14-01-2021 News
If you’ve ever heard the phrase, “building the plane while it’s flying,” then you understand can appreciate the challenges of planning for the 2021 Great American Stamp Show. There is good news to celebrate with vaccines' approval to inoculate against COVID-19, but distribution will be slower than we'd like. The...
Read more15-12-2020 News
The Basel Dove celebrated its 175th anniversary on July 1st this year. An exhibition in Basel planned to celebrate this momentous occasion in Swiss and indeed World philately earlier this month, but unfortunately had to be cancelled due to the developing Covid-19 situation in Switzerland. It was momentous not just...
Read more08-12-2020 News
Ludwig van Beethoven (Bonn, 1770 – Vienna, 1827) was a German composer, one of the greatest composers of all time. His impressive music opus includes, among other, nine symphonies, 16 pieces for string quartets, 32 piano sonatas, one opera, two masses, five piano and one violin concertos. Particularly striking are...
Read more05-12-2020 News
The 2020 Challenge continues! The American Philatelic Society’s goal for 2020 is to sign up at least 2,020 first time members – and we need your help to achieve and exceed our goal! For every new member recommended by an APS member, your name will be entered into a drawing to win...
Read more01-12-2020 News
These Irish stamps pay tribute to four albums – 1987’s The Joshua Tree, 1991’s Achtung Baby, 2000’s All That You Can’t Leave Behind, and 2017’s Songs of Experience. There are four stamps in all – two for use within the Irish Republic, and two for international mail. A booklet of four stamps...
Read more29-11-2020 News
Just a few sentimental weeks ago we were reminiscing about Sean Connery’s role in the Bond movie ‘Goldfinger’, where we marvelled at the seemingly mystical, gravitational pull there is towards Geneva, and certainly back then our Prussian Blue cover fitted our assertion. However, today our featured World Rarity, ‘The Black...
Read more26-11-2020 News
As the spouse of a 13th generation descendant of Mayflower passengers William and Mary Brewster, I receive regular doses of Pilgrim history through the efforts of our state “colony” of The General Society of Mayflower Descendants. With excitement building around the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower’s transatlantic journey, I began...
Read more25-11-2020 News
An interesting Chinese legend about the ranking of the Rat goes that the Chinese supreme deity Jade Emperor held a birthday party and would decide the order of the zodiac animals according to their arrival times. Originally, the hardworking Ox departed early and should be the first one to reach. However, the...
Read more24-11-2020 News
Keeping sugar cane plantations operating post slavery often proved difficult. To solve the issue, the British attempted an experiment to see if poor Indians would be willing to work far and wide throughout the empire. Many indeed signed the contracts and for many that meant passage on a coolie ship...
Read more22-11-2020 News
Slovakia highlights the work of artist and stamp designer Vladimir Machaj on its Stamp Day commemorative to be issued Dec. 4. Details of some of his designs are shown on the stamp and the se-tenant label. Slovakia will salute Postage Stamp Day and stamp designer Vladimir Machaj on an €0.80 stamp...
Read more21-11-2020 News
To commemorate Croatian Stamp Day, Croatian Post has issued it's first Crytpo Stamp in cooperation with the Croatian blockchain community gathered around the Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Association. The stamp has been issued in five categories, with five different motifs depicting various means of transport: a van (60,000 stamps), a train...
Read more19-11-2020 News
Congratulations to the Austrian Federation (VÖPh) which has succeeded – in the face of all the current restrictions – in holding ÖVEBRIA 2020, its national exhibition with international participation, live in Sankt Pölten from 2nd – 4th October 2020. The local authority agreed to allow the exhibition to take place as...
Read more17-11-2020 News
A masterpiece created by an unknown Peruvian painter in the 1700s graces this year’s religious Christmas postage stamp from the U.S. Postal Service. The stamp features a detail from a large oil on canvas painting titled Our Lady of Guápulo. The original painting is more than 5 feet high and 3...
Read more16-11-2020 News
We are expecting that, even with the first stamp issue of 2021 coming in mid-January, we don't expect Royal Mail to make any announcement about the year until after Christmas. This post was going to be about an almost certain stamp issue for 2022 but a comment was proposed on the...
Read more14-11-2020 News
When online images of this stamp surfaced in early 2020, some collectors were sceptical that it was genuine. There was good reason to think it wasn’t. As if German-speaking Austria would write its name on its stamps in English! (‘Österreich’ is the standard inscription.) And as if a serious, modern nation...
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