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Judging
Exhibits in the Illustrated Mail Division
Treatment (30 points): Degree of development, organization, balance, and completeness; both in material presented and the story it tells. Focus on Cachets (25 points) Note: This criterion is
used for First Day Cover, Cacheted or Illustrated Commemorative Covers,
Patriotic Covers, and Advertising/ Corner Card Exhibits – Exhibit
shows cachet development, varieties, and preliminary artwork (if available).
(See description in this section for additional information on specific
applications). Knowledge of Subject (20 points): Correct identification and analysis of the material being presented. Exhibit should be rewarded if new discoveries, conclusions, or facts are presented. Difficulty of Acquisition (15 points): Material goes beyond that which is easiest to acquire. Condition (5 points): The material is in the best possible condition known to exist for the period or type being exhibited. Presentation (5 points): Exhibit is neat, clean, pleasing to the eye, and concisely written.
Exhibits that concentrate on EKUs, uncacheted first day covers that traveled through the mail, first day of use for metered mail, cacheted and uncacheted first day covers emphasizing postal regulations, directive markings and rates, etc. may be better evaluated in the Postal Division using criteria for postal history exhibits. If evaluated as postal history, such exhibits should not be penalized for containing paraphilatelic materials appropriate for FDC exhibits. FDC exhibits may also be developed concentrating on the cachets, as a retrospective of a cachet maker, or thematically. These exhibits should follow a clearly defined, logical plan that emphasizes the primary focus of the subject. Special studies may be developed along a number of paths (example -- censored first day covers). The presence of autographs may enhance a FDC exhibit, but their absence should not detract. The autographs can appear on the covers themselves, on ceremony programs, and in some cases on stamps or multiples of stamps. The signers can include those who designed the stamp, cancel or cachet; the postmaster of the issuing post office; or famous persons related to the subject matter of the stamp such as astronauts, baseball players, presidents, movie stars, scientists, artists, etc. First Day Cover exhibits should follow a clearly defined organization that is fully and logically developed. Focus on Cachets Criterion: Cachets are important to FDC exhibits. Cachets are not normally found on classic covers, but appear in the 1920s when cachet makers came on the scene. The exhibitor should show cachet varieties and, if possible, artwork or preliminary designs by the artist. The exhibitor should use hand painted cachets and similar one-of-a-kind covers judiciously unless a particular cachet maker is the focus of the exhibit. The FDC exhibit may contain paraphilatelic material, which includes post office announcements of the new stamp, first day of issue ceremony programs, souvenir pages, and other material pertinent to the new issue. Original documents should be shown, not photocopied from archives. Knowledge of Subject Criterion: Knowledge of the subject may be evidenced by the careful selection of materials exhibited. This might include covers that have been sent through the mail and bear auxiliary markings or unusual routes or destinations that can be described within the text. First day cancellations, unofficial first day cancels, and commemorative cancels should be explained, especially if varieties exist. Difficulty of Acquisition Criterion: Exhibits that show classic cachets and the traditional study of the stamp(s) will often have a high degree of difficulty of acquisition. Exhibits of modern FDC or commemorative cachets may also demonstrate difficulty of acquisition by including varieties of cachets, preliminary drawings, or uncommon usages. Condition and Presentation Criteria: As described earlier.
Exhibits of Cacheted or illustrated commemorative covers or cards should follow a clearly defined organization that is fully and logically developed. Focus on Cachets Criterion: Cachets in this category are often the uniting element that will hold the exhibit together. As in FDC exhibits, an exhibit of illustrated commemorative covers/ cards may contain paraphilatelic material, which might include publicity announcements of the event and event programs. Original documents should be shown, not photocopied from archives. Cachets that have been added "after the fact" should be fully identified and used judiciously within the exhibit. Knowledge of Subject Criterion: Knowledge of the subject may be evidenced by the careful selection of materials exhibited. This might include covers that have been sent through the mail and bear auxiliary markings or unusual routes or destinations that can be described within the text. Commemorative cancels should be explained, especially if varieties exist. Difficulty of Acquisition Criterion: Event covers for poorly publicized commemorations may demonstrate difficulty of acquisition. The use of scarce stamps or unusual or unofficial postmarks will also increase the difficulty of acquisition. Condition and Presentation Criteria: As described earlier.
Focus on Cachets Criterion: The thrust of the exhibits using advertising covers or corner cards will be the theme suggested by the cachets. Therefore the illustrated portion of the cover becomes the key for the development of the exhibit. Printers and/ or designers of the illustrated art on a cover may or may not be known. If known, they should be identified. Unusual printing techniques or advances should be explained (i.e. trompe l'oeil, holographic processes, etc.) Some covers may have printed postal indicia incorporated as part of the design elements. The exhibit should contain only advertising covers or corner cards to tell the story. Knowledge of Subject Criterion: Both philatelic knowledge as well as knowledge of the theme or story being developed should be considered by the judge evaluating an exhibit of advertising covers or corner cards. Auxiliary markings, routing instructions, censorship markings, and special services should be acknowledged and philatelically recognized within the exhibit. Advertising mail was often sent using special rates, and such usages should be pointed out within the exhibit. Difficulty of Acquisition Criterion: Although some illustrated advertising or corner cards may be rare or scarce, this can be exceedingly difficult for a judge to determine unless there are specific references. The philatelic aspects are easier for a judge to evaluate, but such considerations should not overwhelm the exhibit that is primarily concentrating on covers illustrating commercial products or services. Such covers began being used in the 19th century and are still being used today. The field is enormous and rich with many scarce applications. Condition and Presentation Criteria: As described earlier.
Focus on Concordance Criterion (This criterion replaces "Focus on Cachets" in Maximaphily Exhibits only): A maximum card is a picture postcard to which a stamp has been affixed to the view side of the card, and then cancelled. There should be a maximum concordance (harmony) between these three elements. The specifications for maximum cards are precise. The dimensions of the cards must conform to UPU standards and should not be larger than continental size. At least 75% of its area should be used for the picture or view. Cards that reproduce the design of the stamp (such as PHQ cards issued by Great Britain) are not permitted, nor are paste-ups, cut outs, or privately produced photographs. The cancellation must be readable and bear the name of the post office and date. It should tie the stamp to the post card and demonstrate the three basic concordances: of subject, of place, and of time. A cancellation with a special relevant text or particularly a harmonious illustration completes the unity of the stamp to the card. The concordance of place requires a connection between the name of the place or locality of the postmark and the subject of the stamp and the card. The concordance of time is defined by the date of the postmark in the period of postal validity of the stamp. Knowledge of Subject Criterion: In maximum card exhibits, knowledge of maximaphily is shown by careful selection of maximum cards that display the greatest concordance. A judge should pay special attention to the cancel to be sure that it bears direct relationship, both in date and place, to the postcard and postage stamp. Difficulty of Acquisition Criterion: In recent years, many postal administrations have begun creating maximum cards for sale to collectors. These are produced in great quantities and do nothing to increase the difficulty of acquisition in a maximum card exhibit. Any one of the individual elements can increase the difficulty of acquisition. Should a scarce stamp be combined with a scarce cancel and picture postcard, the rarity increases exponentially. Condition and Presentation Criteria: As described earlier.
Focus on Cachet Criterion: Patriotic cover exhibits are similar in many ways to FDC or commemorative cover exhibits. The cachet is the key element in this type of exhibit. Such exhibits will show cachet varieties, printing methods, and preliminary artwork (if available). Printed patriotic covers from the 19th century are highly collected. Patriotics for both Union and Confederate states were printed during the Civil War. Other wars and other countries have generated patriotic covers that reflect the sentiment of the times. An exhibit of patriotics should primarily show covers that have gone through the mail. The theme or story being developed will delineate what sort of covers will be shown in the exhibit. The judge should evaluate how well the cachets selected by the exhibitor fit the story being told. Knowledge of Subject Criterion: Patriotic covers have been widely collected for a long time and excellent reference works exist for some periods or types of patriotics. An exhibitor's personal study of the subject may add to the body of knowledge already extant. Philatelic aspects of the covers should be correctly described in the text. Correct identification of unusual usages, censorship or other auxiliary markings, discussion of the stamp(s) and postal markings will display the exhibitor's knowledge of the subject. Difficulty of Acquisition Criterion: Many excellent reference works on patriotic covers exist. It is recommended a judge consult one or more of them to get a "feel" for not only what exists within the framework of the subject being exhibited, but also for what is scarce or common. The postal aspects of the cover may also add to the difficulty of acquisition (i.e., censorship markings, unusual destinations, special services, routing or ancillary markings, use of scarce stamps, etc.) Condition and Presentation Criteria: As described earlier.
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