© 2017 USPS
On January 11, 2018, in Honolulu, HI, the U.S. Postal Service® will issue the Year of the Dog First-Class Mail® stamp (Forever® priced at 49 cents) in one design, in a pressure-sensitive adhesive (PSA) pane of 12 stamps (Item 564800). The stamp will go on sale nationwide January 11, 2018.
The Year of the Dog $5.88 pane of 12 stamps may not be split and the stamps may not be sold individually.
The Year of the Dog stamp is the 11th stamp issue for the 12-stamp Celebrating Lunar New Year series. The Year of the Dog begins February 16, 2018, and ends on February 4, 2019. The stamp art depicts an arrangement of lucky bamboo (Dracaena braunii) and a red, lozenge-shaped Lunar New Year decoration. On the night of New Year’s Eve, families gather and feast on foods that bring good luck and hang lozenge-shaped pieces of red paper with finely written good luck characters from doors and entryways.
Artist Kam Mak created this original painting. Art director and stamp designer Ethel Kessler incorporated elements from previous Celebrating Lunar New Year stamps — Clarence Lee’s intricate cut-paper design of a dog and the Chinese character for “dog,” drawn in grass-style calligraphy by Lau Bun — to create continuity between the stamps in the series.
Stamp Fulfillment Services (SFS) has completed an 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 sfsweb.usps.gov. Post Offices may begin ordering stamps on the first-day-of-issue through SFS Web; offices must also check the amount they will receive on their automatic push distribution.
Only the following pictorial postmark is permitted for the Year of the Dog stamp. The word “Station” or the abbreviation “STA” is required somewhere in the design, because it will be a temporary station.
To finalize the Year of the Dog stamp 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 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 usps.com/shop, or by phone at 800-782-6724. They must affix the stamps to envelopes of their choice, address the envelopes (to themselves or others), and place them in a larger envelope addressed to:
FDOI – Year of the Dog Stamp
USPS Stamp Fulfillment Services
8300 NE Underground Drive, Suite 300
Kansas City, MO 64144-9900
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. There is a 5-cent charge for each additional postmark over 50. All orders must be postmarked by March 11, 2018.
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, online at usps.com/shop, or by phone at 800-782-6724. Customers may request a free issue of USA Philatelic at usps.com/philatelic, by phone at 800-782-6724, or by writing to:
U.S. Postal Service
USA Philatelic Request
PO Box 219014
Kansas City, MO 64121-9014
Philatelic products for this stamp issue are as follows:
n 564806, Press Sheet with Die-cut, $35.28.
n 564810*, Digital Color Postmark Keepsake (2 panes), $13.95.
n 564816*, First-Day Cover, $0.93.
n 564821*, Digital Color Postmark, $1.64.
n 564824*, Framed Art, $39.95.
n 564830*, Ceremony Program, $6.95.
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.
Issue:
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Year of the Dog Stamp
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Item Number:
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564800
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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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Pane 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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January 11, 2018, Honolulu, HI 96820
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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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Sandra Lane/Michelle Finn
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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
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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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15,000,000 stamps
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Paper Type:
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Phosphor Tagged Paper, Block
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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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Colors:
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Cyan, Magenta, Yellow, Black, Pantone 872, Pantone 342
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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 150.37 mm
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Press Sheets Size
(w x h):
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21.97 x 11.965 in./558.04 x 303.91 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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Back:
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© 2017 USPS • USPS logo • Barcode (564800) • Promotional text • Verso: Celebrating Lunar New Year text
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— Stamp Services, Marketing, 1-4-18
