[from a PostNL press release] [click on any of the pictures for larger versions]
[Note: On any PostNL in Dutch, look for the <NL at the top of the page, above the search box. Click on the left-facing triangle and you should be offered <EN.]

Date of issue: 22 September 2022
Format: stamp sheet with one crypto stamp marked R for registered mail up to and including 2 kg destined for delivery within the Netherlands
Item number: 420862
Design: David Gruber, Vienna (Austria)
Collaboration: joint issue of a Dutch and an Austrian crypto stamp with a digital twin in the blockchain

On 22 September 2022, PostNL issued the NL crypto stamp, marked with R for registered mail weighing up to 2 kg destined for delivery inside of the Netherlands. Each physical postage stamp has a digital twin in the blockchain. The NL crypto stamp is the first crypto stamp to be issued by PostNL. In addition, it is also the world’s first ever joint issue of a crypto stamp. PostNL and Österreichische Post are simultaneously issuing their own crypto stamp based on the same design, featuring the colours of the respective country’s flag, each with the same symbol but with a different denomination. Another special feature is the fact that collectors can reserve their copy of the NL crypto stamp from 2 September 2022.

Crypto stamps are a recent phenomenon. In 2019, Austria’s national postal service, Österreichische Post AG, became the first postal service in the world to issue a crypto stamp. It was followed by Gibraltar, Croatia, Liechtenstein, Malta, the United Arab Emirates, the UN and Switzerland. With the NL crypto stamp, PostNL is next in line. As is the case with other crypto stamps, each individual NL crypto stamp is linked to a digital twin in the blockchain. Blockchain is a computer technology that uses distributed databases to secure the ownership of crypto money and other digital assets such as crypto art and crypto stamps. These digital items are also known as NFTs, non-fungible tokens. You can view the digital twin of your NL crypto stamp on a computer or smartphone at any time. It is also possible to store it in a digital collection or sell it using a digital wallet.

How Does It Work?
Activate the NFC function on your smartphone. Hold your phone near the NL crypto stamp to check its authenticity.

Each NL crypto stamp has a digital twin with a particular colour in the blockchain. There are five different colours, some of which are more common than others. Activate your NL crypto stamp to discover the colour of the digital twin. Scan the QR-code on the front or enter code [1] and code [A] on the reverse at NLcryptostamp.nl [link is to the English-language version].

Design
The stamp sheet with the NL crypto stamp is the size of a bank card and is made of extra strong reinforced paper. The physical stamp has been affixed to the front of the stamp sheet, in the centre. The stamp can be detached along the perforated edges. The background of both the sheet and the stamp feature the stripes of the Dutch flag with an added crystal structure. A pattern of silver tulips runs across the flag.

As was the case with the previous crypto stamp issues by Österreichische Post, the design of this jointly issued crypto stamp features a unique symbol. Designs for the earlier Austrian editions included a unicorn, a whale and a panda. The PostNL and Österreichische Post version features the silver silhouette of a bull’s head in the top left-hand corner. The bull is not just a symbol of courage and perseverance; it also represents ‘bull markets’, which is how the world of the stock exchange refers to rising markets.

The denomination R for registered mail is printed in the top right-hand corner of the stamp and a QR code with a link to the digital twin can be found in the bottom right-hand corner. The country (Nederland) and the year (2022) are printed in the bottom left-hand corner of the stamp. The reverse of the stamp sheet features a number of codes, a QR code and a ‘secret word list’ for viewing, storing and selling the digital twin of the NL crypto stamp in the blockchain. The image on the reverse is the same as that on the front, with the Dutch tricolour, the crystal structure and the silver tulips. The upper right-hand corner of the reverse features the unicorn logo, which has been used as a symbol for crypto stamps since the very first issue by Austria in 2019.

The issue of the NL crypto stamp is groundbreaking for several reasons. It is the first crypto stamp PostNL has ever issued and it is also the first joint issue (together with Österreichische Post) of a crypto stamp worldwide. It is also unusual that collectors and other interested parties were able to reserve a copy through an official presale.

Stephan van den Eijnden, commercial director of PostNL Mail Nederland, agrees that this issue is unusual. ‘We have been receiving a lot of interest since the end of May, when we announced that we would be issuing our first Dutch crypto stamp this autumn. The Dutch are becoming more and more interested in the world of crypto. But until now, the general public only knew of these products by name. With the NL crypto stamp, we are making NFTs accessible to a wider audience. We hope that this will make more people eager to discover this new way of collecting. Because stamps are timeless!’

Van den Eijnden adds ‘ the basic design is the same. But with a different denomination, different flags (of course) and also a different national flower. What the tulip is to the Netherlands, the edelweiss is to Austria.’

Colors
The digital twins are stored in the blockchain in five different colours. The likelihood of getting a particular colour depends on the colour: there are 1,400 red, 9,334 yellow, 18,666 blue, 37,334 green and 73,266 black stamps. So a red digital twin is much rarer than a black one, for example. The digital twin of the crypto stamp is randomly generated. Scan the QR code on the stamp with a smartphone to find out which colour is linked to your NL crypto stamp.

Austrian Version
Österreichische Post will issue its version of the latest crypto stamp – the Crypto stamp 4.0 – on the same day PostNL issues theirs. Its design is very similar to that of the NL crypto stamp, [with] a few important differences.

Availability
The stamps are available while stocks last in Bruna shops and through the webshop and the onchainshop. The validity period is indefinite. More information about the crypto stamps can be found at NLcryptostamp.nl [link is to the English-language version].

Technical Specifications:
Postage stamp dimensions: 43 x 53 mm
Stamp sheet dimensions: 53.98 x 85.6 x 0.79 mm (+/- 0.05 mm)
Paper: Invercote Creato matt 240 g/m2
Special features: PET film for NFC chip, silver metallic, film and varnish
NFC chip: 384 bytes, AES-SUN NDEF security
Gum: gummed
Printing technique: offset and screen print
Printing colours: cyan, magenta, yellow, black
Print run: 140,000 stamps
Format: stamp sheet with one stamp
Design: David Gruber, Vienna (Austria)
Printer: Variuscard GmbH, Vienna (Austria)
Item number: 420862