In
philately
Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. While closely associated with stamp collecting and the study of postage, it is possibl ...
a reprint is a new printing of a
postage stamp
A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail). Then the stamp is affixed to the f ...
from the original plates.
[Sutton, R.J. & K.W. Anthony. ''The Stamp Collector's Encyclopaedia''. 6th edition. London: Stanley Paul, 1966, p.205.] A reprint is to be distinguished from a
new print which is not printed from the original medium. A reprint may or may not be valid as postage.
Background
While it is common for a postal service to order print-runs as stocks are diminished by the public, it is also the usual practice to only use a given design for a small period of time so as to discourage
forgery
Forgery is a white-collar crime that generally consists of the false making or material alteration of a legal instrument with the specific mens rea, intent to wikt:defraud#English, defraud. Tampering with a certain legal instrument may be fo ...
, and then to destroy the
printing plate
Printing is a process for mass reproducing text and images using a master form or template. The earliest non-paper products involving printing include cylinder seals and objects such as the Cyrus Cylinder and the Cylinders of Nabonidus. The ...
s.
Sometimes the authorities keep the plates on hand, and reuse them later. The reasons have included:
* Problems with a new design, resulting in a sudden need for additional stamps
* Additional copies for
stamp collectors
Stamp collecting is the collecting of postage stamps and related objects. It is an area of philately, which is the study (or combined study and collection) of stamps. It has been one of the world's most popular hobbies since the late nineteenth ...
* Souvenirs for
stamp shows, government meetings, etc. (these are often printed on cards rather than stamp paper)
Identifying reprints
As reprints are produced from the original plates, it can be very difficult to distinguish them from the original printing. Frequently subtle details matter, such the type of paper, type of gum, or color shades. Reprints often appear fresh and bright compared to the originals.
Official reprints
In a few cases, the postal authorities have produced
official reproduction
An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless of whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority (either their own or that of thei ...
s, copies of an existing design created on new plates. A notable example of this occurred in 1875 in the
United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, where all stamps issued to date were reproduced or reprinted with the intention of making them more readily available to collectors. (The actual numbers printed were small, and so most of the reissues are now rarer and more expensive than the originals they resemble.) In 1962, to prevent people profiting from the issue of an
invert stamp error, the
United States Post Office Department
The United States Post Office Department (USPOD; also known as the Post Office or U.S. Mail) was the predecessor of the United States Postal Service, established in 1792. From 1872 to 1971, it was officially in the form of a Cabinet of the Un ...
intentionally reprinted 40,270,000 copies the yellow
Dag Hammarskjöld invert stamp.
''Dag Hammarskjöld On Stamps'' by Chuck Matlack (retrieved 29 September 2006)
/ref>
Unofficial reprints
Unofficial or illegitimate reprints also exist, being produced by private printers who were contracted to print stamps, but retained the plates for their own use. The classic example is the Seebeck reprints of Latin American stamps produced in great numbers around the end of the 19th century.
References
See also
* New print (philately)
{{Authority control
Philatelic terminology