Curious Facts / History
Why do stamps have tooth-like edges?
Before rows of small holes, separating one stamp was a different task.
When stamps needed scissors
When the United States issued its first stamps in 1847, there were no separation holes between them. People often cut individual stamps from a printed sheet with scissors.
The US introduced perforated stamps in 1857, building a separation method into the paper itself.
Weaken a line without cutting everything apart
Rows of small holes weaken the paper between stamps without immediately breaking the whole sheet into pieces. The remaining paper holds the stamps together until someone tears along the weakened line.
The edges left behind look like small teeth.
What did you discover?
2 questions · Read the explanation and evidence, then continue to the next question.
Sources and scope
- Smithsonian National Postal Museum — Early Rotary Perforation Machine
Opening account of US stamps, 1847–1857; paper removed in rows and columns for separation
- Smithsonian National Postal Museum — Imperforate Vertical Strip of Three, 1934 Issue
Opening account of scissors, British perforations in 1854 and US perforations in 1857
Scope of this fact
- This uses nineteenth-century US stamp history, not a universal adoption date for all countries.
- The original diagram explains separation only. It does not reproduce a stamp design or assess authenticity, rarity or all modern stamps.
Original writing and English translation by Rantap