First US Postal Card 100th Anniversary Design UPSS S82
OVERVIEW
Offered is an unused 1973 United States 6-cent postal stationery card commemorating the centennial of America's first government-issued postal card.
The card reproduces the elaborate Victorian presentation of the original 1873 issue, including the ornamental frame, flowing United States Postal Card heading, address instructions, and a Liberty portrait within an ornate oval postage indicium.
The lower-left inscription explicitly identifies its purpose to commemorate the 100th anniversary.
This is an official postal stationery issue with the postage printed directly onto the card, not a privately produced commemorative postcard.
FRANKING & POSTAL HISTORY
The upper right corner carries an integrated 6-cent Liberty postage indicium printed in reddish brown.
The portrait and ornate frame were meticulously adapted from the design of the United States' first postal card, issued in 1873 with a 1-cent denomination and cataloged as Scott UX1.
The commemorative adaptation retained the historic appearance while changing the denomination to the contemporary 6-cent postal card rate.
The 1973 centennial card is cataloged as Scott UX65, with the United Postal Stationery Society cross-reference UPSS S82.
Because the postage is part of the printed card design, the correct philatelic term is postal stationery indicium.
This example is completely unused and carries no address, message, cancellation, or supplemental adhesive postage.
CONTEXT & COLLECTOR APPEAL
Postal cards revolutionized domestic correspondence by allowing the sender to purchase the card and its postage as a single integrated postal product.
The United States introduced its first such card in 1873, and the initial Liberty issue became extraordinarily successful. Scott UX65 intentionally returned to that foundational design one hundred years later. Rather than introducing a completely modern composition, the Postal Service adapted the ornamental typography, border, instructions, and Liberty indicium of the nineteenth-century original.
The result is both valid postal stationery and a visual comparison piece illustrating a century of American postal card history, holding strong crossover appeal for collectors of United States postal stationery, postal anniversaries, Liberty portrait issues, and centennial commemoratives.
ITEM SPECIFICS
Country: United States
Year: 1973
Type: Postal Stationery Card
Topic: First US Postal Card Centennial Postal History
Theme: Postal Stationery and Commemoratives
Subject: Liberty Portrait in Ornate Oval Frame
Era: Modern Era (1973)
Occasion: 100th Anniversary
Region: United States
Stamp Color: Reddish Brown
Denomination: 6 Cents
Currency: United States Dollar (USD)
Cover Stock/Paper Type: Cream Card Stock
Cancellation Type/Date: Unused Uncanceled
Catalog Numbers: Scott UX65 UPSS S82 Minkus PC61
SKU: US-1973-UX65-LIBERTY-PC
CONDITION
This unused 1973 postal stationery card features generally clean cream-colored stock and strong reddish-brown printing.
The ornamental border, lettering, Liberty indicium, and centennial inscription remain clear and well-defined.
The reverse is blank, and the card is unaddressed and uncanceled.
A light rectangular area of discoloration or adhesive residue is visible immediately to the left of the postage indicium, apparently from a previously attached label, hinge, tape, or mounting material.
Minor age-related coloration and light peripheral handling wear may also be present.
No attempt has been made to remove the residue.
Please examine all high-resolution photographs carefully on the individual listing to verify the exact surface, edge, printing, paper condition, and the described residue mark prior to purchase.