a href=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2YUzZ0gLGI/AAAAAAAADuI/7UDLrtg8lGs/s1600-h/data.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;” src=”http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2YUzZ0gLGI/AAAAAAAADuI/7UDLrtg8lGs/s320/data.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5433052873806064738″ //aemBloomberg.com/em reports, “On Nov. 25, 1968, as the Cultural Revolution raged in China, the government issued a stamp called ‘Whole Country Is Red,’ with a scarlet map of the nation. Within half a day of its release, post offices were told to pull it.”br /br /Jeffrey Schneider, a British Philatelic Association member whose company is holding a Jan. 31 auction of Hong Kong stamps is quoted as saying,”That’s after an editor at the China Atlas Press complained that Xisha and Nansha, islands in the South China Sea known as the Paracel and Spratly, were omitted on the map.”br /br /”There was another problem: Taiwan was colored white,” writes reporter Le-Min Lim.br /br /According to Le-min, “The island was the bastion of Kuomintang troops that were defeated by their Communist rivals on the mainland in 1949. Kuomintang under Chiang Kai-shek had seized control of Taiwan and claimed to be the legitimate government even of the mainland. Today, China still considers Taiwan a breakaway province that must be recaptured, even if by force.”br /br /Some of “Whole Country Is Red” had been sold before they were taken off sale. At the upcoming auction, a pair (as shown above) with a face value of 8 cents each, may fetch HK$2.2 million ($283,000). The lot is among 1,800 items that’s expected to fetch more than HK$45 million. br /br /To read the entire article, a href=”http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601088sid=a75CbsfRKRRs”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-6828587243476975886?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2Tm6yQh29I/AAAAAAAADto/L0qX3TrNNaY/s1600-h/haiti.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 214px;” src=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2Tm6yQh29I/AAAAAAAADto/L0qX3TrNNaY/s400/haiti.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5432720948113562578″ //aThe Vatican’s Philatelic and Numismatic Office reports it will donate the proceeds of the next stamp it issues to help Haiti recover from the damages it sustained in the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake. br /br /According to an article that appears on the Zenit.com website the stamp which was already set to be released prior to the quake, will be dedicated to the 1,500th anniversary of the Shrine of Our Lady of Grace, more commonly known as the Shrine of Our Lady of Mentorella.br /br /The Vatican will print some 900,000 stamps valued at 65 euro cents (91 cents), and sell them at 85 euro cents ($1.19). The additional 20 euro cents (28 cents) will be donated directly to Haiti.br /br /The Governorate of Vatican State estimates that, if the whole edition is sold, some €150,000 ($211,424) will be collected. No picture of the stamp was available at press time.br /br /To read the entire article, a href=”http://www.zenit.org/article-28165?l=english”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-6088062673805280788?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2DgztS05XI/AAAAAAAADtg/x-XwmxH_Jaw/s1600-h/dr-peter-andrass-with-david-mcmonagle-54254933.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 261px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2DgztS05XI/AAAAAAAADtg/x-XwmxH_Jaw/s400/dr-peter-andrass-with-david-mcmonagle-54254933.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431588329545327986″ //abr /Britain’s emNeBusiness/em website reports, “Data Complexity Ltd. hopes to win a share of the multi-billion pound global stamp collecting market by supplying information to buyers and sellers using auction sites such as eBay.” br /br /Bill Shepherd from Data Complexity is quoted as saying “Using our software we can help collectors to know the true value of a particular stamp at low cost by providing real-time information on price, condition and trends in the market.br /br /“We’re not aiming at high value stamps. These will be traded by stamp dealers in offices and auction houses as they always have. Our market is the millions of stamps bought each year by small collectors at around the £5 to £20 price that have spiraled significantly with the growth of ecommerce.br /br /“Small collectors represent the vast majority of collectors but in the past the value of stamps bought has largely been set by the stamp houses selling them. We’ll change that by cutting out the middle man and helping to determine a true market rate.”br /br /The software has taken Shepherd, a former engineer turned businessman, and colleagues at Newcastle University including Dr. Peter Peter Andras three years to develop. Customers will pay a subscription or on a pay-as-they-go basis to use the service according to the piece by reporter Iain Laing.br /br /Shown above, Dr. Peter Andras and Bill Shepherd.br /br /To read the entire article, a href=”http://www.nebusiness.co.uk/business-news/latest-business-news/2010/01/27/web-stamp-collecting-could-become-big-business-for-newcastle-company-51140-25691854/”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-8813108245166772272?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

Not all stamps are born equal. There can be lots of minor quality flux that fits into printers guidelines of acceptable variation and printing conditions. In addition there are all sorts of errors, freaks and oddities (like printers waste) that ends up one way or to another to stamp collectors albums.

Print quality
A common phenomena [...]

a href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2DdbC3dlaI/AAAAAAAADtY/AOpKXIo3fE4/s1600-h/doc4b5f63592a79c394102532.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 200px; height: 220px;” src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S2DdbC3dlaI/AAAAAAAADtY/AOpKXIo3fE4/s320/doc4b5f63592a79c394102532.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431584607304521122″ //aMinnesota’s emShoreview Press/em reports Mark Stitzel entered his stamp collection in seven divisions in last year’s Minnesota State Fair Collections Taxidermy competition and wound up with eight ribbons and the grand championship trophy.br /br /According to an article by contributing writer Josh Wimmer, “The 62-year-old said he began collecting stamps when he was about 10. He was active at it throughout adolescence, but after joining the Navy, getting married and starting a family, put a moratorium on it.”br /br /”He got back into it somewhat around 1976 because of the beautiful stamps being printed in celebration of the United States’ bicentennial. But it’s really been since his retirement four years ago that he’s returned to collecting with a passion,” pens Josh.br /br /He goes on to say, “The free time that has afforded him as well as his long background in marketing were a huge help in organizing and showcasing his stamps in a way that caught the eye of judges at the state fair.”br /br /Mark is quoted as saying, “I’m sort of versed in how to display things and I like history. And stamp collecting, that’s really what it is — history.”br /br /To read the entire article, a href=”http://presspubs.com/articles/2010/01/26/shoreview_press/news/doc4b5f63592a79c394102532.txt”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-1263864217848371462?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

The a href=”http://dpsworkshop.com/2010/01/15/due-to-the-civil-war/”Digital Philatelic Workshop website/a hosts a 7-minute video by Kristin Patterson about the origins of U.S. revenue stamps…click to play.br /br /object width=”425″ height=”344″param name=”movie” value=”http://www.youtube.com/v/VKBcICTQDsgcolor1=0xb1b1b1color2=0xcfcfcfhl=en_USfeature=player_embeddedfs=1″/paramparam name=”allowFullScreen” value=”true”/paramparam name=”allowScriptAccess” value=”always”/paramembed src=”http://www.youtube.com/v/VKBcICTQDsgcolor1=0xb1b1b1color2=0xcfcfcfhl=en_USfeature=player_embeddedfs=1″ type=”application/x-shockwave-flash” allowfullscreen=”true” allowScriptAccess=”always” width=”425″ height=”344″/embed/objectdiv class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-3137427284889459567?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

Keeping on eye for the quality is something I think many collectors do. Personally I admit that I’m in constant process of enhancing the quality of items in my collection. For the next couple of posts I’ll be writing up some notes about quality in general as well as diving more in-depth into world [...]

a href=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S18M0AQLTnI/AAAAAAAADs4/etAAtCucGIA/s1600-h/6a01157147ecba970c0120a7fe713d970b-400wi.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 325px;” src=”http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S18M0AQLTnI/AAAAAAAADs4/etAAtCucGIA/s400/6a01157147ecba970c0120a7fe713d970b-400wi.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5431073763192688242″ //abr /The USPS and Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC) honored John M. Hotchner on January 21 at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum. Hotchner served the committee for twelve years, helping select topics for postage stamps and providing input on stamp designs.br /br /According to a post on the National Postal Museum blog by Cheryl R. Ganz, “Postmaster General John E. Potter, Marie Therese Dominguez, David Failor, and Terry McCaffrey of the USPS, and Jean Picker Firstenberg, CSAC Chair, expressed deep gratitude and presented Hotchner with tributes and awards. Hotchner is a member of the NPM Council of Philatelists, a past president of the American Philatelic Society, and one of the most prolific authors in the hobby of stamp collecting.”br /br /Shown above, souvenir tribute card for John Hotchner’s twelve years on CSAC created by USPS’s Terry McCaffrey.br /br /To visit the National Postal Museum blog, a href=”http://postalmuseumblog.si.edu/2010/01/usps-honors-john-hotchner.html”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-6924661101999937157?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S15FjlvZahI/AAAAAAAADso/6JsaxEg0cpQ/s1600-h/2ddf1a7c8f0144c4b9bd91978b017eb6_s.jpg”img style=”float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 180px; height: 240px;” src=”http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S15FjlvZahI/AAAAAAAADso/6JsaxEg0cpQ/s320/2ddf1a7c8f0144c4b9bd91978b017eb6_s.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430854678384044562″ //aCalifornia’s emSacramento Press/em reports organizing a stamp expo is “no small feat.” br /br /Chris Clemens has been involved with the expos for more than 20 years. He organizes and runs stamp expos in Northern California including this past weekend’s Winter Sacramento Stamp Fair. According to the write-up, “Hundreds of collectors converged on the Knights of Columbus Hall to buy stamps and trade with dealers and each other.” br /br /Chris is quoted as saying, “I actually got into all of this working for a guy who organized the shows. I took over and started doing it myself. Now, I collect and deal advertising covers. Each show, I try to have a variety of items available through different dealers. It’s difficult gathering the dealers with unique items for sale. Northern California has a big stamp-collecting following.” br /br /Well-known stamp dealer and philatelist Dave Cobb, who had many rare and expensive items for sale at the show, pointed out to reporter Matthew Ceccato, “It’s tough trying to get younger children involved. Stamp collecting can be very good for kids. It teaches them careful handling, history and goal setting and achieving by filling their stamp books.”br /br /Matthew pens, “With some stamps worth up to a million dollars, many collectors are worried about what will happen to their collections when they die.”br /br /One collector said, “I’m lucky that my son enjoys and respects the art of stamp collecting. It worries some people I know that collections will be sold at low price or neglected by their heirs.”br /br /Howard Tuner is quoted as saying, “I told my daughter and her husband to sell everything when I’m gone. They don’t collect and I want all the money to go to my granddaughter’s college fund. That’s what’s important to me.”br /br /To read the entire article, a href=”http://www.sacramentopress.com/headline/21208/Dont_lick_these_stamps”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-7352038500059116755?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div

a href=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S1yOcyYRxmI/AAAAAAAADsg/5_5GZszphPk/s1600-h/Post-office-line.jpg”img style=”display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 199px;” src=”http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_bTvISTq6I5I/S1yOcyYRxmI/AAAAAAAADsg/5_5GZszphPk/s400/Post-office-line.jpg” border=”0″ alt=”"id=”BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5430371875913057890″ //abr /According to a piece on the emFaster Times /emwebsite, “An Italian post office doesn’t just take care of so-called emprodotti postali/em (mail-related products), such as empacchi/em (parcels), emraccomandate/em (registered mail) and emtelegrammi/em (telegrams), but also deals with many different money services (servizi in denaro), just as a bank does. Because there are post offices everywhere, businesses and public utilities use them as places to collect money from millions of customers nationwide.”br /br /They go on to say, “And so Italians go to the post office to pay bills (electricity, gas, telephone), fines, the fee for public television, and the car tax, among many others. They also can pay for various services provided by offices and public agencies, such as drivers’ licenses and trash collection.br /br /”In addition to the money operations that cause most of the crowding, there are the mail services. You go to the post office to send a registered letter, a parcel (le poste also sell packaging materials), or a telegram (even if e-mails have made them nearly obsolete). If you weren’t home to receive a certified letter or a package, you need to bring the receipt that the postman left in your mailbox to le poste.br /br /In conclusion, “L’ufficio postale also sells stamps, but no one is so insane as to line up just for stamps.”br /br /To read the entire article, a href=”http://thefastertimes.com/italianlessons/2010/01/22/why-italian-post-offices-are-always-crowded/”click here/a.div class=”blogger-post-footer”img width=’1′ height=’1′ src=’https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/11420717-4090799489557814798?l=stampcollectingroundup.blogspot.com’ alt=” //div