© 2010 USPS
On May 4, 2011, in Kennedy Space Center, Florida, the Postal Service™ will issue a Mercury Project/MESSENGER Mission se-tenant pair commemorative stamp (Forever® priced at 44 cents), in two designs in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) pane of 20 stamps (Item 468000).
A three-time winner of the Hugo Award for Best Professional Artist, Donato Giancola of Brooklyn, New York, illustrated the Mercury Project/MESSENGER Mission stamps under the direction of Phil Jordan, Falls Church, Virginia; he based the artwork on NASA photographs and images. The Mercury Project stamp depicts Alan Shepard, the Mercury capsule Freedom 7, and the Redstone launching rocket. The MESSENGER Mission stamp depicts the MESSENGER spacecraft in orbit around the planet Mercury.
The stamp, designed by Phil Jordan, will go on sale nationwide May 4, 2011.
Customers have 60 days to obtain the first day of issue postmark by mail. They may purchase new stamps at their local Post Office™ facility, at The Postal Store® website at 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:
Mercury Project/MESSENGER Mission Stamp
1538 Harrison St.
Titusville, FL 32780-9998
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. All orders must be postmarked by July 3, 2011.
Issue:
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Mercury Project/MESSENGER Mission
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Item Number:
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468000
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Denomination & Type of Issue:
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First-Class Mail Forever Commemorative
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Format:
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Pane of 20 (2 designs)
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Series:
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N/A
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Issue Date & City:
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May 4, 2011, Kennedy Space Center,
FL 32815
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Designer:
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Phil Jordan, Falls Church, VA
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Art Director:
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Phil Jordan, Falls Church, VA
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Typographer:
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Phil Jordan, Falls Church, VA
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Artist:
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Donato Giancola, 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 “USPS”
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Engraver:
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N/A
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Printer:
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Banknote Corporation of America, Inc./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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20
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Print Quantity:
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60 million 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
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Processed at:
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Unique Binders, Fredericksburg, VA
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Colors:
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Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black, PMS 727 (Brown), PMS 270 (Purple)
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Stamp Orientation:
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Horizontal
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Image Area (w x h):
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1.40 x 0.82 in./35.56 x 20.82 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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7.22 x 5.88 in./183.39 x 149.35 mm
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Plate Size:
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200 stamps per revolution
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Plate Numbers:
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“S” followed by six (6) single digits
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Marginal Markings:
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Front:
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Plate block numbers in four corners
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Back:
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© 2010 USPS • USPS logo • Plate position diagram • Barcode (468000) in lower left and upper right of pane • Verso text on back of each pane
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Stamp Fulfillment Services 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. Customers may request a free catalog by calling 800-STAMP-24 or writing to:
Information Fulfillment
Dept. 6270
U.S. Postal Service
PO Box 219014
Kansas City, MO 64121-9014
There are five philatelic products available for this stamp issue:
n 468063*, First Day Cover Set of 2, $1.76.
n 468068*, Digital Color Postmark Set of 2, $3.20.
n 468084, Uncut Press Sheet, $105.60.
n 468091*, Ceremony Program, $6.95.
n 468099*, Keepsake w/Digital Color Postmark Set of 2, $12.95.
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.
Stamp distribution offices (SDOs) and stamp distribution centers (SDCs) will receive approximately 25 percent of their standard automatic distribution quantity for a PSA sheet stamp. Distributions are rounded up to the nearest master carton size of 40,000 stamps.
SDOs/SDCs will make a subsequent automatic distribution to Post Offices of 25 percent of their standard automatic distribution quantity using PS Form 17, Stamp Requisition/Stamp Return. SDOs must not distribute this commemorative sheet to Post Offices before April 20, 2011.
Post Offices requiring additional quantities of Item 468000 must requisition them from their designated SDO/SDC using PS Form 17. SDOs requiring additional commemorative sheets must order them from the appropriate SDC using PS Form 17. For fulfilling supplemental orders from Post Offices, the Kansas City, Binghamton, and Atlanta SDCs will receive additional commemorative sheets.
All Post Offices must acquire and maintain a supply of each new commemorative stamp for a minimum of 90 days from the first day of issue and beyond that as long as customer demand exists, until inventory is depleted, or until the stamp is officially withdrawn from sale. If supplies run low, Post Offices must reorder additional quantities using their normal ordering procedures. Post Offices located in communities or areas with high interest in our space program (NASA facilities, military installations, etc.) should ensure they keep supplies of this stamp on hand.
— Stamp Services,
Government Relations and Public Policy, 4-7-11
