A block of stamps is defined as four attached stamps or more, with at least two across and two horizontally. They could be of the same or different design. An example would be last year’s The Art of Disney: Imagination stamps featuring characters from The Jungle Book, 101 Dalmatians and others.
Similarly stamps can also be presented as a strip of four or five stamps either vertically or horizontally. Some recent American stamp strips include Abraham Lincoln, Black Cinema and America on the Move: ‘50s Fins and Chrome.
Souvenir Sheets
A souvenir sheet is a small sheet of stamps that have a special design, illustration, and/or message in the margin. The most recent examples are this year’s Civil Rights Pioneers issued by the United States Postal Service, or last year’s Canadians in Hollywood (see below).
Booklets
You probably have at some point gone to your post office and asked the vendor for a book of stamps. Booklets are philatelic items too. These stamps are usually encased in a thin cardboard cover and come with 20 stamps. Canada’s booklet of ten stamps featuring Queen Elizabeth is one example (see below).
Panes
Some collectors also specialize in panes, which are sheets of stamps with either the same or different designs that can range from 20 to 50 stamps. Some panes carry a border that has an illustrated design. The U.S. Postal Service Legends of Hollywood stamps are one example as well as Canada Post’s pane that honors African-Canadians Abraham Doras Shadd and Rosemary Brown.
Postal Cards and Stamped Envelopes
Postal cards are very much like postcards without the fancy colorful design on the front or back. They basically black consist of a stamp-like illustration with the value already on it, and it’s a few cents cheaper than first class stamp. Some recent postal cards have honored American universities such as Mount Saint Mary’s.
And like postal cards, stamped envelopes already have the value on them consists of an embossed one- or two-color design, such as last year’s elk issue, and come in as either a #10 or # 6 ¾ size.
First Day Covers
First Day Covers are like souvenirs. They consist of an envelope bearing a stamp on the upper right hand corner, with a cancellation mark on it indicating the day and the place of when the stamp was issued. Some first day covers will have an illustration, or cachet, or the left hand portion of the envelope in relation to the stamp’s subject matter. Below is a first day cover honoring Canada's first flight (see below).
If you purchased a stamp that was just issued, you can have the Postal Service put a first day cancellation mark on it. The U.S. Postal Service Guide to U.S. Stamps (21st edition) recommends this:
- First you have to write your name and address on the envelope (be mindful to leave room for the stamp and the cancellation mark. Or used a peelable label to write your address. Insert a piece of a cardboard in the envelope. Put the stamp on the upper right hand corner of the envelope.
- Put your first day cover in a larger envelope and mail it as “Customer Affixed Envelopes” to the postmaster general of the city of where the stamp was first issued. You can have up to 50 envelopes first day cancellations. Or to save yourself the trouble you can purchase first day covers from the post office’s philatelic divisions.
First Day Ceremony Programs
Usually for commemorative stamps, a first day ceremony is held in the city where the stamp is issued. Admission to the ceremony is generally free and open to the public. A program is handed out to attendees that consists of a first-day cancellation of the stamp and lists the names of the invited speakers and guests. You can find out if there is a first day stamp ceremony near your area by visiting the Postal Service’s Web site.
More information about other stamp items you can collect be found can be found here from the USPS.
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