This is an Official stamp, used in government correspondence. It is Scott Catalogue number O1 (that is the upper case letter O and numeral 1). As you say, it was issued in 1893, and is the only one issued at the time. The next official stamps were not issued until 1907.
Ted
How long is permanent? Does 75 years count? The Uniform Penny Post was launched in 1840 in Great Britain, the first "modern" mail service in the world. Every reader knows of the Penny Black which was used to pay to pay for a letter being posted. What is not so common knowledge is that the "Penny Post" continued until June of 1915, 75 years later when the Royal Mail increased prices by 50% to a penny halfpenny (1 1/2p). I wonder if that was seen as a big increase in price at that time. I do think though, that 75 years without a price increase should qualify as permanent.
"Permanent validity" does not necessarily mean that a stamp is accepted as postage payment over a long time (in which case most French stamps would be "permanently valid" despite two currency changes), but that, once sold, it can always be used for a specific purpose, say, a domestic letter, no matter what the actual price is. Hence, the UK 1st and 2nd class stamps or the US Forever stamps are permanent validity stamps in this sense.
Read what I said!!!
In the past stamps may have remained in service,
but as each price increase came about their value
in postal service decreased. For instance a 13¢
stamp which could carry an envelope from Bangor,
Maine to San Pedro, California, or even to Honolulu
can now only do about one fourth the fee. Thus,
while the millions of dollars face value mint
stamps in collections represented a debt of the
postal service that diminished over the years.
The "forever"stamps, unless devalued at some time,
are still worth the full value of the promised and
paid for delivery service service.
I am planning on removing all the MNH Forever stamps
I will have accumulated in my collections by the
time I am 100, (11/22/39, mark it on your calendar)
and using them on X-mas cards to everyone I know,
or ever knew.
Can you imagine handing a couple hundred 20 or 30 year
old stamps on envelopes and watching the clerks trying
to figure out if they are valid. Some today can't be
sure what a block of four 13¢ stamps are worth.
As per my knowledge, the permanent validity stamp started during the 1990 years, however I found this Egyptian stamps from 1893 without any value, is this stamp is the precursor of the actual ones, is their others stamps, may be this can start a new thematic collection
Foudutimbre
re: permanent validity stamps
This is an Official stamp, used in government correspondence. It is Scott Catalogue number O1 (that is the upper case letter O and numeral 1). As you say, it was issued in 1893, and is the only one issued at the time. The next official stamps were not issued until 1907.
Ted
re: permanent validity stamps
How long is permanent? Does 75 years count? The Uniform Penny Post was launched in 1840 in Great Britain, the first "modern" mail service in the world. Every reader knows of the Penny Black which was used to pay to pay for a letter being posted. What is not so common knowledge is that the "Penny Post" continued until June of 1915, 75 years later when the Royal Mail increased prices by 50% to a penny halfpenny (1 1/2p). I wonder if that was seen as a big increase in price at that time. I do think though, that 75 years without a price increase should qualify as permanent.
re: permanent validity stamps
"Permanent validity" does not necessarily mean that a stamp is accepted as postage payment over a long time (in which case most French stamps would be "permanently valid" despite two currency changes), but that, once sold, it can always be used for a specific purpose, say, a domestic letter, no matter what the actual price is. Hence, the UK 1st and 2nd class stamps or the US Forever stamps are permanent validity stamps in this sense.
re: permanent validity stamps
Read what I said!!!
re: permanent validity stamps
In the past stamps may have remained in service,
but as each price increase came about their value
in postal service decreased. For instance a 13¢
stamp which could carry an envelope from Bangor,
Maine to San Pedro, California, or even to Honolulu
can now only do about one fourth the fee. Thus,
while the millions of dollars face value mint
stamps in collections represented a debt of the
postal service that diminished over the years.
The "forever"stamps, unless devalued at some time,
are still worth the full value of the promised and
paid for delivery service service.
I am planning on removing all the MNH Forever stamps
I will have accumulated in my collections by the
time I am 100, (11/22/39, mark it on your calendar)
and using them on X-mas cards to everyone I know,
or ever knew.
Can you imagine handing a couple hundred 20 or 30 year
old stamps on envelopes and watching the clerks trying
to figure out if they are valid. Some today can't be
sure what a block of four 13¢ stamps are worth.