Delft Blue Ceramic stamp a 'deception stamp'

In Dutch stamp history, PostNL, with Royal Delft as chief collaborator, adds a unique collector's item to our country's stamp history on September 7. It is more than just a stamp. It is a tile ½ cm thick, stamp size, but . . . ?

Ceramic stamp a 'deception stamp'?

The Delft Blue Ceramic Stamp was created as a special novelty in a close and unique partnership between Royal Delft and PostNL. According to Maurice Unck, Director of Mail Netherlands at PostNL: “This issue can be more than just a means of franking mail. It is a special combination of Dutch heritage, craftsmanship, and stamp innovation.”

Indeed, a truly striking innovation . . . ?

The square, large-format Ceramic postage stamp is a real tile measuring 5 x 5 x ½ cm in postage stamp format.

Stamp tile production process

The composition of the stamp tile consists of a finely ground mixture of clay, sand, and a mineral, which transforms with water into a homogeneous and malleable paste. Under the high pressure of a die press, the half-centimeter-thick 'clay cake' is divided into a large number of square 'tile stamps' measuring 5 x 5 cm. After a drying process, the tile stamps are heated and baked in an oven for an extended period at extremely high temperatures of up to approximately 1200 degrees Celsius.

After a cooling process, the stone-like tile stamps are coated with a white base layer. Using digital injection printing technology, millions of microscopic ceramic ink droplets are sprayed onto the tile via a conveyor belt for the decoration. A transparent glaze layer protects the printed ink.

The Ceramic stamp (with rounded corners) was designed by the Royal Delft design team. One of the master painters designed the floral decoration specifically for this stamp issue. The names of the designer and painter remain anonymous. PostNL considers it more important to focus on Royal Delft and the centuries-old tradition of Delft Blue.

Ceramic stamp & packaging

For this issue, which consists of a self-adhesive Ceramics stamp including the richly decorated packaging, the retail price is 14,95 euros at PostNL. The face value is only €1.40.

• The specially designed luxury cover protects and presents the stamp in an attractive manner. Placing the half-centimeter-thick stamp in an album does not correspond to that of other stamps. It might be problematic to place the issue as a complete object in an album.
• Cancelling ceramics with ink is, as is customary, not possible. Therefore, for the FDCs, it was decided during the printing of the stamp to apply a half stamp impression as an integrated part of the stamp.
• The production process of the Ceramic Stamp was carried out by Royal Delft. The print run of this issue comprises 40.000 pieces.

Critical reception from the start

I agree with the comments, remarks, recommendations, and advice that were already published on Freestampagazine prior to the issue date of the Ceramic Stamp on September 7. Nevertheless, I would like to add a few further points:

• There is an FDC envelope bearing an FDC cancellation, as shown in the provided image. It features the PostNL logo and not that of the NVPH with a serial number, as is customary. Naturally, I do not (yet) know how the stamp ended up on the envelope and the thick tile stamp.
• This stamp issue contains another extremely special novelty. As already mentioned above in the article, the stamp was postmarked during printing for used copies!

Distinguish yourself with innovative stamps

PostNL information obtained by me: “The Ceramic Stamp was released at the initiative of PostNL. Like various other postal companies worldwide, PostNL is exploring the possibilities of issuing special stamps made of materials other than paper. In doing so, PostNL aligns with an international trend in which more and more postal administrations are issuing innovative and distinctive collectibles. For this issue, a collaboration with Royal Delft was chosen because Delft Blue is regarded worldwide as an iconic Dutch craft.”

Related Austrian stamp

Simultaneously with the application of the rose image to the Porcelain stamp, three different sections of the date stamp and FDC stamp were also applied to the stamp. Subsequently, the porcelain stamp was affixed to the FDC envelope to fit precisely into the elliptical stamp (minus a small section) already applied.

The Austrian Wiener Rose stamp was issued in 2014 in an edition of 150.000 copies, measuring 3 1/2 x 3 1/5 cm. In our country, the stamp was created in the mass by pressing the mold at the same time as the Ceramics stamp.

Please note: The Dutch stamp described in this article is considered by the NVPH to be a philatelic souvenir that is not included in the catalogue. The reason for this is the large difference between the face value and the purchase value at PostNL.