©2014 USPS
On February 7, 2015, in San Francisco, CA, the U.S. Postal Service® will issue the Lunar New Year: Year of the Ram First-Class Mail® stamp (Forever® priced at 49-cents) in one design, in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) pane of 12 stamps (Item 588900).
The stamp will go on sale nationwide February 7, 2015.
The Year of the Ram stamp is the eighth of twelve stamps in the Celebrating Lunar New Year series. The Year of the Ram begins on February 19, 2015, and ends on February 7, 2016. The stamp art depicts a wooden candy tray known as a chuen-hop or Tray of Togetherness. The tray is filled with dried fruits, candies, and other treats to provide a sweet beginning to the new year. Artist Kam Mak created this original painting. Art director and stamp designer Ethel Kessler incorporated elements from the previous series of Lunar New Year stamps to create continuity between the series.
To learn more about the stories behind the stamps, visit http://uspsstamps.com.
Distribution: Item 588900, $5.88 Lunar New Year: Year of the Ram (Forever priced at 49-cents) Commemorative PSA Pane of 12 Stamps
Stamp Fulfillment Services will make a subsequent automatic push distribution to Post Offices™ of a quantity to cover approximately 30 days of sales. Distribution quantities for the automatic push distribution are available by logging on to SFS Web at https://sfsweb.usps.gov. Post Offices may begin ordering stamps prior to the FDOI through SFS Web. However, offices should check the website noted above to determine the amount they will receive on their automatic push distribution.
Only the following pictorial postmark is permitted for the Lunar New Year: Year of the Ram stamp. The word “Station” or the abbreviation “STA” is required somewhere in the design, because it will be a temporary station.
To finalize the Lunar New Year: Year of the Ram stamps pictorial postmark art, insert the date, city, state, and ZIP™ Code of the physical location of your event adjacent to the stamp image. Overall dimensions of the pictorial postmark must not exceed 4 inches horizontally by 2 inches vertically. Collectors prefer the dimensions 3-1/2 inches by 1.
The Postal Service™ must make all special postmarks known to collectors through advance publicity in the Postal Bulletin. Therefore, all special dedication cancellations must be reported to Stamp Services four weeks before the event using PS Form 413, Pictorial Postmark Announcement/Report. To get a copy of the form, go to http://blue.usps.gov/formmgmt/forms/ps413.pdf.
Customers have 60 days to obtain the first-day-of-issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office, at The Postal Store® website at http://www.usps.com/shop, or by calling 800-STAMP-24. They should affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:
Lunar New Year: Year of the Ram Stamp
Attention: Station Manager
Chinatown Station
867 Stockton Street
San Francisco, CA 94108-9998
After applying the first-day-of-issue postmark, the Postal Service will return the envelopes through the mail. There is no charge for the postmark up to a quantity of 50. For more than 50, customers have to pay five cents each. All orders must be postmarked by April 8, 2015.
The Postal Service also offers first-day covers for new stamp issues and Postal Service stationery items postmarked with the official first-day-of-issue cancellation. Each item has an individual catalog number and is offered in the quarterly USA Philatelic catalog, online at http://usps.com/shop, or by calling 800-782-6724. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 800-782-6724 or writing to:
U.S. Postal Service
Catalog Request
PO Box 219014
Kansas City, MO 64121-9014
There are eleven philatelic products for this stamp issue.
n 588906, Press Sheet with Die cut, $70.56,
(print quantity 500).
n 588908, Press Sheet without Die cut, $70.56
(print quantity 500).
n 588910*, Digital Color Postmark Keepsake
(2 SS, 1 DCP), $13.95.
n 588916*, First-Day Cover, $0.93.
n 588918*, First-Day Cover (Full Pane), $8.38.
n 588919*, First-Day Cover Cancelled Full Pane, $8.38.
n 588921*, Digital Color Postmark, $1.64.
n 588924*, Framed Art, $39.95.
n 588930*, Ceremony Program, $6.95.
n 588931*, Stamp Deck Card, $0.95.
n 588932*, Stamp Deck Card with Digital Color Postmark, $1.99.
Items with an asterisk (*) will use the 128 barcode from Stamp Fulfillment Services. All other philatelic products will continue to use barcode series A, with the exception of the Yearbook and the Guide Book.
Issue:
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Lunar New Year: Year of the Ram Stamp
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Item Number:
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588900
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Denomination & Type of Issue:
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First-Class Mail Forever
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Format:
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Souvenir Sheet of 12 (1 design)
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Series:
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Celebrating Lunar New Year
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Issue Date & City:
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February 7, 2015, San Francisco, CA
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Designer:
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Ethel Kessler, Bethesda, MD
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Art Director:
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Ethel Kessler, Bethesda, MD
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Typographer:
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Ethel Kessler, Bethesda, MD
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Artist:
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Kam Mak, Brooklyn, NY
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Modeler:
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Donald Woo
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Manufacturing Process:
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Offset, Microprint
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Printer:
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Banknote Corporation of America/SSP
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Printed at:
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Browns Summit, NC
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Press Type:
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Alprinta 74
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Stamps per Pane:
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12
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Print Quantity:
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17,600,400 stamps
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Paper Type:
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Phosphor Tagged, Overall
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Adhesive Type:
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Pressure-sensitive adhesive
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Processed at:
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Banknote Corporation of America, Browns Summit SC
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Colors:
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Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black, PMS872 Gold
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Stamp Orientation:
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Horizontal
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Image Area (w x h):
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1.42 x 0.84 in/36.07 x 21.34 mm
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Overall Size (w x h):
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1.56 x 0.98 in/39.62 x 24.89 mm
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Full Pane Size (w x h):
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7.24 x 5.92 in/183.90 x 150.36 mm
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Press Sheets Size (w x h):
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24.05 x 21.87 in/611.00 x 555.50 mm
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Plate Size:
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144 stamps per revolution
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Plate Numbers:
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N/A
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Marginal Markings:
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Front:
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Header: “CELEBRATING LUNAR NEW YEAR”
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Back:
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© 2014 USPS • USPS logo • Barcode (588900) at bottom of pane
• Promotional text • Lunar New Year Bio
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— Stamp Services,
Marketing and Sales, 12-25-14
