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Stamps and first day covers

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Revision as of 22:26, 16 September 2026 by PhantomSteve (talk | contribs) (→Individual stamp pages: update)

This section records individual postage stamps, stamp issues and first day covers in the collection.

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Collection summary

Record type Number of pages
First day covers 49
Owned first day covers 0
First day covers wanted 18
Individual stamps 129

Browse by country

Isle of Man

Naming conventions

Individual stamp pages

Use the following page-title format: 

CC-Catalogue-CatalogueNumber

Examples:

  • IM-SG-9999 — standard Isle of Man stamp
  • IM-SG-9999a — stamp with a catalogue variant suffix
  • DE-Mi-385 — German stamp listed by Michel
  • IM-SG-FTM57 — Isle of Man Post & Go stamp
  • GG-SG-FTG12 — Guernsey Post & Go stamp
  • JE-SG-FTJ12 — Jersey Post & Go stamp
  • IM-SG-D1 — Isle of Man postage due stamp
  • IM-SG-SB12 — Isle of Man stamp booklet
  • GG-SG-A1 — Alderney stamp
  • GG-SG-AB1 — Alderney stamp booklet

The parts are:

  • CC — two-letter country or territory code
  • Catalogue — catalogue abbreviation, such as SG for Stanley Gibbons or Mi for Michel
  • CatalogueNumber — the complete catalogue identifier, including any prefix and variant suffix

Prefixes form part of the catalogue number. Stanley Gibbons prefixes used in this collection include:

  • FTM — Isle of Man Post & Go stamps
  • FTG — Guernsey Post & Go stamps
  • FTJ — Jersey Post & Go stamps
  • D — postage due stamps
  • SB — stamp booklets
  • A — Alderney stamps
  • AB — Alderney stamp booklets

A lower-case suffix such as a, b or c may identify a catalogue-listed variant: 

IM-SG-9999a
IM-SG-9999b

Use the complete page identifier for the principal image filename: 

IM-SG-9999a.jpg
IM-SG-FTM57.jpg
GG-SG-AB1.jpg

Additional images may use descriptive suffixes: 

IM-SG-9999a-back.jpg
IM-SG-9999a-detail-1.jpg
IM-SG-FTM57-back.jpg

First day cover pages

Use: 

Country – Issue title – Year

Where several different covers exist for the same issue, include the producer or cover type: 

Country – Issue title – Producer – Year

Catalogue abbreviations

The countries shown are examples rather than complete coverage lists. Countries currently included in this collection's country-code table are shown in bold.

Catalogue Identifier abbreviation Example countries or postal areas covered
Stanley Gibbons SG United Kingdom, Isle of Man, Australia, Canada
Michel Mi Germany, Kyrgyzstan, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, Ukraine
Zumstein Zum Switzerland, Liechtenstein, United Nations Geneva
Scott Scott United States, Germany, United Kingdom, Japan
Yvert et Tellier YT France, Monaco, Switzerland, Belgium
Sakura Sakura Japan, Ryukyu Islands and historical Japanese-administered territories
AFA AFA Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, Finland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands
Facit Facit Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Greenland and the Faroe Islands
Minkus Minkus United States, Germany, France, Japan and worldwide issues
Sassone Sass Italy, San Marino and Vatican City
Edifil Edifil Spain, Andorra, Equatorial Guinea and former Spanish colonies
Unificato Unif Italy, San Marino, Vatican City and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta
Philex Philex Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, France and Spain

Notes:

  • Sakura is principally a Japanese catalogue. Its additional coverage includes historical postal administrations rather than a second modern sovereign country.
  • Minkus is retained for older collections and references, but its independent worldwide catalogue and numbering system are no longer actively published.
  • Philex country catalogues normally reproduce Michel numbering. Where that is the case, use Mi in the stamp identifier rather than Philex.

Country codes

Stamp identifiers use the two-letter ISO country code of the issuing country or postal authority.

Country or postal authority Code Example identifier
Germany DE DE-Mi-385
Isle of Man IM IM-SG-9999a
Kyrgyzstan KG KG-Mi-123
Liechtenstein LI LI-Mi-123
Switzerland CH CH-Zum-123
Ukraine UA UA-Mi-123
United Kingdom GB GB-SG-1234

First day cover types

Use the broad value in the cover-type field and record the specific organisation or company in cover-producer.

Cover type Description Example producers
Standard cover Standard cover produced or commissioned by the postal authority. Royal Mail, Isle of Man Post Office
Commercial cover Privately produced cover created for sale to collectors. Cotswold, Mercury, Philart, Stuart, Abbey
Official or sponsored cover Cover officially produced or sponsored by an organisation connected with the issue. Museum, charity, regiment, government department or event organiser
Commemorative cover A cover marking an event or anniversary that is not necessarily the official first day cover for a stamp issue. Various
Other A cover that does not fit one of the standard classifications. Record the details in cover-producer and collection-comment

Postmark types

Postmark type Description
Special handstamp A special pictorial or commemorative handstamp produced for an issue, event or location.
First Day of Issue postmark A postmark specifically identifying the first day of issue. This includes Royal Mail FDI postmarks used from 1964 to 1988.
Counter date stamp An ordinary circular date stamp applied at a post-office counter.
Slogan postmark A cancellation containing wording, advertising or a commemorative slogan.
Machine cancellation A mechanically applied cancellation, normally containing a date stamp and cancelling lines.
Meter mark A postal marking produced by a postage meter rather than an adhesive stamp.
Other Any postmark that does not fit the standard types. Add an explanation in postmark-notes.

Stamp classifications

Stamp type and subtype

Stamp type Suggested subtypes or descriptions
Commemorative General commemorative; anniversary; historical event; notable person; thematic issue
Definitive Monarch or reign; regional definitive; country pictorial; long-running definitive series
Occasions and greetings Christmas; wedding; birthday; greetings; festival; seasonal issue
Special-purpose Airmail; postage due; official; charity or semi-postal; newspaper; express
Other Explain the classification in the page notes

Stamp format

Format Description
Stamp An individual stamp issued in an ordinary sheet.
Se-tenant pair Two attached stamps with different designs.
Se-tenant strip Three or more attached stamps with different designs.
Se-tenant block A block of attached stamps with different designs.
Miniature sheet One or more stamps issued together within a specially designed sheet margin.
Sheetlet A small sheet containing a limited number of stamps.
Booklet stamp A stamp issued as part of a stamp booklet.

Record self-adhesive or conventional gum in the paper-gum field rather than using it as a stamp type or format.

Adding a new issue or cover

  1. Upload the main first day cover image and, if available, its reverse image.
  2. Upload each individual stamp image using its catalogue-based identifier as the filename.
  3. Select Create a new FDC page.
  4. Complete the issue, cover, postmark, signature and collection fields.
  5. Complete the first FDC stamp row in the preloaded stamp table.
  6. Duplicate the complete FDC stamp row block for every additional stamp in the issue.
  7. Preview the page and check that the automatic stamp count is correct.
  8. Save the FDC page.
  9. Follow each red stamp-identifier link and use the stamp creation form to create its individual page.
  10. On each individual stamp page, add a link back to the associated FDC page using the fdc-pages field.

Suggested image names

Item Example filename
Front of first day cover IM-Example-Issue-2026-FDC.jpg
Reverse of first day cover IM-Example-Issue-2026-FDC-back.jpg
Information sheet IM-Example-Issue-2026-information-sheet.jpg
Individual stamp IM-SG-9999.jpg
Stamp variant IM-SG-9999a.jpg
Additional stamp detail IM-SG-9999a-detail-1.jpg
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