Heavy forms

Epoch-making stamps on parcel address card

There is only one thing that could come from the village Tandsbyn in the northern Swedish province Jämtland - paper forms. The print shop in Tandsbyn was where almost all bank paper forms were printed in Sweden. At least in the old days. The sender is just "Tandsbyn", as printed on the parcel address card, no more information was needed and of course the content is "printed matter", as always.

This time it was the Bankgirocentralen that had ordered 12 kg of paper forms. The Bankgirocentralen is the money transfer system, clearing service, that is owned jointly by the banks in Sweden. The Swedish Post's Postgirot was the main competitor from 1959 and for many decades until the Swedish Post sold the Postgirot to one of the Swedish banks when it ceased acting as a bank. Bankgirocentralen or rather Bankgirot is still prosperous, but hardly any paper forms are used anymore.

Domestic parcel 10 - 15 kg fee: 14 kr.
1966, 18 April, 3.50 kr grey/olive-green Ale's Stones,. Qty: 24,500,000

The postal rate for a 12 kg parcel was 14 kr since January 1967 and it would remain so until January 1969. The stamp used are the beautiful 3.50 kr grey/olive Ale's stones, four was required in this case. The Ale's Stones was a new kind of definitive stamps when it came in April 1966. The Ale's stone was a single definitive stamp aimed for domestic parcels. One stamp only, no series. Until this stamp showed up covering the rates for the three most common parcels rates was the job of the the Three Crowns definitive series and before that its predecessor the Crown and Posthorn definitive series. Not anymore.

Domestic parcel rates from January 1967 until January 1969:
- 1 kg 1 - 3 kg 3 - 5 kg 5 - 7 kg 7 - 10 kg   10 - 15 kg 15 - 20 kg
2.80 kr 3.70 kr 4.50 kr 7.00 kr   10.50 kr   [14.00 kr] 17.00 kr

In 1966 the Ale's stones covered parcels of a weight between 3 and 5 kg, it did that until January 1967. After that there was no obvious single use for a 3.50 kr stamp. As  you can see above the Post Office in Tandsbyn had good use for the Ale's stones anyway, but from January1969  it became even better when the postal rate for parcels  - 1 kg required 3.50 kr. What happened to the three Crowns series? well it faded away slowly along with the raises of the rates.

This heavy parcel was sent from Tandsbyn on Friday 5 July 1968 and it arrived at the Post Office Stockholm 1 the next day. On Monday it was picked up by Bankgirocentralen at the special parcel office in the corner of Brewer Street and North Klara Church Street (Bryggargatan/Klara Norra Kyrkogata). The funny thing is that the parcel office was facing the building where the competitor Postgirot was located. Another funny thing is that they had to pick up the parcel at Stockholm 1. There were Post Offices much closer to S:t Paul Street where Bankgirocentralen had their office. One might wonder why?

Tandsbyn is situated 446 km NW of Stockholm.