The First Self Stick Stamp

As far as I can tell this is the first self stick stamp in the world. It is even a cool looking one at that.



Image: firststicky.jpg
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It could very well be, but first free-form self-adhesive must refer to the map shape in which the stamp was produced. I think the first one the US issued was a 1974 Christmas stamp, ten years later.

Let Google be your friend...

When pressure-sensitive adhesive made its first appearance on postage stamps in the 1960s, most stamp collectors regarded it as a gimmick. Also called self-adhesive, or self-stick, or peel-and-stick stamps, they represented a radical departure from traditional lick-and-stick stamps that had employed water-activated adhesive since 1840.

The United States was not the first country to put pressure-sensitive gum on stamps. For the first three countries to issue self-stick stamps—Sierra Leone in 1964, Tonga in 1969, and Bhutan in 1969—an alternative to water-activated gum was practical. All three countries have humid climates, in which old style gum has a tendency to get messy when days and nights are damp for extended periods of time.

http://www.askphil.org/ap_salm05.htm

Steve

Very nice cover MK

You have such cool stuff.

Dianne

Awesome cover, mk!

Thanks for the history info on self stick stamps, Triggersmob!
I learn something new everytime I log onto this FANTASTIC FORUM!

Gussyboy1

Very interesting cover and stamp mk. I'll have to look for a mint copy for my topical collection of non-rectangular stamps.

Google indeed Trigger. I've figured out I don't have to know or remember anything except where Google is!