Since the very first stamp was affixed to a letter in 1840, many thousands of stamps have been issued in all countries of the world. You have stamps in all kinds of colors, values, and even different shapes. Stamps are of course intended as payment for the sending and delivery of the mail. But there is also a completely different target group for stamps: philately. Stamps are also a lot of fun to collect!
Stamps
The very first stamp was issued in the United Kingdom in 1840. A one penny seal bearing the image of Queen Victoria. Because of its value and color, the seal was named Penny Black. Previously the recipient of the mail was the one who paid for the shipment, with the arrival of the stamp it was the other way around. Whoever sends the mail pays for the shipment. A stamp was affixed, which served as proof of payment: the postage stamp.
The Netherlands and Belgium
After the introduction of the first postage stamp in the UK, other countries quickly followed with the same system. The first stamp appeared in Belgium in 1848, depicting King Leopold I. The Netherlands followed a few years later, in 1851, with a stamp bearing an image of king William III was standing.
New releases
When the first sets of stamps ran out, new ones had to be printed. Due to the extensive use, the printing plates deteriorated, making them no longer usable. New plates had to be created, a great opportunity to also change the image, or to adjust or expand the franking values. Because it was recognized that the stamp was also a beautiful medium for portraying the details of the own country, statesmen, artists and other greats from history appeared in addition to kings, queens and presidents. Striking buildings and bridges were also given a place on a stamp. Only a few new stamps were issued in the early years of the stamp. That number quickly increased. Today, dozens or hundreds of new stamps are issued by different countries, with constantly changing types of images. Stamps are not only interesting for the postal service, but also for the many collectors.
Philately
A lover of stamps, a stamp collector is also called philatelist mentioned. The dabbling in stamps is then philately. You can find philatelists all over the world. This is not surprising, since stamps are used all over the world.
Collect
A philatelist collects stamps, sometimes also other things related to stamps. It could be anything. A small selection:
- the seals themselves
- first day envelopes (FDC: First Day Cover)
- magazines about philately
- printing plates
- stamp booklets
- stamp sheetlets
- postal items
- postcards
- airmail stamps
- postmarks
etc.
Collection area
Anyone who collects stamps can never collect everything. There are too many countries in the world where, sometimes a lot, stamps are issued. To keep track of all that would take more than a day’s work and more money than you want to spend on it. It is necessary to establish a collection area. You can choose to save everything from one or more countries. This way you can create a collection of all Belgian or Dutch stamps. Or of course the countries of your choice.
Themes
If you still want to save from several countries, you can choose a theme. For example, you only save stamps that contain flowers, bridges or trains.
Stamp booklets
Stamps were initially sold at the post offices. That was not always easy, if you wanted to send letters on Sunday and you had run out of stamps, you had to wait until the next day. Stamp vending machines were devised for this. Coins in it, and a stamp booklet came out. When you opened that booklet, you saw a number of stamps in it that you could use for letters or postcards. They are the same stamps as you buy in post offices, but with one difference: the sides of the stamp booklet are not serrated, but straight. That explains why you sometimes come across stamps where the perforation is missing on one or two sides, at this place there is a straight side, which is wider than with the normal stamps. Although stamp vending machines have gradually fallen out of the picture, stamp booklets are still being issued. And you can also collect them.
FDC
You can also First Day Envelopes save, the FDC (First Day Cover). A postage stamp (or series) that is newly issued comes on a special envelope dedicated to that issue. The stamps are provided with a special stamp made for that occasion. FDCs are only created and stamped on the day of issue. So if you save FDCs, you have the envelope, but also the stamps.
Magnifying glass
The philatelist needs some tools. A magnifying glass is very useful to be able to read very fine print on the stamps. Did you know that almost all stamps bear the year of issue? Handy if you want to sort the stamps in order of publication. It just says it very small, so most people have to resort to a magnifying glass.
Tweezers
Stamps are small pieces of paper that you can easily damage if you pick them up. You can safely pick them up with special tweezers. Stamp tweezers have a wider front, not a sharp point, as that would damage the stamps. Some stamp tweezers have a slightly curved front to make picking up stamps a little easier.
Watermark
Stamps are in fact securities. This makes it necessary to protect them against counterfeits. One of the methods of recognizing whether the stamps are genuine is to look at the watermark. That watermark can be seen with special lamps. If you don’t have such a lamp, look at the back of the seal. In stamp catalogs it is indicated which watermark belongs to which stamp. To keep things complicated, some stamps have been issued more often, seemingly identical. The only difference is in a different watermark.
Toothings
Another means of protecting the stamps against forgeries is to use perforation. There is a perforated edge between the stamps. By tearing the seals apart, the seal gets its serrated edge. Modern stamps all have such a serrated edge, the very first stamps did not. They had to be cut from large sheets by the official with scissors. Collectors can see exactly which perforation has been used in their stamp catalog. Two types of perforation are used:
The line perforation, in which all horizontal and vertical lines are perforated on the large sheets. Because the perforation holes did not always come out nicely at the intersection points, you may encounter corners with this perforation that are not nicely formed.
The camperforation. Vertical and horizontal perforation lines are coordinated with each other, so that the corner is nicely serrated.
A perforation of 11.5 x 11 means that you can count 11.5 teeth on one side at 2 cm, on the side that is perpendicular to it you can count 11 teeth at 2 cm.
Collection bindings and stock albums
You naturally want to keep your precious stamps organized. That overview is important, because then you can quickly see whether you have completed a series, or whether something is still missing. And, not unimportantly, a well-organized collection also looks very nice. The eye wants something too! You can go either way for your collection:
- Collecting tapes
- Stock albums
Collecting tapes
In a collection you have pre-printed sheets. You can see exactly, in the correct order, which stamps have been issued. One place is reserved for each stamp issued. You slide the seal (or the seal sheet) between two transparent, plastic sheets. Your stamps are safe from dirty fingers and neatly stored.
Stock albums
Strips of plastic have been applied to the pages of an insert album, where you can slide your stamps behind. The edge of these strips is often double-twisted, so that the edge becomes less sharp and you run less risk of damaging your seals when storing them. The stock albums are for sale with a white or black background. You also have stock albums with less beautiful strips. These albums are cheaper, and very suitable for storing double stamps.
MNH or canceled?
A stamp used in the post is stamped. You cannot (and may) not use a canceled stamp again. If you collect stamps that have been removed from letters (for example, by steaming or soaking them), there will almost always be a stamp on them. Of course the gum layer of these stamps has also been used, you cannot stick them again on a letter. A stamp that has no stamp, has not been used, and of which the gum layer is still intact, is called MNH. A collection with stamps that are all MNH has a higher value than a canceled collection. But there are always exceptions.
Catalog
Anyone who seriously collects stamps will purchase a catalog. It contains all stamps in order of issue. Any details are mentioned. You can see of all stamps in which values they have been issued, which colors have been used, and which images are on them. Of course also details about watermarks and perforations. In the catalog you usually see two price columns next to each stamp. The first column shows the price for a MNH copy, in the second column the price for a canceled copy. The prices are target prices for the trade. Those who ever want to sell their collection usually only receive a fraction of the catalog value. In the Netherlands, a catalog is published annually by the NVPH, the Dutch Association of Stamp Dealers. In Belgium this is the BBKPH, the Belgian Chamber of Appeal of Stamp Dealers.
You can also choose catalogs that contain multiple countries. These are issued by, for example Yvert et Tellier in France, and Michell in Germany.
How do you get stamps?
If you don’t want to miss anything, you can subscribe. In the Netherlands, PostNL provides subscriptions via the Collect club, for example, where you will receive all newly issued stamps neatly a few times a year. If you don’t want that, then of course go to the postal agencies to buy new stamps. You can also wait and see what letters you will receive. However, with the advance of email, that flow diminishes and you run the risk of missing out. You can also visit exchange shows of various stamp clubs. Also use the internet. Sites such as Speurders or Marktplaats often offer collections or parts of collections. Be careful with the more expensive stamps: there are also forgeries!
Fun? Fun!
Collecting stamps is a fun hobby. In addition, you gain a lot of information almost unnoticed by studying the stamps. You can see which people, buildings, events and anniversaries are important enough to be honored on your own stamp. In short:
Stamps? Collect!