Perforations between stamps were added to make separating them quick without any cutting tool.

The longer version

Sheets of stamps were once cut apart with scissors or a knife, which was slow and produced ragged edges. Punching rows of small holes between the printed designs turns separation into a tear along a guided line, so a clerk can detach a single stamp cleanly and quickly without any tool at all. The holes fall in the blank gutters, leaving the image untouched.

Collectors pay close attention to the spacing of those holes, because a change in the punching machinery shows up as a different count along an edge and helps date a printing. Separation methods varied for years, with some issues cut straight by machine, and those straight-edged stamps are prized precisely because they are unusual.

Where this entry sits

Odd Little Things looks at the ordinary objects people touch every day and the small mechanisms and histories hiding inside them. Buttons, zips, pencils, mirrors, stairs, stamps, packaging, and road signs all get their turn. The full list sits on the Odd Little Things page, where every entry is listed in order.