Pictorial Postmarks

Stamp dedication events held on days following the first-day-of-issue or first-day-of-sale events are known as special dedication ceremonies. The first-day-of-sale post­marks, shown below, may be modified for special dedica­tion ceremonies. In order to use the first-day-of-sale postmark artwork for a special dedication event, the “FIRST DAY OF SALE” wording must be replaced with the name of the “STATION” where the special dedication event will be held. The postmaster’s city, state, and ZIP™ code must also appear in the postmark, just under the ban­ner. Post Offices™ can offer these postmarks through mail-back service for 30 days. The Postal Service must make all postmarking services known to collectors through advance publicity in the Postal Bulletin. Therefore, all first-day-of-sale and special dedication pictorial postmarks must be reported to Stamp Services 2 weeks prior to the events on PS Form 413, Pictorial Postmark Announce­ment/Report.

The PS Form 413 may be found at: http://blue.usps.gov/formmgmt/pt.htm.

First Day of Sale State Postmarks