The American Philatelic Society has fallen on hard times. Membership has plunged to 33,000, not far from the number where huge service cuts will have to take place. Finally, acquisition and retention of members has become a priority and a committee under former Vice President Steven Rod is exploring ways to increase membership. The main […]
Stamp collecting provides a pretty big tent and there is room inside for all sorts of people. There are the avid moralists who look for repairs under every hinge. There are the rigid conformists who collect neatly (and only) in preprinted albums, and the messy iconoclasts who exhibit collections with titles such as “stamps I
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The rise of the price of stamps during the most recent inflationary period (1975-1980) has given stamps a reputation as an inflation hedge that they do not deserve. First, from about 1950 to about 1975 stamp prices rose tremendously, 300% or more, and were a leader in investment returns for this period. But this period
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Let’s assume the worst-the Democrats call the Republicans bluff and despite constant finger pointing the US government’s ability to borrow additional money ends. What does this mean for philately? My considered judgement, after weeks of thought and study, is that its hard to say. Conventionally, you would think that any kind of panic, such as
Collectors of current material hate stamps and covers that are produced for a philatelic purpose. When Sven Hedin needed funding for a China expedition that he was planning, he convinced the Chinese government to issue stamps commemorating the planned trip. These stamps were sold to the public and the funds received were used to finance
United States Fancy Cancels are among the most easily faked of any philatelic specialty. Throughout the Nineteenth Century, the United States maintained thousands of post offices. Most postmasters were part timers, merchants who added a small postal counter and mail services to attract traffic to their general store. The United States Post Office required that
The United States Post Office is reporting huge losses and has run up against its debt limit. There is some question as to whether Congress will raise its funding and even if it does there is a good deal of uncertainty over the long term viability of the current Post Office model. The question isn’t
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The illustrations above are from a collection that came our way. The creator made his own stamps and his own countries. They are all hand drawn and so qualify for Essay status.
It’s a bit of a toss up over which ex-empire, the British or the Austro-Hungarian, has produced the most number of stamps. Certainly up to WW II the British Empire and its derivatives would be the winner. But in the years since WW II, the countries that made up the former Austro-Hungarian Empire have laid