What Can Be Done: The history of the Indian sub-continent over the last 1200 years has been the geographic battle between peoples of the Hindu and Muslim faith. The Mughal Empire controlled most of India before ceding control to the British, and the simmering enmity between the Hindus and Moslems that British rule papered over came to fore after the independence of India. The Muslim northwest and southeast of India seceded from India proper. During the partition of India as many as 2 million people were killed and tens of millions more displaces as Muslims living in India moved to Pakistan and vice versa. Pakistan was created as a county with two areas separated by over fifteen hundred miles of Indian territory.
This very brief overview of modern Indian sub continental history is necessary to understand Pakistani philately. Before 1948, Pakistan did not exist, so advanced Indian specialist often add Indian stamps that have town cancellations in what is now Pakistan to their collections. Additionally, Pakistan originally consisted of two main provinces. This changed in 1971 when the eastern province broke off to form the country of Bangladesh. The bloody Bangladeshi civil war may have killed as many as two million people.
Pakistan proper is a simple philatelic country to collect. There are about 1200 different stamps as of 2015 and none of them are very expensive. The issuing policy of the Pakistani post office is very modest. In recent years new issues per year often number under twenty. The country can be completed mint for under a thousand dollars, but because many of the mint stamps of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s are still very cheap, they can be hard to find. As inexpensive as the country is in the Scott catalog, I don’t recall ever seeing a complete collection-this would be a good challenge for a collector who wants the thrill of philately’s seek and find on a modest budget.
Specialized Catalogs: The Scott catalog is the best catalog for Pakistan. For many British areas, specialists like to use the Stanley Gibbons catalog. But for Pakistan, Scott is easier to use, cheaper to buy and better in clarity.
Specialty Albums: The Scott Specialty series of albums has a one volume Pakistan album which is a high quality album and represents good value.
Availability of Material: The availability of Pakistanis stamps suffers from the very low price that many of them catalog. There’s a paradox in this hobby that the hardest items to find are often among the least expensive. Unless a stamp catalogs for at least $10, few dealers can afford to stock and sell it. If you want a set of US Graf Zeppelins (#C13-15) you can have it tomorrow. But a 1970’s era Pakistan stamp? Nobody has one for sale. Since most Pakistani stamps sell for under 50c, collectors usually have to buy them in lots and smaller year set units. But even then getting some of these stamps will prove daunting.
Expense: Pakistan has beautiful stamps commemorating a rich cultural, historic and political people. The country complete represents one of the least expensive major countries in the world. Many pundits have predicted increased popularity of Pakistani stamps as the country becomes wealthier and Pakistani expatriates invest in the stamps of their native country. If this happens, collectors who start a Pakistan collection now will be rewarded.
Overall grade: B