Australian Antarctic Territory FDC's W/ Different Postmark Dates

I have these 2 FDC's with official first date of issue for the stamp of September 25, 1968.

However the dates on these covers are both later in time.

What would be the reason for this? Was it just not possible to have the envelopes earlier at these remote places?
One cover is for Macquarie Island, the other is for Mawson. How many different postmarks would there be for this cover?

Thanks,
Peter

Possibly (see description in link) the stamps arrived on different dates at the different Australian antarctic bases.

https://www.steveirwinstamps.co.uk/...-82833-p.asp



The link shows four FDCs from four bases.
Mawson, Davis and Casey stations are on the Antarctic continent. Macquarie Island station is in the sub-Antarctic.
You have two of these. So, probably, there were four.

In spite of all of the text on the covers including within the postmarks, you do NOT have first day covers. One stamp can only be issued once and that once is then and for evermore, the "First Day of Issue." What you have are examples of "First Day of Sale" at various locations. They will track the distribution of the stamps over a wide area of geography. Poor or no advanced planning can result in the stamps not being distributed in order to be at certain locations on a certain date. Your examples are still interesting and quite collectible while not being true FDCs.

Edited for English and highlights.

This can be a complicated area. NSK will know better than I, but I think that Gibbons occasionally points out "issue date" anomalies for Commonwealth stamps, where the Crown Agents may have distributed a new issue - presumably to dealers - but the stamp was available in the colony itself on a different date.

There is no universal law that requires the Australian postal authorities to supply the stations with stamps in advance for an official release date. Supply ships to Antarctic bases are not regular ferry services.

Despite the semantics, many countries issue stamps to dealers far in advance of the official release date. Often, that is done so they can prepare FDCs. But the official release date is not the actual issue date, as they, already, have been issued to dealers before that date. That would mean that no FDCs can exist in countries where stamps are supplied in advance to dealers.

The cancellations are for the different Antarctic bases and are cancelled first day of issue on different dates at different bases. If the reason is that they could not be issued earlier from that base because they had not arrived, they are true first day covers.

Edit: 25 September is winter in Antarctica. It might not have been possible to reach the bases before early November.

How about the overprints for postal agencies abroad? They, even, were GPO issues.

I had a standing order for new issues of special stamps. On occasions, I received them the day after they were officially released. Although mail from the UK to the Netherlands used to be very fast, a sending that arrives on Wednesday will have been posted before Tuesday (common issue day for special stamps). A recent post by Norvic Philatelics has even mentioned that Royal Mail was sending them the stamps weeks in advance.

With the Captain Cook issues in 1970 they had 1st day covers every day of the stamp show commemorating the 1st landing in Australia by Captain Cook.

If those were for the same stamps every day, I would tend to agree that all but at most one were not first day covers.

First day of issue by the Australian Post Office or first day of issue by the respective base post offices.

Thanks NSK (and all others that responded)!
This was just the information that I was looking for.

Peter

Not that language means much anymore, but the correct term in such a case is "FIRST DAYS OF ISSUE and not first day of issue. Of course what is driving this is the recognition that there is more value to an item if called a first day. S is said elsewhere, just follow the money.

But hey for the sake of money, let's toss aside the definition, "A first day of issue cover or first day cover (FDC) is a postage stamp on a cover, postal card or stamped envelope franked on the first day the issue is authorized for use." Published by none other than Stanley Gibbons Publications, London (1978). It seem the Australian postal service has tossed the definition for the sake of greater collection of collector monies.

And the first day of use is a different one on each base. Each base has its own post office run by the Australian post office. The first day mentioned in the OP was not even in the Antarctic territories. That was when the stamp was issued in Australia itself.

Again, there is no universal law that states a stamp must be issued in all terrirtories where it is valid on the same day.