N is for No Value Indicated
Value is a key word in philately, referring to both the amount you’re likely to receive if selling a stamp and, more relevant here, the denomination on the stamp itself. So why should the term ‘no value’ be relevant?
The removal of the value from a stamp’s design is nothing new. Many collectors of modern stamps will recognise that British stamps showing only ‘1st’ have been issued for many years (since 1989 in fact), as too have the USA’S ‘Forever’ stamps (2007) – no specific value is indicated, and so the stamp’s validity remains even if the price of a 1st class stamp has increased since the stamp was purchased.
But the history of NVIS can be traced much further back in time, with many countries issuing stamps without a denomination right back to the 19th century, including many stamps issued for local postal services. An intriguing chapter in this philatelic tale concerns the first stamps issued for St Lucia in 1860. In a bid to save on printing costs – with only one printing plate required – the British colony relied on colour to indicate the value, rather than having to change the stamps’ designs. The red was for 1d, blue for 4d, and green for 6d. The system was eventually abandoned in 1881 when the values were overprinted onto the stamps – perhaps the cost of administering this unique scheme began to outweigh the savings.
A quick scan of the catalogues can reveal the earliest NVIS from each country – many countries flirted with the idea before adopting a more permenant arrangement – an interesting sideline collection for the definitive stamp collector. Today most countries have their own NVI, all with different names. New Zealand have the ‘Kiwistamp’, Finland has the ‘ikimerkki’, and Sweden have ‘Brev’.