Stamp Collecting Basics 2004 December Paquebot mail begins at sea, postmarked on land Paquebot mail begins at sea, postmarked on land". Linn's Stamps.
- ^ Muir, Douglas (2011-12-12). "Rowland Hill & the Penny Black". The Postal Museum.
- ^ Buckingham, Tony; Essential Guide to British First Day Covers, Stanley Gibbons/Benham Publications, London (1999)
- ^ Milne, Gordon. "In the Spotlight". GB Stamps.
- ^ "First Day Cover - FDC : Philatelic Products : Countries List [Subformat: Envelope]". colnect.com. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
- ^ Neopost Covers
- ^ Buckingham, Tony. "Glossary". Buckingham Covers.
- ^ "A Short Course on First Day Covers". American First Day Cover Society.
- ^ Royal Mail (2007). "All About Postmarks" (PDF). Royal Mail. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 June 2015.
- ^ Hudgeons, 2009, pp.592-609
- ^ Lerner, 2010, pp.10-11
- ^ Buckingham, Tony. "Glossary". Buckingham Covers.
Sources
- Hudgeons, Marc; et al. (2009). The Official Blackbook Price Guide to United States Postage Stamps 2010. Random House. p. 656. ISBN 9780375723247.
- Buckingham, Tony (1999). Essential Guide to British First Day Covers. Stanley Gibbons. p. 16. ISBN 0852594879.
External links
- American First Day Cover Society – For FDC collectors, active since 1955.
- Media related to First day covers at Wikimedia Commons