Identifying Cto's

I have 3 sets of stamps I can't find in my Scotts Catalogue (2003) They are from:

Manama, Ajman. Smaller stamps depicting the Olympics, other althletes and some animals. One is postmarked 1972

Ras Al Khaima. Large commemoritive stamps depicting the Olympics and Art.

Sharjah. These are 6 stamps in a block (se-tenet?), each depicting a seperate historica/religious site, and each with a seperate value. Each is marked "air mail, and the postmark dated 20 May 1972 is the corners.

I believe these are the infamous Sand Dune issues I have heard about which I wish to confirm. I see where these countries formed the United Arab Emirates in this year and am wondering if these stamps were intended for postal use and became useless when the new country was formed.

Sorry for the length of this post...I don't have the ability to post pictures online. They are nice-looking stamps.

Charles.

Hello Charles....


Yours is not a long post, besides sometimes a long description is needed to explain what is necessary, there is no need to apologise.


The Sand Dunes were not specific issues, it refers to all issues from the Arabic group of nations that became the United Arab Emirates.....Countries that were basically nothing but sand dunes.

CTO's....Canceled to Order......usually left over stamp canceled by postal authorities... also stamps specifically created and immediately canceled and sold to companies for distribution to stamp collectors. There are some produced with the cancel as part of the printing process.

I believe your assumption that these stamps were not really for postal use is correct. Some did get used postally but most were created just for collectors. Some collectors collect them, some do not, many believe that because they were never intended for postal duty they do not qualify as stamps........the choice to keep them or not is yours.

If a stamp is not in the Scott's Catalogue is that a good indication it is a CTO? Of course other characteristics like age and country of origin would also come into play here. Does Scott typically list CTO's?

By CTO here I mean stamps that were not intended to be used postally, not ones that were cancelled for collectors but also used as postage.

My personal feeling now is that the latter fit my collection interests, but the former do not. I would still prefer a postally used stamp, though.

Charles

Scott lists plenty of CTO's -- stamps cancelled to order. In fact, most CTO's are listed by Scott. Virtually everything if not everything issued by the Soviet Union and the Eastern European communist block of nations they controlled were sold as CTO. The stamps these nations issued could be used postally.

There's a difference between CTO's of genuine stamps that do have a postal function, and fake stamps issued only for sale to collectors.

Charles....

I agree, postally used is preferred.

Any issue can be both for postal use, then left overs can be CTO'd. Many CTO's were never intended for postal use......Soviet bloc nations produced hundreds.

CTO's can often be identified because the cancellation is too precisely placed on the stamp, is just too clear and perfect, looks like it was printed along with the stamp, or is on a stamp with full gum still on the stamp. I will not allow a CTO issue in my collection as I consider them "fakes," and when in doubt I throw it out! I rhymed!!

There are CTO's from many countries. Some of the posts mentioned Soviet Block countries and they were probably the worst, but there are CTO's even from other countries as well. Although not really CTO's, there are a lot of fake used stamps produced when the mint issues are cheap and postally used issues expensive. It usually takes an expert to tell the difference on these.

Hm. Interesting distinctions here. I am trying to figure out where they will fit in my collection. The more I look, the more I find. I think I will take it on a case-by-case basis. For example, I have a Liechtenstein Scott# 46 that I like - valued at $1.10 for a CTO, around $45 postally used. Seems this is a "real" postage stamp that simply wasn't used, and therefore a keeper. Perhaps I will become more selective as I gain experience.

CTO's first came to my attention because some had the gum on the back; I thought they were super-valuable and was planning on buying clear mounts for them when I had the money. Guess I can safely hinge them. If I keep them, of course.

Thanks for your thoughts.

Charles.

Charles.....

Values for postally used items are specifically for postally used items. If your stamp has no gum and no cancel it is most likely an unused stamp that has lost it's gum, not a postally used stamp. If it cannot be determined with certainty, it must be considered the least expensive item.

CTO's almost always have a clear corner cancel.....postally used cancels are applied with considerably less thought or neatness. There are also some cases of non-CTO stamps with a cancel and full gum. Many stamps that were applied on top of some packing tapes do not loose their gum.

Determining the difference.......basically, examining hundreds of stamps over time will teach you how to identify 95% of all CTO's. Many countries use the same cancel on CTO's year after year and can easily be recognised.

How they fit into your collection.....only you can decide that. But, some people refuse to have any, some don't care, some use them as just "space fillers" until a good mint or used example can be acquired.

I guess I should pay attention when looking at my stamps - a second look at my Liechtenstein shows there is no cancel and it still has its gum. When I first got it, before I put it in my album, it was MNH not a CTO. That's what you get for jumping to conclusions.

Oddly enough, if I am reading my Scott's right, it is worth more as a CTO ($1.10) than as a MNH (.60).

Charles.

This is really good info! bookmarked and I'm guessing I'll be posting this link in the next few months/years!

Charles....

Liechtenstein #46.....Mint 45 cents....CTO $1.50......Postally used $45.00

This tells me that this stamp is very common in mint condition and fairly scarce as postally used........with a moderate number of CTO's (created to give some collectors the illusion of a used stamp.) Liechtenstein receives more money selling CTO's of this stamp to stamp companies than they do from mint ones.....If you were trying to find ways to increase your GNP wouldn't you do something similar regardless of how it effects some collectors ? This is why there are so many CTO's from dozens & dozens of relatively poor countries.

In one respect I don't blame poor countries for trying to do all they can to increase their funds and many collectors just can't stand seeing blank spaces in their albums....don't collect mint, can't afford either the time or money to wait for a true postally used item.There is nothing wrong with any of this but, I feel it's improtant for collectors to know the difference.......especially when it comes time to sell a collection.

Seems pretty legitimate to me...not much different than the USPS putting out commemorative issues that are intended for the collector.

I am one that likes filling in the blank spaces. I enjoy putting stamps in an album - that comes second, right after getting stamps I don't already have. CTO's will work fine for that, at least in the short term.

Now I have a better idea about identifying them, I won't trade them, or at least make sure my trading partner is OK with it beforehand.

Charles.

Charles....

Mint comms from the US post office are quite different from CTO's from anywhere. Mint US can always be used for postage.....CTO's never can anywhere.

Remember, I'm not saying it's wrong to collect them.....I'm just saying there is a definate difference in the reason they are collectable (CTO's are neither mint nor used).