About This Stamp
The 21.1-cent Letters regular coil stamp was issued October 22, 1985, in Washington, D.C. It went on sale at many post offices nationwide on October 23. The 21.1-cent stamp met the minimum first-class rate for mailers who used the four-digit add-on number for addressees' ZIP Codes. The stamp was also available in precanceled form.
The design of the stamp featured the outlines of five envelopes arranged in an angled row which descended from top left to bottom right on the stamp. "USA 21.1" was in two lines of white type on a black background at top right.
This was the first U.S. multicolor gravure coil stamp. It also was the first stamp to introduce a new concept in precancellation, which consisted only of an overprinted inscription indicating the intended use for the stamp. For this issue and all future precanceled issues, the marking was to consist of either a single bar or an imprinted inscription, but not both.
The designer, typographer, and art director for the stamp was Richard Sheaff of Needham Heights, Massachusetts. The gravure process was used. The stamps were issued in coils of 500 (uncanceled); 500 and 3,000 (precanceled).