One of the more interesting objects that belongs in a booklet collection is a savings bank issued under the auspices of the United States Postal Service (USPS) with a booklet inside.
It was produced and marketed by a private company. The purpose of issuing the savings bank was to promote and support the 1991 Olympic Festival in Los Angeles. Figure 1 shows the savings bank. The top of the bank is a plastic cover with a slot in the middle through which money can be inserted when the bank is opened.
When purchased, the bank is sealed. Underneath the plastic cover is a piece of aluminum foil with a tab attached so that the foil can easily be pulled off. The booklet can then be removed and the stamps used for postage. The savings bank was made by AdCan of Atlanta, Ga. The savings bank sold for about $5. The face value of the stamps is $2.90.
Inside is a complete booklet of the 29 cent Flag and Olympic Rings stamps. Actually, two booklets were issued, either one of which, is inside the savings bank. The Flag and Olympic Rings stamps inside each booklet and the different covers are shown in Figure 2. The back cover of one shows that a free pass to the Chicago World Columbian Stamp Expo ’92 is inside the booklet. The other cover shows the Domestic USA Postage Rates.
Figure 1. Savings Bank with Olympic booklet inside.
Both booklets were issued on the same day, April 21, 1991. The Scott catalogue numbers for the booklets are BK186, BC67 and the one with the free Expo pass is BK186A, BC67A. The pane is Scott 2528a. The savings bank with the booklet inside is not mentioned in the Scott catalogue.
Figure 2. Flag and Olympic Rings stamps and two different booklets which are inside the USPS savings bank. Both booklets were issued April 21, 1991.
The 1991 Olympic Festival was an athletic event in its own right, complete with a diversity of athletic endeavors and awards for the winning contenders. It was not a qualifying athletic event for the 1992 Olympics. Many of the athletes who competed in the Olympic Festival did go on to compete in the 1992 Olympics in Atlanta but many 1992 Olympic athletes chose not to compete in the Festival. It was only open to United States athletes. Many other countries held Olympic Festivals for their athletes.
Since the extra money raised by the sale of this bank was donated to the Olympic Festival, this item functioned as a semipostal.
There are some Flag and Olympic Rings booklet panes with imperforate pairs. The Scott Catalogue of United States Stamps and Covers lists the value of one of these panes at $1800. It is tempting to open the bank to see if one of the expensive varieties is inside. I must resist that urge. The probability of such a valuable pane being there is much too low. If I opened the bank, and the pane was an ordinary one, this scarce item would be lost, and nothing would have been gained.
Is this savings bank with the booklet inside a philatelic item?
The fact that the bank is bulky, will not fit in any album, and is not designed for any philatelic purpose seems to argue against answering that question affirmatively.
The USPS was an official Olympic sponsor. The savings bank displays a picture of the Olympic stamps inside. This connection between the Olympics and the USPS justifies the unopened bank and its enclosed booklet as being designated a philatelic item. It is a welcome addition to any topical collection which has the Olympics as its theme. It is a most unusual item to include in your booklet collection.
Regarding the article, “Postal Service Savings Bank Contained Stamp Booklet”
a can marketed by “AdCan” contained a booklet of stamps issued in 1991. There
was also a booklet of 25cent special occasion stamps marketed in the same type
of can “AdCan”. It contained a booklet of 12 stamps, stating on the can, “Inside!
Collector Edition Stamps, Booklet of 12” I don’t know how collectible this item
is but it is out there and I have found nothing on the web concerning it..