🇬🇧 I have not yet mentioned new developments in the Royal Mail Post and Go series. My writing here is very superficial as the items in my collection are part of my general Commonwealth collection rather than being specialist in nature. Much more lucid and detailed information on the subject can be obtained by referring to the Norvic Philatelics Blog and general Norvic website.
Now being dispensed from Post and Go kiosks in various post offices are Parcel labels, vaguely similar to Horizon labels, which are delivered by a third printer added to the machines. An example of the appearance of the label is illustrated above - it was obtained from one of the NCR kiosks situated in the Pinfold Street post office in the centre of Birmingham. It is of course self-adhesive and has a large strip of backing paper stretching out to its left and right sides. There is a security date code positioned right of the Queen's head at the level of the base of the crown and the code is MA16.
As can be seen it is very similar to the counter-printed Horizon labels, the most recent of which was introduced about summer 2016 in which a 2D barcode was added to to the labels as shown below. The background printing appeared to be in 2 different shades - somewhat yellowish green and a darker more greyish green as illustrated below:-
The design-type, without barcodes, had first been put on sale at Europhilex Stamp Show 2015 and then rolled out subsequently. A cover cancelled at the exhibition is depicted below:-
The 2015-style Horizon label replaced the large gold labels which had originally been sold with simulated perforations in a trial at Camden High Street post office with a first day of issue on 8 June 2009 (illustrated below) and subsequently replaced by labels without perforations which were first sold at Old Street post office in London on 23 August 2010.
The gold Horizon labels had replaced plain white paper labels which had been introduced in 2002 (second illustration below) trials having taken place initially in the Edinburgh, Southampton and Watford post code areas from 14 February 2002 and then extending to Portsmouth and 2 areas in London on 9 May, elsewhere in London, north Wales, Northern Ireland, south east England and north east England on 8 August and then to the Midlands and East Anglia on 15 August and finally to South Wales, south west England and northern England on 5 September 2002.
To comply with legislation, labels produced in Welsh post offices were additionally inscribed with Welsh text - Post Breninhol (Royal Mail) and Talwyd Y Post DG (Postage Paid UK) - from August 2003.
In spring 2007, Epsom printers were introduced at post offices after trialling was carried out in September 2006 and this resulted in a change in the lettering on the labels with "Royal Mail" and other text including "Postage Paid UK" being taller and narrower (first illustration below).
A fascinating collection of Horizon labels, and now Post and Go labels, can be made at very low cost which tells the story of the advancing use of technology to indicate the prepayment of postage and it seems to me to be wholly more meaningful and interesting to collect such items than it does to pay vast amounts of money for countless "stamps", miniature sheets and so on which have nothing to do with the delivery of mail. On the subject of "countless stamps" we come to .......
...... 🇮🇳 India Post which has a long list of new issues lined up for the remaining days of February and collectors will be disheartened by the frenzy of releases which will leave them digging deep in their pockets to pay for the stuff:-
10 February 2017 - Headgear - 16 stamps
11 February 2017 - Poona Horse Regiment
13 February 2017 - Ramjas College
14 February 2017 - Coffee (see Blog 904)
14 February 2017 - Roses ("My stamp")
23 February 2017 - Ladybird beetle
25 February 2017 - Modes of transport
To be announced - Srimad Raichandarji
To be announced- Eminent writers (5 stamps)
To be finalised - Gaurishankar Govardhan Joshi
To be finalised - Power research station
To be finalised - Joint issue with Papua New Guinea.
🇱🇰 Sri Lanka Post issued a single stamp on 6 February 2017 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Asian Development Bank. The diamond-shaped stamp was designed by Ruwan Indrajith Upasena and printed in lithography. Rating :- ***.
🇭🇰 Hong Kong Post will issue the sixth miniature sheet in its "World Heritage in China" series which depicts Kaiping Diaolou and villages on 16 February 2017. The issue was designed by Lee Ying-chi and lithographed by Cartor and perforated 13 x 13.5. Rating:- ****.
🇸🇬 On 6 January 2017 Singapore Post issued a " My Stamp" sheetlet of 14 stamps (6 of 1 design and 8 of another design) and a second sheet in triangular format containing a circular stamp all in a special folder sold for 21.80 Singapore dollars on the subject of the lunar new year, the Year of the Rooster. Rating:- ***.
🇸🇱 More paraphilatelic slurry from Stamperija with an alleged date of issue of 29 December 2016 and inscribed "Sierra Leone" and taking the usual form of "sheetlets", each containing 4 different "stamps", and accompanying "miniature sheets" - a total of 9 of each in total. The featured subjects are Gorillas, Water birds, Indigo birds, Bee eaters, Dugongs, Cacti, Hornbills, Flying dinosaurs and Turtles (though some of the stamps clearly depict tortoises rather than turtles). Rating:- 0.
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