After the German occupation forces pulled out of Estonia in November 1918, the Viru County Government ordered the opening of the Rakvere post office in the former tsarist Russian post office facility, which also housed the German Ober-Ost post office.
In rooms off to one side, the director of Rakvere post office, Aleksander Torn, discovered Russian-era postal band, postcards and postal stationery with pre-printed postage. The newly founded Estonian Postal Administration (Postivalitsus) had sent orders, but it was not yet possible to obtain Estonian stamps or permission for issuing local stamps. Torn thus turned to the county government for permission to overprint the Russian-era postal band, and duly received the go-ahead.
Rakvere’s Margarethe Levmann printing plant was handed the task to quickly overprint one- and two-kopeck postal band with new denominations:
10/2 kop.; quantity: 173
15/2 kop.; quantity: 402
20/2 kop.; quantity: 137
35/1 kop.; quantity: 26
The overprinting was in three rows: Eesti/ (Rakvere)/ and the new value.
They were pasted as stamps on letters, postcards and other postal shipments.
Villem Eichenthal’s special catalogue entitled “Eesti“, published in 1962, records the date of issue of the “Rakvere“ stamp as 16 November 1918 and the last day of validity as 27 November 1918. Some letters and stamps were postmarked later, however – either because a postal official was inattentive or perhaps as a personal favour.
Like most local issues, the Rakvere stamps are not free of speculation. They became sought after by philatelists and their prices rose quickly. The Estonian Postal Administration did not recognize the Rakvere stamps by official directive but rather solely made a note of their issue.
The Rakvere stamps are a local issue and they have been noted as such in major postal stamp catalogues.
Besides postal band, former Russian postal stationery was also overprinted. Eleven different types of postal stationery were printed. Of these, two postcards (10/3 kop. and 10/5 kop.) and one type of franked envelope (15/7 kop.) was overprinted with two rows of text at Nikolai Erna’s printing plant: EESTI / new value (either 10 or 15 kop.).
Similarly to the three-row overprint of the Rakvere stamps, the Margarethe Levmann printing plant overprinted two types of postcards (10/3 and 10/5 kop.) and six special types of franked envelopes (15/7, 15/15/7, 15710, 15/14, 15/20 and 15/20 kop.).
In Eesti Filatelist (Estonian Philatelist) issue no. 10 (1965), Heldur Alver writes: “The Rakvere stamps are very rare.”
We hope you enjoy the exhibition!
Click the information button on the toolbar to access background information on postal and general history.
Exhibition team
Compiler: Eve Aab
Consultant: Ants Linnard, chairman of the Friends of the Postal Museum Society
Photography: Arp Karm
Editor: Ivi Tammaru
Works used:
Eesti Filatelist no. 11, 1970. Stockholm.
Eesti Filatelist no. 3, 1957. New York.
Eesti Filatelist no. 4, 1958. New York.
Estonian postage stamps and postal stationery. Catalogue 2008.Tallinn: philately committee of the Estonian Heritage Conservation Society, 2008.
Hurt, Vambola; Elmar Ojaste. Eesti. Estonia. Philately & postal history handbook. Catalogue. Stockholm, New York: Estonian Philatelic Society, 1986.
In rooms off to one side, the director of Rakvere post office, Aleksander Torn, discovered Russian-era postal band, postcards and postal stationery with pre-printed postage. The newly founded Estonian Postal Administration (Postivalitsus) had sent orders, but it was not yet possible to obtain Estonian stamps or permission for issuing local stamps. Torn thus turned to the county government for permission to overprint the Russian-era postal band, and duly received the go-ahead.
Rakvere’s Margarethe Levmann printing plant was handed the task to quickly overprint one- and two-kopeck postal band with new denominations:
10/2 kop.; quantity: 173
15/2 kop.; quantity: 402
20/2 kop.; quantity: 137
35/1 kop.; quantity: 26
The overprinting was in three rows: Eesti/ (Rakvere)/ and the new value.
They were pasted as stamps on letters, postcards and other postal shipments.
Villem Eichenthal’s special catalogue entitled “Eesti“, published in 1962, records the date of issue of the “Rakvere“ stamp as 16 November 1918 and the last day of validity as 27 November 1918. Some letters and stamps were postmarked later, however – either because a postal official was inattentive or perhaps as a personal favour.
Like most local issues, the Rakvere stamps are not free of speculation. They became sought after by philatelists and their prices rose quickly. The Estonian Postal Administration did not recognize the Rakvere stamps by official directive but rather solely made a note of their issue.
The Rakvere stamps are a local issue and they have been noted as such in major postal stamp catalogues.
Besides postal band, former Russian postal stationery was also overprinted. Eleven different types of postal stationery were printed. Of these, two postcards (10/3 kop. and 10/5 kop.) and one type of franked envelope (15/7 kop.) was overprinted with two rows of text at Nikolai Erna’s printing plant: EESTI / new value (either 10 or 15 kop.).
Similarly to the three-row overprint of the Rakvere stamps, the Margarethe Levmann printing plant overprinted two types of postcards (10/3 and 10/5 kop.) and six special types of franked envelopes (15/7, 15/15/7, 15710, 15/14, 15/20 and 15/20 kop.).
In Eesti Filatelist (Estonian Philatelist) issue no. 10 (1965), Heldur Alver writes: “The Rakvere stamps are very rare.”
We hope you enjoy the exhibition!
Click the information button on the toolbar to access background information on postal and general history.
Exhibition team
Compiler: Eve Aab
Consultant: Ants Linnard, chairman of the Friends of the Postal Museum Society
Photography: Arp Karm
Editor: Ivi Tammaru
Works used:
Eesti Filatelist no. 11, 1970. Stockholm.
Eesti Filatelist no. 3, 1957. New York.
Eesti Filatelist no. 4, 1958. New York.
Estonian postage stamps and postal stationery. Catalogue 2008.Tallinn: philately committee of the Estonian Heritage Conservation Society, 2008.
Hurt, Vambola; Elmar Ojaste. Eesti. Estonia. Philately & postal history handbook. Catalogue. Stockholm, New York: Estonian Philatelic Society, 1986.
On the left, a grey 35-penn stamp and on the right, an olive-green 35-penn flower design stamp.
(Private collection)
(Private collection)
Letter from 29 September 1919, sent from Tallinn by surface mail to Helsinki and on to Switzerland. Marine mail was censored with the impression of a red triangular seal that was in use from September to November 1919.
The letter bears a 15-kopeck flower design stamp that was both cut and perforated. Perforated 15-kopeck stamps are rare, particularly on letters.
(Private collection)
The letter bears a 15-kopeck flower design stamp that was both cut and perforated. Perforated 15-kopeck stamps are rare, particularly on letters.
(Private collection)
Letter from 20 March 1919, sent from Tallinn to Borgå (Porvoo), Finland. Colour variations occurred in the printing of the 35-penn flower design stamp. Grey stamps are rare, in particular on letters.
(Private collection)
(Private collection)
Letter sent 1 July 1919 from Tallinn to Stuttgart. Inspected in Tallinn, letter bears the impression of the triangular censor’s seal, S.K.
The S.K. (Sõjakontroll, military inspection) mark was in use in Tallinn from 5 January 1919.
(Private collection)
The S.K. (Sõjakontroll, military inspection) mark was in use in Tallinn from 5 January 1919.
(Private collection)
A registered letter from 8 April 1919, sent from Tallinn to Borna, Germany. The registered letter (R-letter) postmark with numbers, the date postmark “Ревель” (Revel, the old name for Tallinn) in use in the tsarist era, both the Tallinn and Finland military inspection postmark. The first Estonian-language postmark “Tallinn” has been added over the “Ревель” postmark. The letter also bears the first Estonian-language R-postmark “Tallinn”.
(Private collection)
(Private collection)
9 December 1918. The postcard was sent from Tartu to Riga in the early stages of the War of Independence. The postcard rate was 5 kopecks.
(Private collection)
(Private collection)
Local letter from 1 January 1919. Rates changed with the New Year, and the rate for a postcard was 10 kopecks.
The letter was sent on the day that rates changed.
(Private collection)
The letter was sent on the day that rates changed.
(Private collection)
Domestic letter from 21 January 1919, sent from Viljandi to Tallinn (Reval). Colour variations occurred in the printing of the 35-penn flower design stamp. This letter has a dark-brown stamp.
(Private collection)
(Private collection)
Domestic letter from 10 June 1919, sent from Pärnu to Tallinn.<0} The rate for a domestic letter weighing 16-30 grams was 70 penni.
Colour variations occurred in the printing of the 35-penn flower design stamp. The letter bears light-brown stamps.
(Private collection)
Colour variations occurred in the printing of the 35-penn flower design stamp. The letter bears light-brown stamps.
(Private collection)