Book Mail Stamps (also termed Publisher's Stamps) originated in 1981 when the favorable postage rates for books and printed matter were abolished, creating a hardship for small publishers. Thus, in September 1981, special stamps were created for use by small publishers who had reduced-postage agreements with the post office. The stamps were denominated by weight, and with "A" for faster mail and "B" for slower mail. "Skrymmande" stamps were for bulky packages. All the stamps are die-cut ("imperforate") self-adhesive and cannot be soaked off paper -- Used stamps are collected on piece. The 1981 set of 6 stamps was first issued, followed in 1994 by a set of 3 stamps. The sale of the stamps ended 30 June 2003 and validity ended 31 December 2004. At first the stamps were not canceled when used (thus uncanceled examples on piece are normal early use), but after a while they were canceled the same as normal stamps. Some denominations of the first set (1981, 6 stamps) sold out before others, thus unless you are trying to fill in singles to make a complete set of Mint stamps, or you are seeking individual variations, you should only buy Mint stamps in complete sets. Used stamps are always only available as various singles and will be on pieces of paper (not soakable). Examples on intact package fronts / wrappings are quite unusual since, because of size, few have been preserved. These stamps are listed in the Facit Norden Catalog (still as of 2022 edition), which is available from me. The Facit values for these stamps are much, much too low -- they are quite hard to obtain.
Facit states that the 1981 design exists with two different types of the background burelage (which is printed in a different color than the text of the stamp), each of which exists with two sub-types. I am aware of different color shades; and especially differences in the color and intensity of the burelage (including a) light pink vs red; and blue, greenish blue, and ultramarine), but I do not know the details of the types or sub-types. The 1981 stamps, printed in sheets of 40, exist with an additional type of variety: A printing and/or cutting registration line or cross or partial cross can exist in some positions; these markings were not usually trimmed off during die-cutting. The 1981 stamps were on thick white backing paper; all that I can recall seeing have NOT had any printing on the backside of the backing paper. All the 1981 papers that I have checked have been had various degrees of whitening / brightening (under l-w UV light).
The 1994 design exists in (at least) Dark Blue vs Medium Blue. Virtually all of the 1994 stamps that I have seen are on a Grayish White paper, but I have seen one example on very white paper. All the 1994 papers that I have checked have been non-fluorescent. The backing paper is Grayish Blue. All of the 1994 stamps that I have seen DO have blue text on the backing paper (the brand name of the paper, large) "MAYSPIES" and (small) text in three languages -- All that I have seen have text that is perpendicular to the design of the stamp; only partial text fits on any one stamp. The top and left sheet margin positions (at least) of the 1994 stamps have an extra tab of unprinted white label.
The color shades shown in the website images may be different than the examples you receive. If you seek specific shades, email me. To the extent of the small stock on hand, I will be happy to send multiple examples on approval if you wish to examine closely for variations. Otherwise, if you are seeking particular singles or sets and if they are not available at this moment on the website, I will be happy to record your interest on a waiting list. I am always interested in buying Mint and Used sets and singles. |
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