Postmark
A postmark is a postal marking made on a
letter, package,
postcard or the like indicating the date and time that the item was delivered into the care of the postal service. Modern postmarks are often applied simultaneously with the
cancellation or "killer" that marks the
postage stamp as having been used , and the two terms are often used interchangeably, if incorrectly. Postmarks may be applied by hand or by machines, using methods such as
rollers or
inkjets, while digital postmarks are a recent innovation. The
local post Hawai'i Post had a rubber-stamp postmark parts of which were hand-painted.
Encyclopedia
A
postmark is a postal marking made on a
letter, package,
postcard or the like indicating the date and time that the item was delivered into the care of the postal service. Modern postmarks are often applied simultaneously with the
cancellation or "killer" that marks the
postage stamp as having been used , and the two terms are often used interchangeably, if incorrectly. Postmarks may be applied by hand or by machines, using methods such as
rollers or
inkjets, while digital postmarks are a recent innovation. The
local post Hawai'i Post had a rubber-stamp postmark parts of which were hand-painted. At Hidaway Island,
Vanuatu, the Underwater Post Office has an embossed postmark.
The date of the postmark can be quite important. In the United States, the
Internal Revenue Service will still consider
income tax returns as filed on time though it receives them late if they are postmarked on time, and this date , may have significance as regards legal filings and proofs of service . Entries into sweepstakes and contests, and juried art exhibitions, may likewise have a "postmark deadline," and in at least one case it might have significance regarding the date of class withdrawal.
There are some examples of "faked covers" produced by philatelic forgers, most usually in order to increase their value, in which the postmark has been altered in some way; for example, by changing the date.
The "electronic postmark" was named by drawing a parallel with the regular postmark.
History
The first postmark was introduced by English Postmaster General Henry Bishop in 1661 and showed only the day and month of mailing in order to prevent the delay of the mail by carriers. In the
19th century and early
1900s it was common for letters to receive multiple postmarks indicating the time, date, and location of each post office delivering or transporting the letter, and this is still occasionally true, though to a lesser extent . While almost every contemporary postmark includes a location as well as a date, in 2004
New Zealand Post announced plants to eliminate the location on their postmarks and include only the date; however, information about this can be determined by a three-number code on the postmarks.
Different types of postmarks include
railway post offices and maritime postmarks. Postmarks on
naval vessels during sensitive operations in wartime are sometimes "clean," showing less information than normally to prevent route of travel or other details from falling into enemy hands. Similar to this is the "censored postmark," overprinted with a black obliteration of the time and place of mailing for similar reasons.
Hawai'i post once had a
surfboard mail postmark, for covers that traveled by surfboard.
A colour postmark is on the United States Postal Service-issued collectible envelope commemorating the 2004 inauguration of
George W. Bush.
While postmarks are applied almost universally by or under the authority of the official postal department, service, or authority [in the
United States it is possible to receive a permit to apply your own postmark, called a Mailer's Permit Postmark], it is at least theoretically possible that under certain conditions specified by the private express statutes in the
United States, a privately-carried letter may be cancelled with a private postmark. Unofficial entities that issue artistamps may use postmark-like markings as well.
Much of the published work on postmarks covers postmarks from before 1900. . Much work in studying postmarks is needed for 1900 and later.
In
Great Britain the first postmark employed for the cancellation of the then new
postage stamps was the
Maltese Cross, so named because of its shape and appearance. This was used in conjunction with a date stamp which was applied, usually to the rear of the letter, which denoted the date of posting.
Fewer postmarks are used now than previously, with the advent of meter labels, which indicate the precise date and time of acceptance at the
post office, some types of computer vended postage, and computerized postage people can print off their own
PCs . These indica do not need to be postmarked, though occasionally they are redundantly, and inadvertently .
Ink colour
When the first universal postal system was started in the
United Kingdom with its
Penny Black, the postmark used red ink for contrast. This was not successful, and the stamp was changed to non-black colours so that the postmark could use black ink.
Digital postmarks
In 2004 the
United States Postal Service announced plans to introduce first day digital color postmarks to be used to cancel some first day covers for commemorative stamps in 2005 and this practice has continued into 2006.
Postmark Advertisement
Singapore Post offers a "postmark advertising" service which, strictly speaking, applies to the "killer" rather than the postmark.
Value
A special or rare postmark can substantially add to the value of a stamp.
Postmark Africa
Postmark Africa is a programme on the
BBC World Service.
Miscellaneous
A datestamp is a type of postmark.
The Postmark Award is given to outstanding employees of
Canada Post.
Similar marks
A postmark should not be confused with the
killer which are lines, bars, etc. used to cancel a postage stamp. Neither should a postmark be confused with
overprints generally, or
pre-cancels specifically, which generally do not indicate a date.
Flight
cachets, more or less elaborate rubber-stamps on an envelope indicating on which flight a cover has traveled via
air mail, are in addition to the postmark and are not postmarks either.
Source: "Collecting those strange Tongan stamps — on cover," in
Scott Stamp MonthlyExternal links
