A Glossary of Terms for the Collector of United States Stamps

F - a marginal marking punched on flat plates, usually to the left of the UR plate number, indicating that the plates had been hardened.  Most commonly used in the 1920s and 30s.

"F" Press - webfed  offset-intaglio press (four color offset, three color intaglio) obtained by the BEP in 1991.  The first stamp printed on this press was the 1992 World Columbian Stamp Expo, Scott 2616.

FAM - see Foreign Air Mail Route.

FIPEX - see Fifth International Philatelic Exhibition.

FPO - see Fleet Post Office.

Face - the front of a stamp - the side bearing the printed design.  Compare: Face Value.

*Face Value - the postage value of a stamp, generally indicated in numerals on the face of the stamp.

Facing - the orienting of envelopes by the Postal Service in a consistent manner for subsequent sorting or mail processing operations.

Facing Slip - a piece of paper placed by a postal employee on the top of a bundle of mail as a part of the sorting and distribution process.  It was usually postmarked.

*Famous Americans - series of commemorative  postage stamps honoring authors, poets, educators, scientists, composers and artists appearing in 1940.  Begins with Scott 859.

Fancy Cancel - a cancel that is pictorial or geometric in nature, produced by a local post office.

*Farley's Follies - a nickname given to a 1935 special printing of stamps.  Postmaster General James Farley had given selected individuals imperforate, ungummed, uncut sheets of 1933-34 commemoratives.  After protests from collectors similar imperforate sheets were made available to the public at face value.  Scott 752-771.

Farwell Perforations - perforations privately applied to imperforate  flat plate  postage stamps by the Farwell Company for use in affixing machines.

Feed Lines - lines placed upon certain flat plates as an aid to the proper placement sheets of paper upon the plate.

Fergusson & Sons (J.W.) - subcontractor to Stamp Venturers.  Example: Scott 2452D, one of the 5¢ Canoe stamps.

Fermented Fruit Juice Stamps - revenue stamps, used in 1933 pending the repeal of prohibition, to pay the federal tax on certain wines and fermented juice products legalized by Congress effective April 7, 1933.  Scott catalogue numbers begin with REF.

Fifth Bureau Issue - see Presidential Series.

Fifth International Philatelic Exhibition - one in a series of once-per-decade international stamp shows hosted in the U.S.  Held in New York City in 1956.  A stamp and souvenir sheet were issued in conjunction with this show.  (Scott 1075 & 1076.)

Finisher Initials - see Plate Finisher Initials.

*First Bureau Issue - the first set of definitive  postage stamps to be printed by the BEP.  Issued beginning in 1894.  These stamps were prepared from dies received from the private company that previously used them to print stamps for the Post Office.  The dies were altered however, before their use by the BEP.  Begins with Scott 246.

*First Class Mail - the class of mail required for sending letters, post cards,  postal cards, invoices, statements and payments.  First Class Mail is sealed against inspection, a feature that permits private messages.  Priority Mail is a form of First Class mail.

*First Day Cover - a cover  cancelled on the day a stamp is issued, in the city in which it is released.  (Modern First Day Covers may actually be cancelled up to 30 days after the date of issue, and not necessarily in the city whose postmarks they bear.) First Day Covers may be addressed or unaddressed, and with or without cachets.  See Unofficial First Day Cover and Second Day Cover.

First Flight Cover - a cover flown on a flight marking the inauguration of a new air mail route, or a new stop on an existing air mail route, or the initial flight of an airline.

Flag Cancel - a cancel (generally a machine cancel) that features a flag as part of its design.  Flag cancels were common in the early 20^th century.

*Flat Plate Press - a press that prints from a flat plate (as opposed to a curved or cylindrical plate).  Until 1915 only the Flat Plate Press was used to print stamps.

Flats - Post Office term for large envelopes in the mailstream.

Fleet Post Office - (Navy Fleet Post Office) a post office operated for the military.  APOs and FPOs are often referenced together.

Flexography - Letterpress printing that employs a resilient synthetic or rubber composition plate.

Floating Plate Numbers - numbers on a plate block whose positions vary from pane to pane, thus creating a large number of possible combinations.  Example: 1976 13¢ Currier & Ives Christmas stamp, Scott 1702.  Plate numbers on most stamp  panes do not float.

*Flora & Fauna Series - definitive series of postage stamps begun in 1990.  Begins with Scott 2476

Flown Cover - a cover that has been carried by air mail, and bears evidence of having been flown.

Fluorescence - stamp paper or inks containing fluorescent brighteners that glow brighter while exposed to short or long wave ultraviolet light.  There is no afterglow, and fluorescent papers usually glow a bluish-white.  Stamp inks containing fluorescent brighteners can glow in a variety of colors.

Flyspecking - the act of seeking, examining, studying or collecting stamps with minor variations.

Folded Letter - a sheet of paper with a message written on one side, and folded in such a way that the name and address of the recipient could be written on the exposed blank side of the paper.  Folded letters were gradually made obsolete by the introduction of envelopes.

Foldover (under) - stamp(s) affected during the printing or perforating process by a paperfold, often producing spectacular EFOs.

Food Order Stamps - stamps produced by the BEP as part of a subsidy program that enabled low income families to purchase food at grocery stores.

Foreign Air Mail Route - air mail service provided by contract carriers, on established routes, to foreign countries.

Foreign Entry - see Foreign Transfer.

Foreign Transfer - 1.) the appearance on a plate (and resulting stamp) of the remnants of a wrong design.  This occurs when an incorrect relief roll is used to enter a design on a plate, and when, upon discovery of the mistake, the incorrect impression is not completely burnished out before the correct one is entered in its place.  2.) the intact appearance of an incorrect design on a plate (and resulting stamp), caused by the undetected use of a wrong transfer roll by a siderographer.  Classic Example: 5¢ rose stamps of 1916 (Scott 467, 485 and 505).

Forwarding Agent - a person or entity, usually in a foreign city, who sends a piece of mail entrusted to him on to an addressee in the most expeditious manner.  This was a service made obsolete by the formation of the Universal Postal Union.

Four Bar Cancel - a handstamp with a four bar cancel.

*Fourth Bureau Issue - the definitive series of postage stamps issued beginning in 1922.  Includes sheet stamps, coils and booklets.  Begins with Scott 551.

Fourth Class Mail - obsolete mail classification for packages, also known as parcel post.  Now called Package Service.

Fractional Usages - use of a portion of a stamp.  Stamps were sometimes cut in half (or some other fraction) and placed on an envelope in an attempt to pay postage equal to one half (or other fraction) of the face value of the whole stamp.  Occasionally an approved practice, sometimes tolerated, especially when there was a shortage of stamps in a needed denomination.  Fractional usages are generally collected tied on cover.  One half of a stamp is known as a bisect.

Frame - the outer portion of a stamp design, which encloses the central portion (vignette) of the design.

Frank(ing) - an indication on an envelope (e.g. stamp,  meter,  PVI,  signature, printed message) that the postage has been paid or that the envelope is to be carried without payment of postage.

Franklin-Washington Series - see Washington-Franklin Head Issues.

Freak - a mistake in production caused by an unusual circumstance not likely to be identically repeated, such as a color shift, perforation shift, inking irregularity or paper fold.  A freak is a less severe and less valuable mistake than an error.

"Free" - handstamp marking sometimes used on free franked mail.

Free Frank - the right to send mail without payment of postage.  Usually indicated by a signature where a stamp is usually affixed.  This privilege has been extended to various individuals at different times, including government officials and military personnel.

French Occupation Issues - see Allied Military Government Stamps.

Front - the front (face) of a cover from which the back panels have been removed.  A front is less desirable than an entire.

Fugitive Ink - soluble ink that tends to run when placed in water or watermark fluid.

Future Delivery Stamp - revenue stamp used to pay the tax on a future delivery instrument.  Scott catalogue numbers begin with RC.