The stamps.

Most sources use a few numbers from Chapman to indicate the quantities of stamps issued. However, they often use the number of stamps sent to the various districts without modification. It is perhaps more accurate to subtract the number of stamps returned from the districts as unused, to come up with the quantities that were actually sold and possibly used. Some confusion also comes from the fact that the number of stamps printed is unknown. The quantities Chapman derives for stamps printed are simply the sum of all stamps accepted as satisfactory and accounted for.

The quantities of stamps accepted are not the total number of stamps printed. It is plain to see from the fact that some of these numbers are not evenly divisible by 60, for example, and therefore could not correspond to a number of whole sheets.

The first delivery of 1 real stamps is believed to have consisted of stamps printed from plates of 60 subjects. The first delivery then corresponds to 8796½ sheets. It is a bit more reasonable to use individual consignments when trying to determine the size of the sheets delivered, as it is commonly assumed that only whole sheets were normally delivered to the districts.

The number of accepted stamps is mainly of interest to check the balance of the remaining numbers. The numbers marked "Sent to districts" are the numbers commonly used as the issue quantity. However, the number "Total used" is perhaps a better reflection of the true number available to the public, and indicate the theoretical maximum of stamps that could have been sold and used.

The difference between "Accepted total" and "Total used" is marked "Remainders". Perhaps not the correct term, it does indicate how many stamps were produced but unsold and unused. This number should then correspond to the number of stamps destroyed. Except for a very small number of 1 real and 2 reales stamps, all stamps are accounted for. This is in itself quite remarkable, indicating that the very rigorous accounting system was working, even under difficult circumstances.

The numbers used here for the quantities issued are the numbers labeled "Total used" in the above table.

One small point could be made of the fact that all stamps from the first issue are accounted for - they could never have been used with the Gothic overprints. The stamps used in 1867 with the Gothic overprint are always from the 1861 issue or are made from reprints with the same plates used for the 1861 issue, on different, watermarked paper. It is currently not known if the small, early plates were used for these reprints.

A note on surviving stamps.

On the following pages the number of surviving stamps is a theoretical maximum, assuming a fixed survival rate. Many factors influence this rate. Business letters may have been preserved to a greater extent, while newspaper wrappers were often discarded. The numbers are perhaps most useful as an indication of relative scarcity than as the true number of stamps available to collectors.  When a comparison is made to the number of stamps used in Mexico D.F., it is not an accurate indication of relative scarcity, since survival rates could be different from district to district.