What are Bitcoin Stamps?

As Bitcoin develops year by year, it now supports a variety of applications beyond its original purpose, including embedding additional data in transactions. The Bitcoin Stamp Protocol was created based on the functionality brought by previous technologies such as the Ordinal Protocol to support data embedding. This article will explore what a Bitcoin stamp is, how it works, and how it differs from a Bitcoin ordinal.

What are Bitcoin Stamps?

Bitcoin Stamp is digital art generated through the Bitcoin Stamp protocol. It is a method of integrating digital art into the Bitcoin blockchain. The protocol encodes data in Unspent Transaction Outputs (UTXO) and ensures its immutability by permanently adding it to the blockchain.

How does Bitcoin Stamp work?

Bitcoin stamps are created by converting digital art into a string in Base 64 format. Add this string to the Bitcoin transaction, prefixed with "STAMP:". This data is spread across multiple outputs via multi-signature transactions. This method ensures that the digital artwork is permanently recorded on the Bitcoin blockchain.

Each Bitcoin Stamp has a unique number created based on when the transaction occurred, making it easier to sort them in order. For a stamp to be officially recognized, it must meet certain rules, such as being part of the first transaction that contains a valid "STAMP:base64" string.

Bitcoin Stamp Protocol

Bitcoin Stamp mainly uses two protocols: SRC-20 and SRC-721.

1. SRC-20. The SRC-20 token standard is created based on the open Counterparty protocol. The standard embeds arbitrary data into spendable data transactions, unlike ordinal protocols that place data in the witness part.

2. SRC-721. The SRC-721 standard reduces the cost of creating detailed NFTs. The standard uses the Bitcoin Stamp protocol to store images in layers, reducing file size by, for example, indexing color palettes for each layer. These layers can be combined into an NFT to produce high-quality images without the high cost.

Comparison of Bitcoin Stamps and Bitcoin Ordinals

Bitcoin Stamps and Bitcoin Ordinals are both inscription technologies on the Bitcoin blockchain. Both enable users to attach additional data to the Bitcoin network, but there are clear differences in the methods.

Data Reduction

Bitcoin ordinal stores information as witness data in a separate part of the transaction block. Blockchain nodes can modify witness data through a process called data pruning. In contrast, the Bitcoin Stamp protocol embeds images into unspent transaction outputs (UTXOs). As a result, digital artwork minted using the Bitcoin Stamp protocol cannot be deleted, thus maintaining its immutability.

Data Size and Cost

The Bitcoin Stamp protocol provides a more flexible data storage method, allowing creators to use images with a resolution of 24x24 pixels and above. However, selecting a larger image increases the data size, which may result in increased transaction costs for stamps. In contrast, Bitcoin ordinal limits the size of embedded data to the Bitcoin block size. Limiting image resolution flattens transaction fees, but also limits flexibility.

Signature Type

Bitcoin Stamp is essentially a multi-signature mechanism that enhances data security. In contrast, Bitcoin ordinal uses a single signature system.

Conclusion

The Bitcoin Stamp Protocol is a method of embedding digital art into the Bitcoin blockchain, achieving the integrity and non-tamperability of digital art. Unlike the Bitcoin ordinal protocol, which is limited by block size and a single signature, Bitcoin Stamps is more flexible in terms of data size and improves security through a multi-signature mechanism.

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