Handbooks highlighting squared circles and perforated initials – also known as “perfins” – are among the latest additions to the British North America Philatelic Society’s “Online Resources and Exhibits.”
The sixth edition of the Squared Circle Postmarks of Canada is prepared by the Squared Circle Study Group and edited by Rick Friesen.
Canada’s squared circle postmarks were used by more than 300 post offices between 1893 and the early 1900s.
Organized by hammer type and province, the updated edition spans nearly 700 pages. It offers an exhaustive treatment of each hammer, including its period of use, time marks, indicia information, stamp issues on which the hammer is found, rarity factors and illustrations of hammer usage.
To read the handbook for free, visit bnaps.org/ore/SCSG-SquaredCirclePostmarks/SCSG-SquaredCirclePostmarks.htm.
The sixth edition of Canadian Stamps with Perforated Initials is also available for free online at bnaps.org.
CANADIAN PERFIN HANDBOOK
Also released this January is the sixth edition of Canadian Stamps with Perforated Initials, prepared by the Perfin Study Group and edited by Jon Johnson Gary Tomasson.
“One of the pleasures of collecting perfins is that additions and expansion of the known range of use of perfins can be found by spending time rather than money,” reads the handbook’s preface.
It’s also available for free at bnaps.org/PerfinHandbook/PerfinHandbook.htm.