Stamp collecting

A stamp album page with different British Machin stamps and spaces for missing stamps.

Stamp collecting is the collecting of postage stamps and related objects. It is one of the world's most popular hobbies, with estimates of the number of collectors ranging up to 20 million in the United States alone.^[1]

Collecting

Stamp collecting is not the same as philately, which is the study of stamps. A philatelist may, but does not have to, collect stamps. Many casual stamp collectors accumulate stamps for sheer enjoyment and relaxation without worrying about the tiny details. The creation of a large or comprehensive collection, however, may require some philatelic knowledge.

Stamp collectors are an important source of income for some countries who create limited runs of elaborate stamps designed mainly to be bought by stamp collectors. The stamps produced by these countries may exceed the postal needs of the countries, but may also feature attractive topical designs that many collectors would like to have in their stamp album.

Queen Victoria's profile was a staple on 19th century stamps of the British Empire; here on a half-penny of the Falkland Islands, 1891

History of stamp collecting

The first postage stamp, the Penny Black, was issued by Britain in 1840 and pictured a young Queen Victoria. It was produced without perforations (imperforate) and consequently had to be cut from the sheet with scissors in order to be used. While unused examples of the "Penny Black" are quite scarce, used examples are quite common, and may be purchased for $20 to $200, depending upon condition.

People started to collect stamps almost straight away, most notably John Edward Gray who bought penny black stamps on their first day of issue in order to keep them. Children and teenagers were early collectors of stamps in the 1860s and 1870s. Many adults dismissed it as a childish pursuit but later many of those same collectors, as adults, began to systematically study the available postage stamps and publish books about them. Some stamps such as the triangular issues of the Cape of Good Hope have became legendary. (See Stamps of the Cape of Good Hope).

Today, stamp collecting is one of the world's most popular indoor hobbies.

Stamp collecting equipment

A few basic items of equipment are needed to collect stamps. Stamp tongs or tweezers help to handle stamps safely, a magnifying glass helps in viewing fine details and an album is a convenient way to store stamps. The stamps need to be attached to the pages of the album in some way and stamp hinges are a cheap and simple way to do this, although some collectors prefer more expensive hingeless mounts if the stamps are valuable. Another alternative is a stockbook where the stamps drop into clear pockets without the need for a mount. Stamps should be stored away from light, heat and moisture or they will be damaged.

Stamps can be displayed according to the collector's wishes, by country, topic, or even by size, which can create a display pleasing to the eye. There are no rules and it is entirely a matter for the individual collector to decide.

A stockbook with clear plastic pockets is one of the safest ways to store stamps. Some collectors prefer a traditional stamp album.

Clockwise from top left: hinge-mounted stamp, stamp about to be hinge-mounted, stamp damaged by a hinge, stamp hinges.

A magnifying glass.

Stamp tongs (or tweezers) with rounded tips help to prevent damage to stamps from skin oils and rough handling.

The tools and items of collecting all fit neatly on a desk blotter.

Acquiring stamps

Many collectors begin by asking family and friends to save stamps for them from their mail. Although the stamps received by major businesses and those kept by elderly relatives may be of international and historical interest, the stamps received from family members are often of the definitive sort. Definitives seem mundane but, considering their variety of colours, watermarks, paper differences, perforations and printing errors, they can fill many pages in a collection. Introducing either variety or specific focus to a collection can require the purchasing of stamps, either from a dealer or online. Large numbers of relatively recent stamps, often still attached to fragments or envelopes, may be obtained cheaply and easily. Rare and old stamps can also be obtained, but these can be very expensive.

Duplicate stamps are those a collector already has and are not required, therefore, to fill a gap in a collection. Duplicate stamps can be sold or traded, so they are an important medium of exchange among collectors.

Many dealers sell stamps through the Internet while others have neighborhood shops which are one of the best resources for beginning and intermediate collectors. Some dealers also jointly set up week-end stamp markets called "bourses" that move around a region from week to week. They also meet collectors at regional exhibitions and stamp shows.

Collecting specialties

A worldwide collection would be enormous, running to thousands of volumes, and incredibly expensive to acquire. Many consider that Count Philipp von Ferrary's collection at the beginning of the 20th century was the most complete ever formed. Many collectors limit their collecting to particular countries, certain time periods or particular subjects (called "topicals") like birds or aircraft on stamps.

Some of the more popular collecting areas include:

• Postage stamps - particular countries and/or time periods
  • Airmail stamps - stamps may be required for airmail, which is typically more expensive and has special postage rates.
  • Commemorative stamps - stamps to commemorate events, anniversaries etc., on sale for a limited time.
  • Definitive stamps - the most common type of stamps
  • Postage due stamps are special stamp applied by a post office to mail bearing insufficient postage. The stamps were issued in several denominations to make up different amounts due.
  • Revenue stamps - stamps issued to pay taxes.
• Topical stamp collecting - many collectors choose to organize their philatelic collection on the theme of the stamps, covers, or postmarks. Popular topical themes are animals, dogs, cats, butterflies, birds, flowers, art, sports, Olympics, maps, Disney, scouting, space, ships, Americana (topics relating to the US), stamps on stamps, famous people, chess, Chinese new year, and many others.
  • Birds on stamps
  • Insects on stamps
  • People on stamps
  • Stamps on stamps
• Postal stationery - includes government-issued postal cards, aerograms, letter card, newspaper wrappers, envelopes etc., that have an imprinted stamp.
• Sheets
  • Sheetlets - this is a format that is now issued regularly by postal administrations. Instead of issuing stamps in large sheets of 40, 100 or even 200 stamps, smaller sheetlets with 16 or 20 stamps are issued with a large selvage area which may incorporate part of the stamp design or theme.
  • Miniature sheet - is very similar to a souvenir sheet, being in a sheetlet with a single or a number of stamps embedded in it.
  • Souvenir sheets - the many postal services sometimes release stamps in a format that look like a sheet with a big picture. Various parts of the picture can be torn out and used as postage stamps. See example with 10 stamps in one picture. (Souvenir sheets should be distinguished from souvenir cards, which are souvenirs of a philatelic meeting or exhibition but are not valid for postage.)
  • Corner blocks or plate blocks - compose a block of stamps from one of the four corners of the stamp sheet. Collectors usually opt for a block of four stamps, complete with the selvage area which will sometimes have the printing details on it.
• Federal Duck Stamps (stamps for duck hunting licenses, mainly U.S. with some other countries such as Canada and New Zealand)
• First day covers - (FDCs) - envelopes with stamps attached and canceled on the first day that the stamp was issued. Most modern FDCs bear designs, called "cachets" related to the theme of the stamp issued.
• Maximum cards, these are postcards where the stamp is on the same side as the picture and they have a close connection.
• Souvenir pages - with first day canceled stamps on a page describing all design, printing and issuing details. This is similar to first day covers except that it is done on a printed sheet of paper instead of an envelope, and the specification of the stamp is printed by the official source. See picture of first souvenir page in the US.
• Cinderella stamps - stamp-like labels that are not valid for postage
• Postmarks or postal markings in general.

Organizations

A booth at the show THAIPEX 2005 in Thailand

There are thousands of organizations for collectors: local stamp clubs, special-interest groups, and national organizations. Most nations have a national collectors' organization, such as the American Philatelic Society in the United States. The Internet has greatly expanded the availability of information and made it easier to obtain stamps and other philatelic material.

Stamp clubs and philatelic societies can add a social aspect to stamp collecting and provide a forum where novices can meet experienced collectors. Despite such organizations often being advertised in stamp magazines and online, the relatively small number of collectors - especially outside urban areas - means that a club may be difficult to set up and sustain. The Internet partially solves this problem, as the association of collectors online is not limited by geographical distance. For this reason, many highly-specific stamp clubs have been established on the Web, with international membership.^[2]

Organizations such as the Cinderella Stamp Club (UK) retain hundreds of members interested in a specific aspect of collecting. Social organizations, such as the Lions Club and Rotary International, have also formed stamp collecting groups specific to those stamps that are issued from many countries worldwide where the organization's logo exists.

Rare stamps

Rare stamps are often old and many have interesting stories attached to them. Some include:

• The United States "Inverted Jenny" (which is actually a printing error)
• The United States "1-cent Z grill" stamp.
• The Treskilling Yellow.
• The Mauritius "Post Office" stamps.
• The British Guiana 1c magenta, and many others.

Catalogues

Stamp catalogues are the primary tool used by serious collectors to organize their collections, and for the identification and valuation of stamps. Most stamp shops have stamp catalogues available for purchase. A few catalogues are offered on-line, either for free or for a fee. There are hundreds of different catalogues, most specializing in particular countries or periods.

Famous stamp collectors

Freddie Mercury, lead singer of the band Queen, collected stamps as a child. His childhood stamp album is in the collection of the British Postal Museum & Archive.^[3]

John Lennon of The Beatles was also a childhood stamp collector. His stamp album is held by the National Postal Museum.^[4]

Star women's tennis player Maria Sharapova has been an enthusiastic collector of stamps since a young age.^[5]

England's King George V reportedly possessed one of the largest stamp collections in the world and became President of the Royal Philatelic Society at one point.^[6] This collection was passed on to Queen Elizabeth II who, while not a serious philatelist, has a collection of British and Commonwealth First Day Covers which she started in 1952.^[7]

U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt was an avid stamp collector who designed several American commemorative stamps while president.^[8]

References and sources

Notes

Sources

• Cabeen, Richard McP. (1979). Standard Handbook of Stamp Collecting. Chicago: Collectors Club of Chicago. ISBN 0690017731. 
• Nankivell, Edward J. (2007). Stamp Collecting as a Pastime: Stanley Gibbons Philatelic Handbooks (1902). UK: Dodo Press. ISBN 1406530581. 

External links

• LearnAboutStamps.com A resource for stamp collectors
• Caring for stamps & postal history British Postal Museum & Archive Information Sheet
• Philatelic Dictionary English - German - French
• StampNews.com Provides updates on new stamp issues and stamp collecting from around the world.
• The WikiBooks Worldwide Stamp Catalogue