Russia

Russia has a rich stamp history with interesting imprints. The beginning of Russian stamps can be dated back to the 10th Century, when messengers carried letters bearing wax or lead seals. However, the actual paper stamp was developed in the mid-19th Century. The initial denominator of stamps was the 10 kopeck, which was used on letters weighing up to 12.8 grammes. These were not like conventional stamps with perforations; they had the coat of arms of Russia inscribed on them via typography.

Later, more stamp values (20 and 30 kopeck) were introduced. However, they were perforated and had more colours than the earlier ones. Stamps with lower denominations were soon introduced with the Russian coat of arms portrayed in the centre in an oval. These stamps were specially introduced to compete with international rates and postings. Russian stamps saw a change in 1875, when the design for the coat of arms was subsequently changed. Revenue stamps, then, were mostly printed on watermarked paper. With the change of currency from kopeck to rouble, the stamps too had to be revised. These revised stamps were much larger than the older ones. These stamps were recently changed in the late twentieth century, when Russia’s currency changed from new one rouble equal to 1000 old roubles.