Advertising collar

An advertising collar is printed around the area for a stamp on a an envelope. The idea was that advertising would be noticed or reinforced better that way. They came in different colors and designs that were simple to very elaborate. Postal stationery is known with ad collars printed around their indicia.

Envelopes would have had decorative frames for placement of stamps from earlier times, but the advertising types were a new concept that began appearing in the US in the 1850s or 1860s. Other countries's advertisers adopted ad collars along the way.

US types were largely gone by about the 1910s but were reported suppressed by the post office at some point. Meanwhile the French equivalent, porte-timbres, small ads with stamps affixed to be used for mailing, were still going strong.

 File:Canada ad collar.jpg|Canadian dry goods ad collar used from Sherbrooke. File:US adv collar A.jpg|US hotel ad collar used from Erie, Penn., 1912. File:GB ad ring cut square.jpg|Detail of British advertising ring on postal stationery. 