PHILATELIC ELEMENTS FOR THEMATIC EXHIBITS

BY Joan Bleakley in collaboration with
Darrell R. Ertzberger & John M. Hotchner

Exhibits that reach the vermeil or gold award level contain a broad range of philatelic elements. This listing is intended as a handy reference for preparing or judging thematic exhibits. It is by no means complete, nor would it be possible to have every element listed here in any one exhibit.

All elements used in a thematic exhibit should have postal connotations.  The item must have been:

1. initiated by the postal service
2. introduced by the postal service (e.g., overprints, marginal markings, postal stationery cachets, etc)
3. or approved by the postal service
4. if none of the above, their inclusion should be explained

 ITEMS SHOULD BE SELECTED FOR:

1. the primary or secondary design
2. the purpose of issue or circumstance of issue
3. the relation of the design or issue to the theme

 > Material should always be in the best possible condition given its source, age and general availability.

> Overprints can change the theme, overprints unrelated to the design should be used solely for the overprint.

> Postal stationery should not be windowed, the entire piece is the issued item.

> Underpaid or overpaid postage should be explained.

> First day and special event covers with privately printed cachets should be selected for the stamp and/or cancel, not the cachet.

 ITEMS THAT SHOULD BE AVOIDED:

1. Mixed subjects on covers (confuses the theme)
2. Postmarks, etc. without indication of postage paid
3. Private information such as addressee or addressor, except for those granted free franking privilege

 PRE-PRODUCTION ELEMENTS:

1. ORIGINAL DRAWINGS:  submitted by artists and ACCEPTED for consideration by the postal authority for stamp designs
2. ESSAY:  proposed design, submitted to, and rejected by, Postal Authorities, or adopted after changes have been made
3. PHOTO ESSAY:  photograph of design with measurements and notations
4. PROOFS:  trial impressions from the die or printing plate before actual production
5. ENGRAVER’S PROOFS:  impressions taken to check the progress of his work
6. DIE PROOFS:  impressions from the completed die, submitted for final approval
7. PLATE PROOFS:  impressions from the completed plate
8. COLOR TRIALS:  proofs in selected colors to permit a final choice of color to be made
9. COLOR PROOFS:  impressions of the approved colors taken prior to printing
10. RAINBOW PROOFS:  trials, to test various colored inks, cancellations and paper

 STAMPS AS ISSUED (most are catalogue  listed)

1. Booklet stamps (preferably full pane if all one motif or related se-tenants)
   1. booklet covers and labels (shown with pane or booklet)
   2. plate numbers (or other marginal markings)
2. Coil stamps (should be shown in pairs)
   1. line pairs
   2. plate numbers (best shown in strips of three or five for US)
3. Sheet stamps perforate, rouletted, or imperforate when issued as such
   1. plate, zip, arrow, mail early, and copyright blocks
   2. other marginal markings (printed, handstamped)
   3. se-tenant pairs and blocks, tabbed issues
   4. triptych (three joined stamps of different but related designs)
   5. tete-beche pairs
   6. bisects, trisects, quadrisects
   7. watermarks
4. Discount postage (stamps issued at reduced price, chiefly for publicity)
5. Encased postage and other monetary usages
6. Expedition stamps
   1. Scientific (e.g. Shackleton Antarctic Expedition, 1908)
   2. Military (e.g. Liberian Field Force, IEF of India)
7. Express or Special Delivery
8. Geometric shapes (triangles, diamonds, etc.)
9. Local issues (valid within a limited area or postal administration)
10. Occupation issues (for use in territory occupied by a foreign power)
11. Revenue issues: government, departmental
12. Special fees, late fees, railway letter fees
13. Miniature and souvenir sheets
14. Newspaper stamps
15. Official stamps
16. Parcel post stamps
17. Postage Due stamps
18. Telegraph stamps
19. War tax stamps
20. Joint issues
21. Provisional issues
22. Plebiscite issues
23. Military franks
24. Military telegraph stamps
25. Marine insurance issues
26. value inserted issues

 MACHINE GENERATED POSTAGE:  Framas, Postal Buddy Cards, Meter Imprints 

OFFICIAL VARIETIES (Official Government issued)

1. Perforations (different measurements, methods)
2. Experimental perforations and roulettes
3. Perfins (e.g. O.H.M.S.)
4. Precancels (different types and styles)
5. Tagged or otherwise treated for use in automation equipment
6. Printed information on reverse, attached label, or selvage
7. Specimens, black prints and other publicity items
8. Surcharges (revalued issues)
9. Overprints (geographic, commemorative, etc.)
10. Mirror prints
11. Gum, watermark, or paper varieties
12. Test stamps (for testing of dispensing machines)
13. Post office training stamps
14. Carrier stamps (charge for conveying mail to or from local post offices)
15. Shipping company stamps (prepaying mail carried on mail-ships or packet boats)
16. Obliterated stamps (e.g., portraits of deposed or deceased rulers)

UNOFFICIAL VARIETIES

Perfins, business, charity, (preferably on cover with corner card)

 UNPLANNED VARIETIES (EFOs)

1. ERRORS (as a result of the production process, but not “favor” made)
   1. Imperforate in one direction
   2. Fully imperforate
   3. Imperforate between
   4. Perforations of the wrong gauge on one or more sides
   5. Perforations inverted on souvenir sheets
   6. Perforations fully doubled or tripled
   7. Complete color missing
   8. Tagging missing
   9. Inverted tagging
   10. Inverted design
   11. Inverted design
   12. Inverted embossing
   13. Design error
   14. Inverted or multiple surcharge
   15. Inverted or multiple overprint
   16. Overprint or surcharge on back of stamp
   17. Lettering errors (misspelled country, name, etc.)
   18. Double print
   19. Wrong value stamp
   20. Colors reversed
   21. Missing overprint, surcharge, or precancel
   22. Offset (printed on reverse)
   23. Paper errors
                             i.      Printed on wrong color paper

                                                             ii.      Wrong, incomplete or changed watermark

24. Other constant errors (worthy of catalogue listing)
1. FREAKS:  minor production varieties, usually not repeated, rarely catalogue listed
   1. Gutter snipes
   2. Ink smears, flaws and blots
   3. Set-offs (from flatplate printed sheet laid atop another)
   4. Misperfs (one direction, two directions, diagonal
   5. Partially perforated
   6. Color shifts (misregistration of color
   7. Miscuts
   8. Over or under inked
   9. Color partially missing
   10. Foldovers, foldunders
   11. Creases (pre-perforating or pre-printing)
   12. Minor shade/color differences
   13. Partial stamp printed on reverse
   14. Partially doubled overprint or surcharge
   15. Rejection markings (indicating printers’ waste to be destroyed)
2. ODDITIES
   1. Plate varieties (double transfers, layout lines, position dots)
   2. Design errors and ghosts
   3. Intentionally created varieties

                                                               i.      Color changelings

                                                             ii.      Altered stamps (attempts to create higher value stamps)

                                                            iii.      Rotary coil end strips

                                                            iv.      Flatplate coil paste-ups

                                                              v.      Private perfs

4. Local overprints
5. Cancels that change the design
6. Intentionally created errors
7. Intentionally produced gutter pairs
8. Provisional overprints
9. Stolen printers’ waste
10. Unauthorized bisects

 COVERS:

1. folded letters
2. stampless covers
3. air mail
4. balloon post
5. camp mail (concentration camp, POW camp, displaced persons, etc)
6. catapault mail
7. censored mail
8. combination franking (stamps of more than one country
9. crash covers
10. cross-border mail
11. fieldpost
12. first day or special event covers
13. first flights
14. free franks
15. glider mail
16. international organizations (U.N., Red Cross, etc.)
17. military (APO, FPO)
18. naval ships mail
19. official government mail
20. official cachets
21. packet letters
22. paquebot
23. parachute mail
24. pigeon post
25. pneumatic post
26. rocket post
27. ship letters
28. zeppelin mail

POSTAL STATIONERY:

1. imprinted envelopes and postal cards
2. letter cards
3. reply paid cards
4. aerogrammes, airgraphs, air letter sheets
5. V mail
6. wrappers for newspapers and periodicals
7. printed-to-order envelopes, cards; produced/authorized by postal authorities
8. folded advertising letters (e.g., France, Germany)
9. formula cards (France, etc.)
10. echo cards (Japan)
11. postal telegrams (e.g. Germany, Great Britain)

 MAXIMUM CARD:  a picture postcard with a stamp depicting the exact same subject affixed to the picture side of the card, and the cancellation having a direct relationshop to the subject pictured on the stamp.

 LABELS:

1. air mail etiquettes
2. charity (Christmas seals)
3. fiscals
4. official seals
5. postal fiscals
6. registration
7. special delivery
8. telegraph

 CANCELLATIONS (should be tied to a piece or on cover, if possible)

1. postmarks
2. town circles
3. fancy cancels
4. pictorial
5. slogan
6. traveling post office (TPO)
7. highway post office (HPO)
8. mobile post office (MPO)
9. railway post office (RPO)
10. military (fieldpost, APO, etc.)

 AUXILIARY MARKINGS:

1. air mail
2. registered
3. certified or insured
4. special delivery
5. night delivery
6. COD
7. censored
8. postage due
9. postage not valid
10. transit
11. backstamps
12. receiving marks
13. forwarding comments
14. refused
15. undeliverable
16. unmailable
17. carrier comments
18. directory markings
19. weight markings
20. return to sender: better address, proper postage, service suspended, etc.

 OTHER ELEMENTS – THESE MUST BE IDENTIFIED WHEN USED IN AN EXHIBIT

1. BOGUS STAMP – a completely fictitious “stamp” created solely for sale to collectors, or an actual stamp with an unauthorized surcharge or overprint (these are not forgeries as the stamp never officially existed).
2. CINDERELLAS
   1. Christmas seals (when tied to the cover)
   2. Propaganda stamps
3. FACSIMILE – reproduction of a genuine stamp with no intent to deceive collectors or postal officials (e.g. illustrations)
4. FAKE – a genuine stamp that has been altered to make it more attractive to collectors (e.g. altered color, added or changed postmark, repaired, reperfed, regummed, etc. to make a more valuable variety)
5. FORGERY – completely fraudulent reproduction of a genuine stamp intended to defraud.  They are generally classified into two types:
   1. Philatelic forgeries made to defraud collectors
   2. Postal forgeries made to defraud the postal service
6. POSTAL DOCUMENTS
   1. Official receipts
   2. Orders and bulletins
   3. Stamp shipment wrappings and labels