Differentiating Penny Black Stamps From Other Styles

By Scott McQueen

The very first adhesive stamps were penny black stamps -- originally produced in'40 in the UK and Ireland, these stamps became a part of history, just as our own stamps have become a part of our own culture. With technology going out of control, it's surprising that stamp collecting remains a popular alternative to our Information Age.

They're little more than square stickers, but they represent a guarantee to the post office that the piece of mail they decorate has been prepaid for and thus worthy of their time and hard work. Stamps are displayed in the upper right corner of an envelope.

That's not it, though. Technology allows the post office to store data in each stamp that tells them where the particular piece of mail is coming from. An electronic mail sorting device is used for this purpose.

Today, many people engage in the hobby of stamp collecting, a mesmerizing and almost compulsive need to sort stamps by their creative images, place of origin and uniqueness. Famous faces frequently adorn certain stamps, which can add to the fun of collectors worldwide. They reflect real money, sometimes substantial amounts, spent to ship something important - this lends stamps the impression of being quite valuable.

Prior to beginning collecting, would-be stamp collectors learn to ID the different kinds of stamps. This way, they can properly organize them and gather similar stamps by their value or classification.

Stamps: Special

Special stamps are frequently larger than normal stamps, but are sold for the average price. When stock runs low, the prices may dip. Letters or packages sporting special stamps show that these items are first rate posts inside the USA, and are treated with appropriate care.

Commemorative Stamps

These large stamps are made to consider important events or people that have had important lives in our country. At first, they were created to commemorate the time at which the stamps were produced, such as the penny black stamps previously mentioned, but as time goes on more and more stamps are imprinted with pictures of Elvis, for example, and many other celebrities.

Commemorative stamps are sold in limited runs - what this means is that only 200 of them are produced at a time, which means the chances of a reprint are quite slim indeed. Fortunately, this only makes a collector who runs across one of these stamps all the happier.

Definitive Stamps

These stamps are less attractive, but they are the bulk of the stamps used every day. A single definitive stamp design might be reprinted again and again for several years before the style can finally change.

These stamps aren't as big as commemorative or special stamps, but their shape is similar, only on a smaller scale. This makes sense, since they are in essence the generic form of stamp.

Definitive stamps might be misinterpreted as dull, but to a collector they can still provide plenty of enjoyment. Seeing as how they're reprinted several times, there is always the possibility of an error in the printing, which then creates an accidentally unique stamp. Finding these can prove rewarding for collectors indeed. - 31410

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