There are plenty of interesting Vietnamese stamps, but one of my personal favorites is this striking doubled frame print error on CTO-used stamp commemorating the birth of Raphael.

First, here’s an image of the normal stamp:
And here’s the error stamp with doubled print on gold colored (inner and outer) frames:
I don’t know if [...]

a href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S277sl7-VVI/AAAAAAAADxA/7mEgW0qM3rE/s1600-h/020710+Hand+cancellations010.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 250px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S277sl7-VVI/AAAAAAAADxA/7mEgW0qM3rE/s320/020710+Hand+cancellations010.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435558543799244114″ //a”dhwriting” pens on the Helium website, “All of us have probably received packages or envelopes that were posted with beautiful or otherwise very collectible stamps used to pay the mailing cost. Any stamp collector worth his or her salt feels a thrill a desirable stamp arrives this way, out of the blue. In some cases, however, those lovely stamps arrive badly defaced by postal employees using thick marker pens or ball point pens. Their value as used stamps might be fairly high if it were not for these hand cancellations.br /br /”This practice (brutal hand canceling) is becoming more and more common, and stamp collectors all over the world are frustrated by it. It amounts to the essential destruction of collectible philatelic items that would otherwise be prized by collectors.”br /br /He/she goes on to say, “Although we understand the desire of the world’s postal systems to protect their revenues by preventing the re-use of stamps, we deplore the practice of using thick markers to hand cancel stamps. Can’t the postal authorities use machine cancellations? After all, the vast majority of mail throughout the world is already processed by machine. And in cases where there is no ‘discernable cancel,’ can’t the postal employee use a neat handstamp cancellation rather than an ugly, thick line made with a marker? If only they would, the world of stamp collectors would be much happier.”br /br /To read the entire article, a href=”http://www.helium.com/items/1202842-stamp-collecting”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-1988682219206003141?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S23hI27J9mI/AAAAAAAADw4/C-BwqeKVPiw/s1600-h/large_snow.jpg”img style=”float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 175px;” src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S23hI27J9mI/AAAAAAAADw4/C-BwqeKVPiw/s320/large_snow.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5435247867604891234″ //aPostal delivery was suspended Saturday for Northern Virginia, Washington, D.C., Southern Maryland, and Suburban Maryland, emMyFoxDC.com/em reported.br /br /Patrick Murphy, spokesperson for the Postal Service for Northern Virginia and Washington, D.C., made the announcement early Saturday morning as a blizzard continued to batter the Mid-Atlantic region. br /br /Several thousand people in West Virginia, Virginia and Pennsylvania had lost electricity and more outages were expected as the snow began to bring down power lines. Authorities blamed the storm for hundreds of accidents. Some area hospitals asked people with four-wheel-drive vehicles to volunteer to pick up doctors and nurses to take them to work.br /br /The snow comes less than two months after a Dec. 19 storm dumped more than 16 inches on Washington. Snowfalls of this magnitude — let alone two in one season — are rare in the area.br /br /For more on this story, a href=”http://www.myfoxdc.com/dpp/news/local/dc-snow-postal-service-suspended-020610″click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-7156152211691625727?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2xYI8Nsc_I/AAAAAAAADww/AujOeZw23f4/s1600-h/Super+Bowl+Envelope.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 346px; height: 200px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2xYI8Nsc_I/AAAAAAAADww/AujOeZw23f4/s400/Super+Bowl+Envelope.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434815760955110386″ //aNew Orleans officials estimate that more than 700 people packed the Post Office trying to get a limited edition, Super Bowl commemorative envelope.br /br /”The Post Office expected a crowd, but nothing like this , and not every customer was happy when the limit changed from five to two per customer,” according to WWL-TV.br /br /The envelopes went on sale at 7 a.m. and by 10 a.m., the collector’s items were sold out. Officials say they are expecting another shipment, but the bulk of those will go towards filling the rest of today’s orders.br /br /The Post Office is hoping to get more envelopes from Indianapolis and Miami.br /br /Reporter Jill Hezeau in a video report indicated, “And while the two-hour wait time for those who got here at 7 a.m. was a little rough, It was all to get their hands on a piece of history.”br /br /To read the entire article and watch Jill’s video report, a href=”http://www.wwltv.com/news/Saints-fans–83568627.html”click here/a.br /br /To watch a separate video about the envelopes (shown above), a href=”http://www.wwltv.com/video/featured-videos/Post-Office-selliing-commemorative-Super-Bowl-envelope-83434677.html”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-210888681822979342?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2rhcKBr-qI/AAAAAAAADwo/rL4KeaxKUm0/s1600-h/France_Haiti_Earthq_150570c.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 250px; height: 175px;” src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2rhcKBr-qI/AAAAAAAADwo/rL4KeaxKUm0/s320/France_Haiti_Earthq_150570c.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434403774219942562″ //aThe emPalm Beach Post/em reports the French post office has released semi-postal to help victims of Haiti’s earthquake. br /br /The cost of the stamp is 1 euro (US$.1.45). For each one sold the French Red Cross will receive euro 0,44 (US$. 0.638), to help the earthquake victims in Haiti.br /br /According to the emAssociated Press/em article, France occupied Haiti for more than 100 years, from 1697 to independence in 1804 after the world’s first successful slave uprising. France still has a large presence in the Caribbean, including the two official French overseas departments of Guadeloupe and Martinique, and is keen to be seen as a leader in the Haiti earthquake relief effort.br /br /Shown above, president of the French Red Cross Jean-Francois Mattei, left, and Industry Minister Christian Estrosi unveil the design of the new postage stamp.br /br /To read the entire artilce, a href=”http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/world/france-un-salute-essential-role-of-us-in-185351.html”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-1738316752437911759?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

It’s been a long time since I showed some of the EFO’s, but I think they will match perfectly with my current writings about stamp quality. Here’s something I picked up last night from kiloware I had soaked few days earlier.

The first below stamp is the normal copy, and beneath it is the “whacked” [...]

a href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2mVAqfrVkI/AAAAAAAADvo/xzjTA1BcpvI/s1600-h/war-wallp-01bx.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 206px; height: 136px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2mVAqfrVkI/AAAAAAAADvo/xzjTA1BcpvI/s320/war-wallp-01bx.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434038264038905410″ //aAccording to the National Postal Museum’s Arago website, “…during the Civil War, the Union blockade proved critical in restricting goods from entering and leaving the Confederacy. Southerners faced increasing shortages of supplies, including paper and envelopes. Writers began to use whatever was handy as letter writing paper and envelopes. These items are known by philatelists as adversity covers.”br /br /It goes on to say, “Letters and envelopes were fashioned from the backs of ledger sheets, printed circulars, blank pages in books, maps and even wallpaper torn from walls. Some writers re-used envelopes by turning them inside out. Any blank or partially blank piece of paper could be pressed into service as an envelope.” br /br /Shown above, an adversity cover made from wallpaper.br /br /To learn more about Confederate civil war stamps, covers and postal operations, a href=”http://www.webuystamps.com/rebpost.htm”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-1797334682780762089?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2mVAqfrVkI/AAAAAAAADvo/xzjTA1BcpvI/s1600-h/war-wallp-01bx.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 206px; height: 136px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2mVAqfrVkI/AAAAAAAADvo/xzjTA1BcpvI/s320/war-wallp-01bx.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5434038264038905410″ //aAccording to the National Postal Museum’s Arago website, “…during the Civil War, the Union blockade proved critical in restricting goods from entering and leaving the Confederacy. Southerners faced increasing shortages of supplies, including paper and envelopes. Writers began to use whatever was handy as letter writing paper and envelopes. These items are known by philatelists as adversity covers.”br /br /It goes on to say, “Letters and envelopes were fashioned from the backs of ledger sheets, printed circulars, blank pages in books, maps and even wallpaper torn from walls. Some writers re-used envelopes by turning them inside out. Any blank or partially blank piece of paper could be pressed into service as an envelope.” br /br /Shown above, an adversity cover made from wallpaper.br /br /To learn more about Confederate civil war stamps, covers and postal operations, a href=”http://www.webuystamps.com/rebpost.htm”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-1797334682780762089?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2hFs5Qv_uI/AAAAAAAADuY/WPXaNgCyn1s/s1600-h/crop_2010_Official_Valentine_Cachet1.jpg”img style=”float:center; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 198px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2hFs5Qv_uI/AAAAAAAADuY/WPXaNgCyn1s/s400/crop_2010_Official_Valentine_Cachet1.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433669588010139362″ //abr /Denver, Colorado’s Channel 7 News reports, “Volunteers in Loveland started stamping Valentine’s from around the world with a special postmark Monday. More than 200,000 people from 120 countries around the world mail their Valentine’s to Loveland each year for a special cancellation stamp and message.”br /br /Loveland calls itself the Sweetheart City. Officials said the remailing program is the largest of its kind in the U.S. The Valentine Re-Mailing Program is hosted by the Loveland Chamber of Commerce and run with the Loveland Post Office.br /br /To receive the 2010 official valentine cachet and Loveland cancellation, put your pre-addressed envelopes affixed with the proper postage in a larger 1st Class envelope. Then mail it to: Postmaster – Attention Valentines 446 E. 29th St. Loveland, CO 80538-9998br /br /This year’s cancellation is shown above.br /br /For more on the Loveland Chamber of Commerce’s Valentine Day re-mail program and other related products, services and activities, a href=”http://www.loveland.org/ValentineProgram”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-3188608511394182858?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2e-v-31LfI/AAAAAAAADuQ/EcPfn0gambA/s1600-h/Fishing.jpg”img style=”float:left; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 225px; height: 225px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2e-v-31LfI/AAAAAAAADuQ/EcPfn0gambA/s320/Fishing.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433521206986092018″ //aThe Office of the USPS Inspector General wants to know, “Are there better alternatives to stamps?” br /br /In a post on the IG’s blog, titled emHow Can the Postal Service Reduce the Costs Associated with Postage Stamps?, /emit points out, “Business customers often rent postage meters and use permits for bulk mail. Now, the advent of online postage vendors has given individual customers an alternative to stamps. Customers that use online postage can customize their postage and incorporate approved language or pictures.”br /br /Regarding stamp collectors it goes on to say, “Would philatelic sales suffer if the Postal Service reduced the denominations it offered? Commemorative Forever Stamps could be issued in limited quantities to satisfy collectors. Some commemorative stamps could be sold locally, while others could only be ordered and shipped direct from a central location. Forever Stamps that marked holidays or other special events such as birthdays would be very useful for people who wanted to stock up. And what could be more appropriate for wedding invitations than “Forever Love” stamps?”br /br /To read the entire post and see comments left by readers for and against eliminating stamps, a href=”http://blog.uspsoig.gov/?p=2756#more-2756″click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-1887560492001729979?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div