Mailman - Mailmen

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Here is an image of a stamp depicting mailmen of today and (upside down!) of yesterday, designed by Tunisian artist Hatem El Mekki, printed by lithography (Joh. Enschedé), and issued by Tunisia on October 15, 1970, Scott No. 537.

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Monastic mail delivery, 12th century, combined engraved by Julián González de la Lastra (1954- ) and lithography, and issued by Spain on September 27, 1985 for Stamp Day, Scott No. 2249, Edifil No. 2810.

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Armed messenger, 15th-16th centuries, designed and engraved by Pierre Munier, and issued by Monaco on April 30, 1979 as one of three stamps in a EUROPA set, Scott No. 1178.

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Here are images of two similar stamps depicting a mailman, printed by photogravure, and issued for use in Ifni on November 23, 1962 for Stamp Day, Scott Nos. 106 & 108.

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India issued this souvenir sheet in 2005 showing mailboxes through the ages and mailmen.

The Dawk, or Dak (dak is the Hindi word for post), was a very old postal system of runners. The dak runners or Harkara were were paid according to the distance they travelled and the weight of their letters. The Harkara literally ran with the mail, not necessarily from point A to point B, but as part of a relay system. In the Moghul days, they ran 8-10 miles in each direction and back (i.e. 20 miles a day), but in later East India Company times, they ran 5-6 miles per direction, before they handed it over to the next Harkara. The harkara was not only a delivery man of letters, but also a person who conveyed news to both ends, officially and unofficially, publicly or surreptitiously. They were sometimes purveyors of intelligence to authorities of far flung areas, reporting on troubles and important happenings at both locations. In many an instance, they were letter writers, transferring the word of mouth of an illiterate man to paper.

A dak runner can be seen at the bottom right of this souvenir sheet issued by India in 2012 for Philately Day.

A dak runner was featured by India on the 2as KGVI definitive set of 1937. SC 251.

A 19th century postman astride an Austria-Hungary stamp of 1850, designed by Slovak artist Dušan Kállay (1948- ), combined engraved by Martin Cinovský and photogravure, and issued by Slovakia on June 1, 2000 to commemorate the 150th anniversary of the first postage stamp used in Slovakia, Scott No. 357. Bonus: Stamp on stamp.

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Here is an image of a special delivery stamp depicting a mounted Moorish courier, designed by Spanish artist Mariano Bertuchi (1885-1955), engraved and printed by Thomas De La Rue & Co., Ltd., and issued for use in Spanish Morocco in 1928, Scott No. E4.

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Postman riding a bicycle, a special delivery stamp printed by photogravure, and issued by Bulgaria in 1939, Scott No. E1.

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Here are images of the three stamps in a set depicting a mailman and symbols of mail transportation, printed by photogravure, and issued for use in Fernando Po(o) on November 23, 1962 for Stamp Day, Scott Nos. 199-201.

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Finland
Centenary of the Postal Employees Union
January 11, 2006

Mailman, designed after original artwork by Belgian artist James Thiriar (1889-1965), combined engraved by Léon Janssens and photogravure, and issued by Belgium on April 5, 1971 for Stamp Day, Scott No. 802.

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Mail clerk, a postage due stamp engraved and printed by the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing, and issued for use in Philippines on August 21, 1928, Scott No. J13.

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Here is an image of a stamp depicting a messenger of the Kingdom of Castile, designed after a 14th century woodcut, combined engraved by Pablo Sampedro Molero (1935- ) and photogravure, and issued by Spain on June 19, 1981 for Stamp Day, Scott No. 2242, Edifil No. 2621.

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