Cancellation

A cancellation is any mark applied to an adhesive stamp to prevent it from being removed from an envelope and reused on a second piece of mail. Cancellations are applied by postal authorities as a fundamental part of mail processing, but the term also covers marks applied by collectors for philatelic purposes. Understanding the different types of cancellation — and the important distinction between a cancellation and a postmark — is essential for evaluating used stamps and postal history material.

Cancellation Versus Postmark

The terms are frequently confused but refer to different (if overlapping) functions. A cancellation deffaces the stamp — its purpose is prevention of reuse. A postmark records the date and location of posting — its purpose is documentation. In most modern usage, these functions are combined in a single handstamp or machine imprint: the killer bars or wavy lines cancel the stamp, while the adjacent circle or text block records the date and post office. But the distinction matters at the margins:

• A stamp pen-cancelled with a simple “X” has been cancelled but carries no postmark information.
• A CDS impression that shows date and town name is both a cancellation and a postmark.
• A “cancelled to order” stamp (see below) has been cancelled but has no genuine postmark in the sense of documenting actual posting.

Types of Cancellation

Pen cancellations are the earliest form: postmasters simply drew lines or crosses across stamps with a pen or quill. Many early US and British stamps from the 1840s–1870s exist with pen cancellations. These are generally less desirable to collectors than contemporaneous CDS strikes, as they can obscure the stamp design.

Rubber handstamp cancellations are applied using an inked rubber die pressed onto the stamp. Circular date stamps (CDS) are the most common handstamp format, recording post office name, date, and (often) time. A clean, well-struck CDS is the most sought-after type of cancellation for used classics.

Machine cancellations are applied by high-speed automated sorting equipment. They consist of a series of parallel wavy lines or straight “killer bars” that run across the stamp, with a date/origin impression printed alongside. Machine cancels are efficient but aesthetically less appealing than CDS strikes; a heavy machine obliteration that covers the stamp design is the least desirable form.

Slogan cancellations incorporate a short advertising or public information message in the kill portion of the cancellation — “Support the Red Cross,” “Drive Safely,” “Vote” — alongside the date information. These are collected both philatelically and as social history documents.

Manuscript cancellations are hand-written marks, typically pen crosses, initials, or date notations made by clerks. Common on early material.

Duplex cancellers were popular in Britain and the Commonwealth from the 1850s to the early 20th century. They combined a numeral or letter canceller (the kill) with a circular date stamp in a single handstamp, allowing both functions in one impression.

Favour Cancels

A favour cancel is applied by a post office employee at the request of a collector, without the stamp actually being used to frank a mailed letter. The stamp is presented at the post office counter and cancelled — perhaps with a CDS — as a courtesy. Favour-cancelled stamps are not fraudulent in the sense of attempting to pass unused stamps as used, and they are widely collected, particularly for commemorative stamps and first day covers. However, they have not genuinely passed through the postal system, and sophisticated collectors distinguish them from stamps with genuine postal use when this distinction matters.

Light Versus Heavy Cancellations and Stamp Value

The quality of a cancellation significantly affects the value of a used stamp. A light cancel — one that strikes part of the stamp but leaves the design clearly readable — is strongly preferred. A heavy cancel that blacks out the stamp’s design or causes paper damage from ink penetration reduces value substantially. For classic 19th-century stamps, a lightly applied, clearly legible CDS can make the difference between a stamp worth a few pounds and one worth multiples of that.

”Used” Versus “Cancelled to Order” (CTO)

Cancelled to order (CTO) stamps are cancelled by postal authorities or their agents — often in bulk, neatly and uniformly — specifically for sale to the collector market, without ever being attached to genuine mail. Many countries, particularly smaller nations and some developing economies, have issued CTOs extensively to generate philatelic revenue. CTOs are typically identifiable by their uniformly neat and perfectly positioned cancellations (too clean to have gone through normal postal handling) and often retain full original gum beneath the cancel — genuine postal use almost always dissolves or disturbs the gum where the stamp was soaked from the envelope. Catalogues such as Stanley Gibbons and Scott list used prices for genuinely postally used copies and note CTO status where relevant; CTO copies are typically worth a fraction of genuinely used examples.