Topical Stamps

Topical orthematic stamp collecting is the collecting of postage stamps relating to a particular subject or concept. Collecting stamps is a hobby, not an investment. And how large is it? Will it fill a station wagon? A house? We just shipped part of a large collection to Sparks Auctions in eight 30 pound boxes. The owner can expect more than $25,000 for it. This was just part of his collection.

Germany, UK, USA, Canada, France.But not Russia (high literacy, horrible economy from the czars to Putin).And not Saudi Arabia (great wealth and half the population can’t read.) They are pre-1950. More precisely the end of the British Empire. All those newly independent colonies discovered they could get hard currency by selling their postage stamps to Western collectors, and inundated the market. The day they were issued they cost most of a man’s daily wage. My usual example is Canada’s Bluenose.

●       What are stamp shows?

A stamp show is where stamp collectors or philatelists (as experienced collectors may prefer to be called) set up displays of portions of their collections (perhaps 10s, 100s, or even 1,000s of stamps from a particular country, topic, e.g.; art, architecture, animals, dolls, etc. or type, e.g.; commemoratives, air miles, officials (issued for internal governmental use), etc, stamp-like labels (not issued by postal authorities, but by individuals, organizations, companies, etc. ) often called Cinderellas, collecting supplies catalogs, albums, books) are offered for sale. While most of the attendees are already collectors; admission prices are usually free or inexpensive and shows can be eye-opening for the would-be or novice collector. You may find many of the displays quite attractive and interesting. There usually are plenty of knowledgeable people around to ask questions of and, who knows; it might prompt you to purchase a few stamps and begin your collection.

●       Why are stamps important?

 Stamps are important because they give a glimpse into what was important in a particular place at a particular time. Or at least what was considered important by those in power, or the most significant population. In Canada, they reflect on kings, queens, artwork, and social mo movements. Some of my favourite stamps are those that were released during the Olympic Games in Canada, which are both stamps and artwork. I also find it fascinating to chart the economy through stamps. Most stamps are in the penny and a fraction of penny denominations… at a time when Canada has stopped issuing penny coins because of their expense.  Today we have common stamp denominations that represent multiple dollars… which would have been almost unheard. 

●       How many stamps are there in the world?

I think there is no authentic count of stamps. I read in a book related to Published Indian Stamps Till 2012 that around 30% of the stamps which are published for the collectors end up in the collection of a collector who knows how to collect stamps properly and preserve them. So it's safe to assume around 25% of such stamps are in fairly good condition in some collectors’ collections. You can do the math and explore TrueGether, one of the bestShopify alternatives that ever existed.