Newspaper Stamps

Postage stamps are not just used on mails and envelopes; these can be seen in newspapers and documents as well. The postage stamps that are used in newspapers are called newspaper stamps, and these are used to cover the cost of mailing these newspapers and periodicals so that they will reach the target audiences. These types of stamps were popular during the 19^th century but started to fall in terms of popularity in the 20^th century when newspaper publishers and mail services started to a arrange a ‘cheaper’ alternative of mailing newspapers through bulk handling.

Different Uses for Newspaper Stamps

There are different uses for newspaper stamps, and their actual use will depend on their value. For example, the small-value postage stamps are usually placed on newspaper wrappers. The higher value postage stamps on the other hand are used on bundles of newspapers and receipts.

The first Newspaper Stamps

Newspaper stamps were widely used in the 19^th century, but it was Austria that first released its newspaper postage stamps. The stamps issued were non-denominated blue Mercury newspaper stamp called the Scott P1. To tell the value of the stamps in Austria, one has to pay attention to the colors used. There was a rate change in 1856 where the colour of the 6kr postage stamp was made scarlet, thus boosting the overall value of the 6kr newspaper stamp to $67,500. In 1920s, Austria decided to release a number of colourful postage stamps, and most of these stamps featured the image of Mercury (or Hermes), dubbed the winged messenger of the gods.

Aside from Austria, there were other countries that joined the trend and released a number of newspaper stamps.  The United States also released its own version of the newspaper stamps, and these postage stamps were used from 1865 to 1898. These postage stamps were primarily used for bulk shipments. These stamps come in different values, but the most valuable stamp came with a face value of US $100. There have been a number of newspaper stamps that were printed in the past, and all these are readily available in the market and can be found easily thanks to their cheaper prices.