RIHS Postal History Primer - Types of Collections

Philatelic and Postal History Primer
Types of Collections - Special and Fancy Cancels
Introduction//Stamp Types//Collection Types//Getting Started//Associations

Types of Collections - Special and Fancy Cancels

Special Cancels are hand stamped cancels produced at local post offices and are used to commemorate events, places and dates that relate to the stamp image. Illustrated below are 3 Special Cancels for the 1994 Buffalo soldiers Issue. There are over 30 different special cancels produced for this one issue that I am aware of.

Fort Concho

Fort Huachuca

Fort Leavenworth

During the nineteenth century, (Stamp Era of 1847-1899) cancellations were hand-stamped at local post offices. Another type of cancellation collection consists of the various hand stamp designs used by the local postmasters of the time. These cancels are known as Fancy Cancels. Illustrated on the left are two Fancy Cancels; the first consisting of a solid 5 Point Star and the second is what is known as a Star-Burst cancellation with 8 inward pointing wedges. Although some early Fancy Cancels are quite rare and expensive; there are more than enough reasonably priced fancy cancels to keep the average collector busy for a long time.

View: Collection of Fancy Cancels

Introduction//Stamp Types//Collection Types//Getting Started//Associations