Periods

The Eagle stamps are separated into five "periods" by stamp collectors. At first it may seem confusing and difficult to distinguish the various periods, but it is really quite simple.

Only the first three periods pose any real difficulty, since the last two are uniquely identified by the year printed on the stamps.

A decree mandating that the stamps be overprinted with the invoice number is dated June 20, 1864. The same decree mandated that district offices overprint a sub-consignment number on stamps sent to sub-offices.

The first period is easily recognized by not having a year printed at all. This leaves only the second and third period to be sorted out, since they both have the year 1864 printed on them. The second period stamps are recognized by the large font used (so-called Egyptian letters), while a smaller font was used in the third period, similar to the one used in the fourth and fifth period.

Year Period Date Invoice #'s Comments Example
1864 1 May 8, 1864 - July 7, 1864 1 - 117 District name only.
Invoice number and year is NOT printed on stamp.
2 July 7, 1864 - September 19, 1864 118 - 179 Invoice number and the year 1864 in large font.
May or may not have a dot after invoice number.
3 September 20, 1864 - December 31, 1864 180 - 244 Invoice number and the year 1864 in small font.
No dot after invoice number.
1865 4 January 1, 1865 - December 31, 1865 1 - 216 Invoice number and the year 1865 in small font.
There's a dot after the invoice number, which may or may not print.
1866 5 January 1, 1866 - July 31, 1866 1 - 131 Invoice number and the year 1866 in small font.
There's a dot after the invoice number, which may or may not print.

As you may have anticipated, there are a few exceptions to these rules. Fortunately - or unfortunately, depending on your views - the exceptions are rare, and it is not common at all to be faced with the problem of identifying one of these stamps.

Only three of the consignments in the first period were overprinted with the invoice number and year:

  • 61-1864 sent to Huejutla, on 1R, 2R and 4R
  • 81-1864 sent to Apam
  • 98-1864 sent to Merida, on 1R, 2R, 4R and 8R
Huejutla, un real.
First period.
Overprinted with invoice number 61-1864
Image courtesy David Pietsch.
Huejutla, dos reales.
First period.
Overprinted with invoice number 61-1864
Image courtesy David Pietsch.
Huejutla, cuatro reales.
First period.
Overprinted with invoice number 61-1864
Image courtesy David Pietsch.

The Huejutla overprint is similar to the second period overprints, but a bit smaller. Merida overprints are in a style similar to the ones used on third, fourth and fifth period stamps.

The Apam overprint is presumably large, similar to the one used on second period stamps, but a recent search through major auction catalogs failed to find even one of these stamps!

All these overprints are considered to be from the first period because the invoice numbers are less than 118. Stamps with these overprints are very rare.

In the third period we find invoice 184-1864 (Soyaniquilpan) overprinted in a font similar to the ones used in the second period. It is unknown if the 2R stamps exist with this overprint. Invoice 192-1864 to Mexico and 195-1864 to Cordova can also be found with this larger font overprint. The exact reason for these abberations is unknown.

Mexico, cuatro reales.
Third period, invoice 192 1864.
Normal (small) invoice overprint.
Mexico, cuatro reales.
Third period, invoice 192 1864.
Large invoice overprint in style of second period.

Stamps overprinted 6-1864 to 15-1864 in large numbers may be encountered. They are sub-consignment numbers from Guadalajara. These overprints were made on unoverprinted first period stamps, but belong in the second period. They are scarce.

Guadalajara, cuatro reales.
First period.
Sub-consignment 11 1864 to Tepic.

You may also find stamps from the first period overprinted with two different names. Some of those are the names of a main office and a sub-office, for example:

Zacatecas, dos reales.
First period.
Overprinted Zacatecas and Aguascaltes.
Toluca, un real.
First period.
Overprinted Toluca and Tescaltitlan (both horizontally and vertically).
Image courtesy J. Kordich
Yguala, dos reales.
First period.
Overprinted Yguala and Mexico.
  • Toluca and Sultepec (4 known)
  • Toluca and Tescaltitlan (3 known)
  • Zacatecas and Aguascalientes (abbreviated "Aguascaltes.")

In rare cases the names are those of two main offices, for example:

  • Mexico and Apam (8 known)
  • Mexico and Yguala (5 known)
  • Zacatecas and Aguascaltes
Total stamps sent to districts in the five periods
Period Invoices 3 centavos 1/2 real 1 real 2 reales 4 reales 8 reales
1 1-117   14081 69882 119957 14397 5294
2 118-179   5020 57318 128546 15603 10006
3 180-244   15800 81200 186600 27400 10300
4 1-216 1300 69699 340300 778800 72500 34200
5 1-131 1103 52700 213500 479900 53100 23400
Total sent   2403 157300 762200 1693803 183000 83200
Returned   91 33136 55378 57315 20868 14758
Total used   2312 124164 706822 1636488 162132 68442