I have a ton of these. Don't know if they are worth anything but I like'em, too. Some are from smaller towns. Here's a few I have scanned.
The 2nd stamp is a historic city STANISLAU which is the current day Ivano-Frankivsk. I like when the name has changed or the town doesn't exist anymore. STRAKONITZ is a small town (pop 24,000) in Czech Republic.
Hi Everyone;
If you have lots of town mark stamps, specialists will buy them. I have already sold them on here before.
Put them in the auction and see if they sell. It is a narrow niche market so don't expect them to sell quickly.
Since two of you like them so much, why not start a topical collection of towns or towns that on longer
exist, and maybe I can sell you some more of them. I'm sure other sellers have sold them on here also.
Just Thinkin'....
TuskenRaider
I am not certain here, but, to my knowledge, the Dutch cancellations that philb has posted are referred to as "Life-Saver" cancels - or maybe they are a smaller version of the same type (?)
As stated previously in this thread, there are specialists out there looking for post office cancellations, but, are few and far between.
Most of us will most likely come across some of these elusive cancels, and never realize their potential worth if it is a scarce one or not. Sometimes post offices, for whatever reason, do not exist that long while others last for considerable lengths of time. Most of us would not know either way.
If a collector becomes serious enough about these cancels, then specialized reference material is required, and, as we all know, that can be costly.
Chimo
Bujutsu
Hi Everyone;
I use the internet for all reference material. For instance Wikipedia usually has a article on most
towns and cities, and almost always gives population and other demographics. If the cancel is a
neighborhood in a large city like London, they do not show population, and the same with tube
stations.
The value of town cancels varies with a lot of factors. How old of a human settlement is it? How
large is the town? Small villages usually bump the price upward. Towns that no longer exist
would be a bigger bump up in price. If history is known to go back to Neolithic times, a bigger
bump, especially for archeology buffs.
If the town has historic significance it will bump the price up a tiny bit more, Falmouth England
is the world's third deepest seaport. But if you are a naval historian, as am I, the news of
Admiral Nelson's death first arrived there and was rushed by coach to London (they didn't have
radios then), and that would make the Falmouth cancel much more interesting.
The trick here is to learn who are the collectors interested in these narrow topics, naval history,
WWI, WWII, Korean War, Viet Nam, Postal history etc.
Just Couchin' out....
TuskenRaider
" ... I like when the name has changed or the town doesn't exist anymore. STRAKONITZ is a small town (pop 24,000) in Czech Republic. ..."
I have a certain affectation for UK SoN cancels that are from towns or postal areas mentioned in stories such as the seminal Arthur Conan Doyle mystery series. Another attention getter is a SoN that was applied to a British stamp on the Isle of Man or Jersey, before they became stamp issuing authorities themselves. Somewhere I have two common Wildings, one cancelled on the Scilly Isles and the other at John O'Groats.
Sometimes a date also catches my eye. I am quite sure that that is a part of the romance of stamp collecting.
Yes, the "Internets" are very useful, but before every home was intertwined with a World Wide Web I found several "Fodor's" travel guides for quite a few diverse nations in a local used book store. When I acquired some interesting cancel I'd look the town or area up to see where it was and what, if anything it was famous, infamous, or perhaps simply known for. I still have almost a dozen of those books on a nearby shelf, although these days it is easier to let my fingers do the keyboard two-step than to stand up to reach that top shelf.
Someone once wrote that he thought the Wilding or KG VI series was boring since once you found an example of each listed stamp the collection was closed.
Not so my friends, that is just the beginning.
Here are a few more from Sweden. HELSINGBORG is one of the oldest cities in Sweden, circa 1085.
When i started collecting i purchased anything in bulk that was cheap. After awhile it struck me,these stamps are worth nothing..no one wants them. The decades pass..i read specialized books..i go back to the packet material and look for numeral or round postmarks. Breda and Gouda are good sized towns and postmarks are not rare..but i love the cancels !
re: Its not the stamp its the postmark
I have a ton of these. Don't know if they are worth anything but I like'em, too. Some are from smaller towns. Here's a few I have scanned.
The 2nd stamp is a historic city STANISLAU which is the current day Ivano-Frankivsk. I like when the name has changed or the town doesn't exist anymore. STRAKONITZ is a small town (pop 24,000) in Czech Republic.
re: Its not the stamp its the postmark
Hi Everyone;
If you have lots of town mark stamps, specialists will buy them. I have already sold them on here before.
Put them in the auction and see if they sell. It is a narrow niche market so don't expect them to sell quickly.
Since two of you like them so much, why not start a topical collection of towns or towns that on longer
exist, and maybe I can sell you some more of them. I'm sure other sellers have sold them on here also.
Just Thinkin'....
TuskenRaider
re: Its not the stamp its the postmark
I am not certain here, but, to my knowledge, the Dutch cancellations that philb has posted are referred to as "Life-Saver" cancels - or maybe they are a smaller version of the same type (?)
As stated previously in this thread, there are specialists out there looking for post office cancellations, but, are few and far between.
Most of us will most likely come across some of these elusive cancels, and never realize their potential worth if it is a scarce one or not. Sometimes post offices, for whatever reason, do not exist that long while others last for considerable lengths of time. Most of us would not know either way.
If a collector becomes serious enough about these cancels, then specialized reference material is required, and, as we all know, that can be costly.
Chimo
Bujutsu
re: Its not the stamp its the postmark
Hi Everyone;
I use the internet for all reference material. For instance Wikipedia usually has a article on most
towns and cities, and almost always gives population and other demographics. If the cancel is a
neighborhood in a large city like London, they do not show population, and the same with tube
stations.
The value of town cancels varies with a lot of factors. How old of a human settlement is it? How
large is the town? Small villages usually bump the price upward. Towns that no longer exist
would be a bigger bump up in price. If history is known to go back to Neolithic times, a bigger
bump, especially for archeology buffs.
If the town has historic significance it will bump the price up a tiny bit more, Falmouth England
is the world's third deepest seaport. But if you are a naval historian, as am I, the news of
Admiral Nelson's death first arrived there and was rushed by coach to London (they didn't have
radios then), and that would make the Falmouth cancel much more interesting.
The trick here is to learn who are the collectors interested in these narrow topics, naval history,
WWI, WWII, Korean War, Viet Nam, Postal history etc.
Just Couchin' out....
TuskenRaider
re: Its not the stamp its the postmark
" ... I like when the name has changed or the town doesn't exist anymore. STRAKONITZ is a small town (pop 24,000) in Czech Republic. ..."
I have a certain affectation for UK SoN cancels that are from towns or postal areas mentioned in stories such as the seminal Arthur Conan Doyle mystery series. Another attention getter is a SoN that was applied to a British stamp on the Isle of Man or Jersey, before they became stamp issuing authorities themselves. Somewhere I have two common Wildings, one cancelled on the Scilly Isles and the other at John O'Groats.
Sometimes a date also catches my eye. I am quite sure that that is a part of the romance of stamp collecting.
Yes, the "Internets" are very useful, but before every home was intertwined with a World Wide Web I found several "Fodor's" travel guides for quite a few diverse nations in a local used book store. When I acquired some interesting cancel I'd look the town or area up to see where it was and what, if anything it was famous, infamous, or perhaps simply known for. I still have almost a dozen of those books on a nearby shelf, although these days it is easier to let my fingers do the keyboard two-step than to stand up to reach that top shelf.
Someone once wrote that he thought the Wilding or KG VI series was boring since once you found an example of each listed stamp the collection was closed.
Not so my friends, that is just the beginning.
re: Its not the stamp its the postmark
Here are a few more from Sweden. HELSINGBORG is one of the oldest cities in Sweden, circa 1085.