© 2013 USPS
On August 16, 2013, in Independence, Ohio, at the Americover Stamp Show, the Postal Service™ will issue A Flag for All Seasons (Forever® priced at 46 cents) First-Class mail® stamps in four designs in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) booklet of ten stamps (Item 688800).
The stamps will go on sale nationwide August 16, 2013.
In May 2013, and June 2013, the U.S. Postal Service® proudly issued A Flag for All Seasons — featuring four different stamp designs — in PSA booklets of 20 and coils of 100. Each stamp shows an American flag, viewed from below, flying from a pole at full staff against a background of trees that evoke one of the four seasons of the year. Artist Laura Stutzman worked with art director and stamp designer Phil Jordan on this stamp art.
To learn more about the stories behind the stamps, visit www.beyondtheperf.com.
Stamp Distribution Offices (SDOs) and Stamp Distribution Centers (SDCs) will receive their normal automatic distribution quantity of A Flag for All Seasons booklets. Distributions are rounded up to the nearest master carton size of 4,000 booklets.
SDOs/SDCs will NOT make any automatic distribution to Post Offices™. Post Offices requiring these items must requisition them from their designated SDO/SDC using PS Form 17, Stamp Requisition/Stamp Return. Post Offices may preorder these stamps 30 days prior to first-day-of-issue through the eBuy2 SEAM Catalog. Post Offices participating in the SEAM Stamp Auto Replenishment Pilot (Seattle, Portland, Alaska, and Salt Lake City districts) will be automatically replenished based on their current inventory of Item 688300, Four Flags booklet of 10. If pilot sites need Item 688800, A Flag for All Seasons booklet of 10 to meet special customer requests, they must place an order in eBuy2 and choose “expedited” as the shipping method. Post Offices should not sell the stamp prior to first-day-of-issue.
All Post Offices should maintain a sufficient inventory level of this item until the stamp is officially withdrawn from sale. If supplies run low, Post Offices must reorder additional quantities using their normal ordering procedures.
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 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:
A Flag for All Seasons Booklet/10 Stamps
Marketing
2200 Orange Avenue, Rm. 206
Cleveland, OH 44101-9996
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 October 16, 2013.
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 two philatelic products available for this stamp issue:
n 688816*, First-Day Cover Set of 4, $3.60.
n 688821*, Digital Color Postmark Set of 4, $6.44.
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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A Flag for All Seasons
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Item Number:
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688800
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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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Booklet of 10 (4 designs)
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Series:
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N/A
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Issue Date & City:
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August 16, 2013, Independence, OH (Americover Stamp
Show, Field Event)
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Art Director:
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Phil Jordan, Falls Church, VA
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Designer:
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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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Laura Stutzman, Mountain Lake Park, MD
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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/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 Booklet:
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10
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Print Quantity:
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100 million stamps
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Paper Type:
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Type II
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Adhesive Type:
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Pressure-sensitive
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Processed at:
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Banknote Corporation of America, Browns Summit, NC
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Stamp Orientation:
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Vertical
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Image Area (w x h):
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.73 x .84 in./18.54 x 21.33 mm
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Stamp Size (w x h):
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.87 x .98 in./22.10x 24.89 mm
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Booklet Size (w x h):
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5.31 x 1.74 in./134.87 x 44.20 mm
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Colors:
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Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black
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Plate Size:
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560 stamps per revolution
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Plate Numbers:
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“S” followed by four (4) single digits
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Marginal Markings:
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Cover side:
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Header: “A Flag for All Seasons” Ten First-Class Forever® Stamps • Barcode (015645688803) • USPS logo
• Promotional text
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Stamp side:
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© 2013 USPS in peel strip area • Plate block number in peel strip area
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— Stamp Services,
Marketing and Sales, 7-11-13
