Oval Municipal Crown Cancellation

Between the mid 1860s and the mid 1880s, an oval ‘Municipal Crown’ cancel was used in small towns throughout the Philippines. The oval cancel consists of the words ‘PROV. DE [Name of Province]’ in a semi-circle across the top; a crown in the center; and the straight-lined name of the town on the bottom; often with an ornamental design of an arrow below (some cancels do not have this ornamental design present). The cancel is 1 inch (26mm) high and 1½ inches (32 mm) wide.

Little is known about this cancel and to date there is no known reference to any Philippine Orders authorising the cancel. The cancel exists on covers dated from 1866 through 1885, and is usually applied on the stamp. All of the cancels are black and appear mainly on covers to interior destinations, but overseas usage is also known. Most of the covers are to larger towns, such as Manila, where a receiving cancel was often applied. It is interesting to note that a dated cancellation was seldom applied at origin when the municipal cancel was used.

Although there are minor variations between town cancels, they are generally very similar. The cancel appears to have been used primarily in small towns and villages. Given its rather uniform shape and wide distribution throughout the Islands, it is speculated that its use and standard design must have been authorised in Manila, probably around 1864. However, given the minor variations that occur between the town cancels, they were probably produced locally, consistent with some general design specification provided from Manila. The cancel appears to have been used for postal purposes only, as none have been recorded on telegraph receipts or revenue documents.

List of Philippine Towns and Provinces with
Oval ‘Municipal Crown’ Cancellations

Pictures Available on Towns Highlighted in Bold

Count	Province	Town	Source
1	Albay	Daraga	Gooding Collection
2	Albay	Sorsogon	(On Cover)
3	Batangas	Calatagan	Peterson Collection
4	Batangas	Nasugbu	Peterson Collection
5	Bulacan	Angat	Peterson Collection
6	Bulacan	Bustos	Peterson Collection
7	Bulacan	San Rafael	Peterson Collection
8	Cagayan	[Not Legible]	Peterson Collection
9	Camarines Sur	Baao
10	Camarines Sur	Camaligan
11	Camarines Sur	Caramoan	Peterson Collection
12	Camarines Sur	Magarao
13	Camarines Sur	Pasacao
14	Camarines Sur	Pili
15	Capiz	Cuartero	Peterson Collection
16	Capiz	Ibisan	Peterson Collection
17	Cotabato	[Not Legible]	Peterson Collection
18	Ilocos Norte	Santa Maria
19	Ilocos Sur	Balauan
20	Ilocos Sur	Santa Cruz
21	Iloilo	Badiagan
22	Iloilo	Guimbal	(On Cover)
23	Iloilo	Jaro
24	Iloilo	Molo	James Larot Collection
25	Iloilo	Passi	Peterson Collection
26	Iloilo	Pototan	Gooding Collection
27	Isabela	Cabagan	Gooding Collection
28	La Union	Arinhay	Peterson (Cover)
29	La Union	San Juan	Peterson Collection
30	La Union	Santo Tomas	Gooding Collection
31	La Union	Namacpacan	Peterson Collection
32	Laguna	Majayjay	Gooding Collection
33	Leyte	Ormoc	Peterson Collection
34	Manila	Mariquina	Peterson Collection
35	Mindoro	Calapan	Gooding Collection
36	Misamis	Cagayan	Peterson Collection
37	Misamis	Yligan	Gooding Collection
38	Nueva Ecija	Gapan	Peterson Collection
39	Nueva Ecija	Penaranda	Peterson Collection
40	Palawan	Culion	Dr Bajar Collection
41	Pampanga	San Isidro	Peterson Collection
42	Pangasinan	Dagupan	(On Cover)
43	Pangasinan	Manaoag	Peterson Collection
44	Pangasinan	Mangaldan	Torres Feb 2010 Auction
45	Pangasinan	San Carlos	Gooding Collection
46	Romblon	Badajoz
47	Samar	Calivo	Peterson Collection
48	Tayabas	Banilad	Gooding Collection
49	Tayabas	Mulanay
50	Zambales	Agno

Extracted and modified from an article by Don Peterson
“The ‘Oval Municipal Crown’ Cancel of the Spanish Philippines”
Philippine Philatelic Journal, Volume XXVIII No. 1, First Quarter 2006

A similar Crown Cancellation was also applied on Philippine stamps in use in the Marianas Islands.

Philippine Stamps Used in Marianas with
Oval ‘Municipal Crown’ Cancellations

Marianas Islands	Town	Source
Marianas	Rota
Marianas	Saipan

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