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columbia |
EL EXPRESO "TOBON" |
EL EXPRESO "TOBON" |
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"Colombian Semi-Official Express Companies - Expreso Tobon, daily between Manizales, Pereira, Armenia, Cali, Popayan & Buenaventrura."
Most likely by car, truck, or bus, not by train, but still a nice item.
1/14/2005 - Bill Weinberger wrote to say this is a "private carrier that delivered to rail." So not a railway parcel stamp. |
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denmark |
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Denmark's Railway Parcel Stamps are the most attractive to casual collectors such as me, both because they are so colorful, and because most are available for little money. There is an illustrated catalogue in Danish. By my count there were at least 75 entities that issued over 350 different designs, most in multiple denominations. A complete collection would number at least 3,000 items.
I have created a separate page showing many more of these,
and including a conversation with an expert about their background.
CLICK HERE
finland |
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Finland too has produced a fair number of parcel stamps, though theirs are less colorful than the Danish ones. Still, lots of great rail images. They tend to be harder to find, hence more expensive. There is a catalogue, with Finnish and some English text. By my count the number of different entities that issued stamps is under 20, with number of different designs around 50, plus many types and varieties. A complete collection would number 150-200 items.
1/17/2005 - Bill Weinberger write:
There are 52 varieties, including the listed shades, etc. Most are really hard to find these days. Your estimate of how many stamps in a complete collection is certainly on the very low side.
More about Finnish Parcel Stamps here.
France |
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The situation with parcel stamps in France is similar to that in Belgium - a state-owned railway, and an officially-sanctioned railway parcel service. The total number of parcel stamps issued is nearly 400, with the most recent ones issued in 1960. They are listed in the Yvert & Tellier catalogue for France.
THIS JUST IN: Our roving reporter reports -
Now, here is a very interesting thing about the use of the French railway stamps. It is all deduced from a single waybill. French waybills are difficult to find but I have just one (from Al Peterson).
A lady sent a basket of eggs from a country village in France to Paris during World War II. She took the basket to the post office in her village. (there was no railway station in the village). At the post office she purchased the waybill for 7 francs or so (So this explains why the French railway stamps are all for extras such as delivery at home etc. The price of the waybills themselves actually paid for the basic transport.). She also purchased (from the post office) a railway stamp (one of the tall ones with the steam train inscribed "Domicile" for the extra service of delivery at home. The basket of eggs was then taken to the station (by whom I don't know) (where the waybill received a railway company datestamp) and put on the train to Paris, and then presumably taken across Paris to the addressee.
This one waybill tells you more than all the catalogues and handbooks put together. Nowehere in the handbook or catalogue does it hint that the stamps were available at post offices or that you could deliver your parcel to a post office. I had thought the choice was either to take your parcel to the railway station or pay an extra fee to have your parcel collected from your home. This is obviously not so.
T.G. - 12/08/2004
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IMPORTANT NOTE: This page is a work-in-progress, subject to revision as I learn more.
If you find errors, please let me know, so I can correct them. Send to 
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Send feedback to the author: CLICK HERE
Created -- 12/08/2004
Revised -- 12/12/2004