A training stamp is a postage stamp that is used by postal authorities for testing equipment and/or training postal workers. They generally have the same size and shape as regular stamps, but with a minimal design. Although not normally made available to the general public, some have found their way into private hands, and they are a recognised stamp collecting speciality.
The two stamps illustrated are koban-style designs. If utilized contemporaneously with the official koban issues this would potentially date these training stamps to the period 1876-1888. There are two different designs - the purple stamp which is entirely in Japanese indicates this is the earlier of the two stamps whereas the blue & white stamp has English writing and indicates a later date when the English language began to exert a growing influence.
The two stamps illustrated are koban-style designs. If utilized contemporaneously with the official koban issues this would potentially date these training stamps to the period 1876-1888. There are two different designs - the purple stamp which is entirely in Japanese indicates this is the earlier of the two stamps whereas the blue & white stamp has English writing and indicates a later date when the English language began to exert a growing influence.
- Purple colour, in the centre elliptical is the value - 15 sen. Above are the letters PT which stands for Post & Telegraph School. The 6 vertical characters (3 left & 3 right) translate as "Postal Practice stamps"
- Blue & white colour, in the centre circle is the value in Japanese - 50 sen. The middle elliptical in white has PT at the top and below 3 characters which translate "for practice". The outer blue elliptical with white characters, at the top are Japanese characters which are translated below in English as P and T school post (note: no space between AND+T)
