Postage meter
Videos
A postage meter or franking machine is a mechanical device used to create and apply physical evidence of postage to mailed items. Postage meters are regulated by a country's postal authority. A postag
The Pitney Bowes Model M postage meter 1920
An early machine pictured on a 1932 envelope from Brazil addressed to Pitney Bowes
Modern Pitney Bowes franking machine
Mail
Videos
The mail, or post, is a system for physically transporting postcards, letters, and parcels. A postal service can be private or public, though many governments place restrictions on private systems. Si
Postage meter
…A postage meter or franking machine is a mechanical device used to create and apply physical evidence of postage (or franking) to mailed items. Postage meters are regulated by a country's postal authority. A postage meter imprints an amount of postage, functioning…
A postman collecting mail for delivery in Hong Kong, 2008
Many early post systems consisted of fixed courier routes, as seen in this 1832 depiction of a post house on a route in Finland.
The use of adhesive stamps and sealing wax to signify prepayment of postage began with the Scinde Dawk of British India on 1 July 1852, as part of a comprehensive reform of the postal system in Scinde under the East India Company.
Chinese postage stamp: 4-cent on 100-dollar silver overprint of 1949