On 1 November 2013, I
blogged here about the One Kopek Tariff which existed continuously in Imperial
Russia from 1866 to 1917 and ended only under the Provisional Government: from
14 August 1917, the lowest tariff was set at 2 kopeks. The conditions of eligibility
for the 1 kopek rate varied a great deal in that 1866 – 1917 period, but in
principle, it is possible to find every type of Imperial 1 kopek used as a
single franking.
It may be that the hardest one to find is the imperforate 1
kopek issued in April 1917. April to August sounds like a reasonable period of
time, but if a post office or an individual still had perforated 1 kopek stamps
available, then they might well choose to use those because easier to separate –
try finding a pair of scissors when you need them!
Since I began looking
for 1 kopek frankings many years ago, I have only found one with the
imperforate. It is used on the circular shown below and cancelled at the
Petrograd 57th office on 25 5 17. I am today writing up the item for
despatch to auction.
Click on Images to Magnify
BTW, have you encountered any postal administration rule that defines, what exactly is considered "local" postal item? What area exactly was considered local? I ask because there exist numerous "local" items that are sent to nearby settlements.
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