A cancelled to order (CTO)
postage stamp is one that has had its
cancellation applied by the issuing postal administration before being sold to
stamp collectors or dealers.This procedure is motivated by one or both of two reasons; in response to collector demand, and to preclude the possibility that the stamps will be actually be used on mail.While some collectors value mint postage stamps, others prefer to collect stamps that have been used. In practice, it is slow and difficult to build a comprehensive collection by soaking stamps from envelopes, and so modern postal administrations accommodate these collectors by offering their new stamps already cancelled. This has the advantage that the stamps can be officially used, without being subjected to damage by going through the system, and the postal administration can arrange for the cancellation to be relatively light and unobtrusive.
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A hand cancel that is applied in a special manner as a favor to the maiiler.
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