Philatelic Glossary
This glossary has been compiled from various different sources. Some of the terms have been reproduced with kind permission from the Stanley Gibbons Philatelic Terms Illustrated by James Mackay. If you think a term is missing please e-mail us.
Tab
Paper with a special descriptive inscription attached to a stamp but separated by a row of perforation holes.
Tablet
French Colonial key type.
Tagged Stamps
Stamps overprinted with phosphor bands to assist sorting of mail.
Taille Douce
(French) Term used for line engraving printing.
Target Cancellation
A numeral obliterator consisting of numerals in concentric circles.
Tax Perçue
French for "Charge Paid".
Tax Post
A service of Royal Mail introduced in 1984 to expedite mail of the Inland Revenue Offices.
Tête-bêche
Pair of stamps one of which has been printed upside down in relation to the other.
Telegraph Cancel
Special obliterations or holes denoting use on a telegraph form.
Telegraph Stamps
Stamps for the purpose of the prepayment of telegraph charges.
Telephone Stamps
Stamps issued to pay charges for telephone calls.
Testing Labels
Dummy stamps used for testing vending machines.
Thematic Collecting
Stamp collecting according to subject or theme.
Thermography
A printing technique for obtaining a pattern in relief by heating a resinous compound adhering to printing ink.
Thickness (of Paper)
The paper on which stamps are printed varies in thickness (see Micron).
Thinned
A stamp which has lost its original thickness.
Tied
Stamps "married" to a cover by the cancellation.
Timbre
(French) Stamp
Tin Can Mail
Mail conveyed in the sea in tin cans or bottles.
To Pay Labels
Special designation used by the British Post Office for postage due stamps, but also used where Customs and handling fees were to be collected. The use of these labels ceased in Great Britain on 28 January 2000. Amounts payable are known shown by use of a rubber stamp or label.
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