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AMERICAN PHILATELIST THE

January 2021

VOLUME 135 • NO. 1 • WHOLE NO. 1,440

PAGE

A PHILATELIC QUEST FOR EVERYWHERE

BY JOHN SEIDL When presented the challenge of a “one from everywhere” collection, John Seidl stepped up to the plate – and now he has some words of advice for other collectors who wish to try their hand at such a worldwide collection.

Table of Contents

PAGE

LIECHTENSTEIN: A TALE OF ERRORS, FREAKS AND ODDITIES… AND POLITICS

BY JOHN R. SHOTLIFF John Shotliff’s philatelic journey may have begun with Liechtenstein Michel 11-16, but he quickly realized that the story of this tiny country’s early issues is anything but tiny. Follow along as Shotliff takes us through WWI and post-war Liechtenstein, its early independent stamp issues, and the amazing errors and oddities that resulted in some of the most interesting stamps in philately.

PAGE

THE ALLURE OF AMG COLLECTING

BY RICHARD PEDERSON Just a few short years, just a few countries and military zones… yet Allied Military Government (AMG) collecting has something to appeal to any collector (not to mention history buffs).

PAYING A TAX OR TAX EXEMPT

BY RON LESHER Continuing his introduction to the wide world of U.S. revenues, Ron Lesher explains the first purpose of revenues: to show that a tax has been paid or that it is exempt from taxation. Worthy of special note are revenue stamps for certificates and luxury goods, not to mention special tax stamps that measure over 36 square inches!

PAGE

3¢ OKLAHOMA STATEHOOD (SCOTT 1092)

BY CHARLES POSNER Continuing his long-running column “U.S. Commemoratives of the 1950s,” Charles Posner dives into Scott 1092, the 50-year commemorative of PAGE Oklahoma’s statehood and one of the least-popular stamp designs of 1957.

FROM HUBBLE TO HALE-BOPP AND OTHER STORIES BY KATRIN RAYNOR-EVANS One year after her debut article in the AP, Katrin Raynor-Evans is back with a astrophilatelic sequel, inspired in part by the contributions of other generous readers.

Other Features 66 72 91 75 70 81

Adventures in Expertizing APRL Notes Books & Catalogs Bridges Buy and Sell Classified Ads

2 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

6 74 12 77 68 94

Editing Philately In Touch Letters to the Editor Membership Report My Stamp Story New World Issues

18 Our Story 4 President’s Column 89 Show Time 96 Worldwide in a Nutshell

AMERICAN PHILATELIST THE

Since 1887 — The Premier Philatelic Magazine in the Nation

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF OF APS PUBLICATIONS Gary Wayne Loew, ext. 221 • Gary@stamps.org ASSOCIATE EDITOR Susanna Mills, ext. 207 • smills@stamps.org GRAPHIC COMMUNICATION SPECIALIST Chad Cowder, ext. 223 • CCowder@stamps.org ADVERTISING SALES Steve Schwanz Fox Associates, Inc. 800-440-0231 adinfo.theamericanphilatelist@foxrep.com

American Philatelic Society American Philatelic Research Library 100 Match Factory Place • Bellefonte, PA 16823 814-933-3803 • 814-933-6128 (Fax) STAMPS.ORG • STAMPLIBRARY.ORG EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR Scott English, ext. 219 • scott@stamps.org DIRECTOR OF MEMBERSHIP Wendy Masorti, ext 218 • wendy@stamps.org CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER Jeff Krantweiss, ext. 216 jkrantweiss@stamps.org GENERAL INFORMATION apsinfo@stamps.org ADDRESS CHANGES & MEMBERSHIP INQUIRIES requests@stamps.org, ext. 201 DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION/YOUTH Cathy Brachbill, ext. 239 cbrachbill@stamps.org DIRECTOR OF EXPERTIZING Ken Martin, ext. 205 kpmartin@stamps.org DIRECTOR OF INFORMATION SERVICES Scott Tiffney, ext. 246 stiffney@stamps.org DIRECTOR OF SALES Carol Hoffman, ext. 270 stampstore@stamps.org COMMUNITY-GRASSROOTS SPECIALIST Heidi Lauckhardt-Rhoades, ext. 222 heidi@stamps.org SHOWS/EXHIBITIONS Morgan Stinson, ext. 217 stampshow@stamps.org SHOW TIME LISTINGS showtime@stamps.org The American Philatelist (ISSN 0003-0473) is published monthly by the American Philatelic Society, Inc., 100 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, PA 16823. Periodicals postage paid at Bellefonte, PA 16823 and at additional mailing office. Price per copy $6.95. Canadian Distribution Agreement Number 40030959. Opinions expressed in articles in this magazine are those of the writers and are not necessarily endorsed by the society and/or the magazine. The American Philatelist cannot be responsible for the accuracy of any information printed herein. Postmaster: Send address changes to: The American Philatelist 100 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, PA 16823. ©2020, The American Philatelic Society, Inc. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 3

President’s Column BY Robert Zeigler President RZeigler@zcklaw.com

Don’t Resist the Urge to Specialize

ome brave collectors still try to collect the world – and as you’ll see in this issue, the definition of “collecting the world” can vary depending on who you talk to. But if your goal is a complete world collection, you’ve probably found that the volume and cost of new issues is such that a very high budget is needed just to keep up. The temptation is extremely strong to draw the line somewhere, whether in time (1940 is a popular stopping point) or by singling out a continent (easy enough if you choose “Antarctica”!), or, more likely, a country. If you decide on a country, well – it is very likely that you will become a specialist. Often, you arrive at specialization in easy stages.

Switzerland Scott B11

You try at the beginning to collect every stamp that happens to fall into your hands. But then – the urge to complete arises, and you begin to appreciate the inherent conflict between the breadth of what you have desired to collect and the limits imposed by time and expense. Specialization represents a compromise; you narrow your Switzerland 333 focus to what you think you can handle. But as you focus on something less broad, the true depths of collecting any major country becomes ever more apparent. Even the “narrowed” focus is just the tip of the iceberg. In my own case, I started by collecting United States and Europe. As time went by, I passed through ever more narrow phases, dropping the pursuit of one country after another. The United States was an early casualty as I real4 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

ized that I could not possibly do justice to my native land because it is so vast and varied, and also because so many of our American collectors are such experts in the area. I could spend the rest of my life, not to mention my money, trying to catch up. True, if I had been a little more discerning, I could have been careful to select some more limited area within the United States, maybe a single state, a city or a county. Instead, after passing through an intermediate phase that included Scandinavia and Australia, I decided to pursue Switzerland. Why? It is fairly small, has a rich history, has three major languages (German, French and Italian), plus a minor language derived from Latin and only spoken in a small portion of the country, and has a great stamp-issuing heritage and an enthusiastic following of collectors, both at home and elsewhere. I found it especially interesting because of its neutrality during the two great wars of the twentieth century.

So I ended up with one country, and a rather small one at that! But I have not regretted my choice. So went my journey into specialization. Everyone has a different journey – and there is no harm in choosing to remain a worldwide collector! There is a mutual respect among collectors no matter what they have chosen, because everyone is affected by the urge to collect, no matter how differently that urge might strike. The drive to collect and bring order to your collection is a hallmark of an inquiring mind. Happy New Year and happy collecting!

Keeeher & Rogee, Ltd. Fine Asian Auctions presents

Two Special and Profoundly Serious China Auctions at our Danbury, CT Galleries in February 2021

very now and again, a truly special collection from long-ago resurfaces to capture the imagination and rekindle the collecting passions of days gone by. Such is the case of the remarkable “Legend of the Dragon” collection. As the name would suggest, the overriding emphasis of this stellar collection is based around the iconic Large Dragon issues of the Ching Dynasty. The collection, which has not seen the light of day in well over a generation, begins with a splendid array of the Large Dragon first issues proper, featuring sheets and blocks of the 1878 thin paper issues—in addition to a multitude of select quality mint sets for the 1878 issue, as well as representation of the 1882 Wide Margin and 1883 thick paper printings. Not to be outdone, the 1885 and 1888 Second Customs Small Dragon Issues feature wonderful coverage, include panes, dual panes, a superb showing of mint blocks of 4, rare imperforate proofs, in addition to lovely Small Dragon surcharges, which feature numerous sets of blocks of the Small Figure issues, in addition to a lovely and rare set of blocks of 4 of the Large Figure surcharges. Perhaps the most fascinating portion of the ample Small Dragon section are the nearly dozen lots of the elusive Laurence Gibson or started in “Taiwan Postage Stamp” “Formosa” issues, which feature the stamp business multiples, varieties etc. professionally in the early Following the Customs 1980s with Earl P.L. Issues is a specialized section of Laurence the 1894-1897Apfelbaum. Empress Dowager Issues including a rare, became Far Eastern complete set ofspecialist, First and Printing heavily Large Mother Die Proofs in the AsianBlack Second print proofs of in addition to involved outstanding Philatelic market. Laurence re-drawn designs, exquisite “cigarette” paper proofs, Second oversaw many important Owner”paper sales andetc. A wonderful study of the print proofs on“One white brokered the famous “Sun” 9ca tete-bechecollection pairs are noted, of Red Revenuesincluding a lovely block of 4,

for $2.5 million to a collector. Other notable single owner collections that Gibson has worked with include The Lois Evans Exhibition Collection, The “Knight” Sale of Select Rarities from China, The Fred Freilicher Collection of Hong Kong, The Michael Eugene Ruggiero Collection of Classic Japan, The Bruce Lee Memorabilia Collection, The Lee Yuen Wong Collection of China and The Dr. Steven J. Berlin Collection of Karl Lewis Covers. His experience and knowledge in the industry sets him apart in the philatelic market place.

as well as examples of all six types. Impressive surcharges also. A powerful section of the 1897 Red Revenue issue is included, highlighted by select quality examples of the Small 4c surcharge as well as the $5 value. Perhaps the most extraordinary portion of this legendary collection lies in the remarkable assembly dedicated to the incomparably diverse and wide ranging 1897-1914 postal history of the Coiling Dragon issues. Within the approximately 110 individual lots, we will find some of the finest sections of Large & Small Dollar Chops, Pa-kua cancels, Sun & Moon chops, Tomb stone cancels and Railway postmarks ever offered in one place. The usages and varieties of this issue, in addition to the enormous range of postmarks, designate these issues as some of the most significant in Chinese postal history. The second portion of the Kelleher & Rogers lineup features issues of the Peoples Republic of China formed by a lady presently residing in New York City. In addition to a fine offering of scarce issues, we often find duplicated offerings of the ever-popular miniature sheets, along with full sheets of select issues etc. The collection was formed contemporaneously to the time of issue, and includes five positional blocks of four of the 1981 Monkey New Year issue, imperforate, marginal In 1996, David Coogle co-founded, with Andrew Mei Lan-tang issues, and a choice block of 4 of the second Levitt, the Nutmeg Stamp Military Stamp issue. Sales mail auction firm. In Greg Manning Without any doubt, this K&R fabulous February2004, Public purchased the Nutmeg bran Auction is of such pre-eminent importance that it will andclearly later merged the H.R. Harmer and Nutmeg set the pace for China philately in 2021. Send for your free companies, positioning Dav catalog today. as President. During this All inquiries for these two sales should be directedperiod, to John Bull Stamp Auctions (amongst other Laurence Gibson at Kelleher’s Danbury offices. firms) were acquired by the

Buy • Sell • Consign

stamps@kelleherasia.com • www.kelleherasia.com USA Office: Daniel F. Kelleher Auctions 22 Shelter Rock Ln., Unit 53, Danbury CT 06810 T: +1.203.830.2500 F: 203.297.6059

Buy • Sell • Consign

Manning firm and under the Philatelic Divisions Management Team which included David. He began calling auctions in Hong Kong for the newly founded Dynasty Auctions Company, Ltd., with his friend and business Partner Laurence Gibson as co-owners and enjoys being an owner Director and Auctioneer at Kelleher & Rogers, Ltd.

Editing Philately BY Gary Wayne Loew Editor-in-Chief of APS Publications gary@stamps.org

A Journey Around-the-Philatelic-World More, more, and still more…

Since I began writing this column several months ago, I have ended by reminding APS members that this is your American Philatelist. I’ve encouraged you to write and let us know what you like and don’t like about the AP. And many of you have done just that. I learned that you want more articles about stamps and more articles about postal history. You want more articles about U.S. stamps and more articles about foreign stamps. You want more in-depth articles and more articles for beginners. The ambitious full-year editorial calendar we introduced was well received by all who wrote. About half of the members liked the idea of the special issues and half did not like the idea. So this month, you are all going to get what you wanted! Welcome to January’s “Wide World of Stamp Collecting: a potpourri of collecting topics.” To achieve that, we start with an article on collecting the world. We will be visiting the United States, of course, examining a single commemorative stamp of the 1950s and an entire genre of stamps (revenues). We will visit the Principality of Liechtenstein and explore collecting Allied Military Government stamps. And, because planet Earth is not big enough for stamp collectors, we will visit the Hubble Space Telescope, Hale-Bopp and (almost) to the universe and beyond – philatelically speaking, that is.

In this issue

Many of us began collecting with an enormous scope – perhaps you were given a worldwide stamp album as a child, or perhaps you began by collecting every stamp that fell into your hands. No matter where you take your collection next, this issue is proof that there is no wrong way to collect. APS President Bob Zeigler gives some advice for the collector who prefers to specialize, but we also find that “collecting the world” can be very rewarding. John Seidl offers his thoughts on different ways to specialize in worldwide stamp collecting. John has been participating in and giving back to the hobby for many years. One of the ways that he gives back is by serving as the president of the International Society of Worldwide Stamp Collectors (www.iswsc.org). Check out their interesting website. From collecting the world, we shift focus to the opposite extreme. Liechtenstein is the sixth-smallest independent nation in the world, but its philately will support as deep a dive as any specialist could wish for. To prove that, author John R. Shotliff tells “A Tale of Errors, Freaks and Oddities… and Politics.”

CALL FOR WRITERS

The American Philatelist depends on our members, who provide much of the content of this magazine. I’d like to encourage more members to join our roster of philatelic writers. If you have an idea, please send your article idea, an outline and a brief description of what would make it interesting to our audience. Send your proposal by email to aparticle@stamps.org or mail to The American Philatelist, c/o Article Submission, 100 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, PA 16823. 6 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

APS Official Family

2019–2022

PRESIDENT Robert Zeigler rzeigler@zcklaw.com BOARD OF VICE PRESIDENTS Cheryl Ganz cherylganz@yahoo.com Patricia (Trish) Kaufmann trishkauf@comcast.net Jeff Shapiro dirtyoldcovers@aol.com SECRETARY Stephen Schumann stephen.schumann@att.net TREASURER Bruce Marsden mail@brucemarsden.com DIRECTORS-AT-LARGE Michael Bloom mbloom@sinotech.com Rich Drews richbear427@hotmail.com Peter P. McCann ppm103226706@aol.com Mark Schwartz mark.schwartz1@verizon.net IMMEDIATE PAST PRESIDENT Stephen Reinhard sreinhard1@optonline.net STAMP THEFT COMMITTEE Nicholas A. Lombardi P.O. Box 1005 Mountainside, NJ 07092 stamptheft@stamps.org APS INSURANCE PLAN Hugh Wood Inc., 220 Match Factory Place Bellefonte, PA 16823 Toll Free: 888-APS-6494 Phone: 212-509-3777 Fax: 212-509-4906 aps@hughwood.com

ADDRESS CHANGES To change your address online visit stamps.org and log into your My APS account. Or mail your new address information to APS, 100 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, PA 16823 (Fax: 814-933-6128). Please try to give us four weeks’ notice. You can also add an e-mail address or website to your APS record.

CONNECT ONLINE

APS-7.qxp_APS 06.05.20 14:30 Seite 1

If you have interests that transcend national boundaries, there are many ways to philatelically satisfy those interests. For example, let me quote from Richard Pederson’s intriguing article, “The Allure of AMG Collecting”: “The Allied Military Government (AMG) specialty… has something for everyone, spanning multiple geographic and political states, several languages, changes in government and administration, and a rich historical situation – over the course of just a few years.” Pederson is editor of the A.M.G. Courier, the journal of The Allied Military Government Collectors’ Club (www. AMGcollectors.org). If going cross-border or collecting the whole world isn’t expansive enough for you, then perhaps the realm of astrophilately will slake your philatelic questing. When Katrin Raynor-Evans appeared in these pages exactly one year ago (“A Stamp on the Universe”) her article resonated with APS members. Many sent her astrophilatelic artifacts that they thought she might enjoy. In this issue, she shares her adventures in learning about new off-planet philatelic subjects. This is yet another rocket-propelled article from Katrin. I am sure you will enjoy the ride. Ron Lesher returns with the second installment in his column “The Collector of Revenue.” “Paying a Tax or Tax Exempt” shows us how a revenue stamp might verify that a tax has been paid or might confirm that no tax is due. The world of revenue stamps tells us so much about how governments achieved their fiscal requirements through diverse means of taxation. The subject may appear specialized, but it broaches vast swathes of society. Longtime contributor Charles Posner resumes his journey through the meaningful commemoratives of the 1950s. This time he settles on the year 1957 and the stamp commemorating the 50th anniversary of Oklahoma Statehood. This is a tale of postage, politics, and design planning. There is a lot to be learned about the creation of this 3¢ stamp.

Your areas of interest can be saved, and you receive notifications for newly listed items.

Helping APS members to learn more

One thing that all collectors appear to have in common is an endless quest to learn more about the stamps they collect or are considering collecting. We – and the APRL staff – frequently get inquiries about the topics that appeared in the prior month’s AP. So, beginning this month, many of the articles will end with a new feature, a sidebar titled “For Further Reading.” The talented researchers on the APRL staff will recommend books, articles, websites, presentations from the APS YouTube channel, and perhaps courses available on our C3a educational archive. APS members can borrow books and obtain copies of articles, as well as sign up for C3a courses.

Helping APS members find stamp dealers

One observation that I made earlier struck a favorable note with many readers. You appreciate our new attention to balanced focus between content to help you be better collectors while simultaneously enabling you to more readily locate

www. philasearch.com Ad 7 of 7 JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 7

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The New Year 2021 Rings in With Philatelic Good Cheer and Unprecedented Offerings...

Above: The covers for the huge catalogs of public auctions (Our Nos. 745 and 750) Parts I and II of the Stock and Private Holdings of the late William S., Langs. More major auctions of the Langs properties are forthcoming.

January 2021:

William Langs Part 3: United States Essays, Proofs and Trial Colors Including Revenues and Private Die Proprietary Issues. An important sale not to be missed. William Langs Part 4: EFOs, The most comprehensive Holding of Errors EVER to be offered at Public Auction Flagship Sale of United States & Possessions, British & Worldwide Stamps and Postal History—Features include selections from the following collections: Allen Fink, Proprietor of Philatex • Allenwood Investment Holdings Leo Malz further offerings including Yemen Brian McGrath Extensive Collection and Stock • “Bradstreet” Worldwide Collection • Stanley Richmond—His personal collection Plus many other consignors’ material

January – April 2021:

William Langs Part 5 and Beyond: More Postal History, FDCs, Airmail Flights, Singles, Plate Blocks, Sheets, Coils, Possessions

The Oldest Continually Operated Philatelic Auction House in the United States of America

Kelleher’s

As usual, Multiple Spectacular Auctions from America’s Oldest Philatelic Auction House:

Some examples of the 1,712 lots in Part II of the public auction held on Dec. 8-11 of the William S. Langs holdings.

February 2021:

Aero-Philatelists and Astro-Philatelists alike will be pleased with a separate catalog Featuring: “Caruso” Collection of Aerophilately, Early Pioneer through Zeppelin Flights Leo Malz Collections of Rocket Mail and Astro Philately

March 2021:

An immense Collections, Stocks and Accumulations of the World Sale which will begin to unveil the true depth and value of the Langs private holding, along with material from the above consignors and many others.

Also Beginning in January:

Weekly Internet Sales to include Portions from the immense stock and private holdings of the late William S. Langs. With sales closing each Sunday evening at 9PM there will be something for everyone!

Daniel F. Kelleher Auctions

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stamp dealers who can match your individual collecting needs. Coming in the March issue, we will be introducing a sidebar accompanying many of our articles: “Where To Buy.” At the end of these articles, we will list the AP advertisers that offer philatelic material related to the contents of the article. These brief citations will key to dealers’ websites as well as their display ads throughout the AP. We want to make it easy to grow from knowledgeable collectors to informed buyers.

1847–1945

Quality U.S. Stamps Singles (mint and used), Plate Blocks, Booklet Panes plus Complete Booklets, Price lists $2 each category or free online. We also buy quality U.S. & foreign stamps.

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More, More, And Still More (Redux)

The messages you sent to us all had one thing in common: AP readers want more. More articles. More access to the right dealers for you. When you contact a stamp dealer or philatelic auction house, please tell them that you saw their ad in The American Philatelist. *** I have said this before: if you wish to see a perpetuallyimproving American Philatelist, you – our readers and APS members – must become a part of this exciting journey. Reach out to me with your questions, concerns, and suggestions. Contact us to write for the AP. More importantly, volunteer to participate. This is your American Philatelist. My email is Gary@stamps.org.

GUERNSEY STAMPS AND COLLECTABLES

Available with all issues: First Day Covers and Presentation Packs.

New Issues: 21 July 2020

Guernsey Stamps

@guernseystamps

10 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Order Guernsey & Alderney stamps online or by tel: +44 (0) 1481 716486 email: philatelic@guernseypost.com

Full Philatelic product range available on our website

ISSUE DATE 21.7.20 PRE - ORDER 7.7.20

On November 8, 1920, a small, furry brown bear wearing a scarf, sweater and checked trousers was sent off to the shops by his mother for some provisions. Unfortunately, he got lost on the way, but 100 years on, Rupert Bear continues to captivate audiences around the world. We are delighted to celebrate the centenary of this most loveable character with our special issue stamps and miniature sheet.

Bill the Badger

Collect

100 YEARS OF

Supermarine Spitfire & Hawker Hurricane

AIN LE OF BRIT RY BATT ANNIVERSA

Rupert Bear

Searching for enemy aircraft

68 ALDERNEY

100 YEARS OF

50 ALDERNEY

80 BATT A NLE N I VOF E RBR S A ITAIN

Rupert Bear

80TH

100 YEARS OF

80th Anniversary of the Battle of Britain OF BRITAIN BATTLE ANNIVERSARY

85 Guernsey

Guernsey

£1.02

Stamps

Guernsey

100th Anniversary of Rupert Bear

85 ALDERNEY

Heinkel He 111 bomber under fire

The Battle of Britain took place between 10th July and 31st October 1940, Nazi Germany’s failure to destroy Britain’s air defences or force Britain to negotiate an armistice was one of the crucial turning points in the war. This emotive issue comes with an informative prestige booklet.

www.guernseystamps.com

Letters to the Editor lettertotheeditor@stamps.org

Oh Pongal I was both surprised and delighted to read Dhatri Iyer’s article “Oh Pongal: Celebrate the Pongal Festival With Us” in the December AP. I really enjoyed reading about this festival and love Dhatri’s enthusiasm and willingness to share her culture and traditions. And to think, she was inspired by an FDC! The future of philately is in young people like Dhatri. I am a huge fan of Indian food and Indian festivities, having studied Indian cuisines and cultures for over 30 years. I am fortunate to live in a town with a large Indian population and excellent markets so I will be putting the Pongal dates on my calendar and preparing some traditional, festive foods. I am very inspired by Dhatri’s article and enjoyed seeing the FDC. I sincerely hope to see more articles from this enthusiastic young lady. Vanakkamm Dhatri! I also hope to see articles about other cultures and their traditions as seen on stamps and philatelic items. Such a fun way to learn about our friends and neighbors. (P.S. Vanakkam is a Tamil word used in greeting as a sign of respect - similar to Namaste in Hindi.) Marion Rollings, PhD Hillsborough, NJ

Practical applications of stamp collecting My father bought me a small paperback album when I was around 10 years old and this began a lifetime learning experience. I was working on a degree in Criminal Justice and needed to take an elective. Friends suggested that I take a course called “The Economic Development of the People’s Republic of China.” Taught by an Emeritus Professor, the course was used as a learning process using China’s economy as the subject. There were 13 of us taking the course, 12 of which were MBA candidates. Made me feel out of place. During the first class the professor began talking about Sri Lanka. After about five minutes it became obvious that none of the other students had any idea what or where Sri Lanka was. He asked if anyone knew anything about this country. I was the only one to raise a hand. I told him about the island, its name change from Ceylon, its location and its products. I talked for about five minutes and got a lot of nasty stares form my fellow students. During the first break I was grilled by the others who were annoyed that an outsider had shown them up. The reason I remembered Sri Lanka was because one of the first sets of stamps my father gave me was a set of florals from this 12 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

country. How could I ever forget the beauty of the stamps and how could I forget that each stamp was printed twice? – once in their native language and then in English. These stamps still have an honored place in my collection. I prefer stamps that were purchased by someone, put on an envelope or package, and mailed. The person who received the stamp saved it and passed it on. One can only imagine the journey each stamp has taken. It has a history that can only be imagined. By the way, I was one of the few students in the class to get an “A” at the end of the semester. David L. Shoemaker Fogelsville, PA

Santa to the rescue I grew up in the suburbs of Washington DC, in the 1940s and 50s and even though I have long ago become a Texan, I still have a lot of family and friends on the East Coast. Some years ago, I was visiting the area when I picked up a copy of the Washington Post newspaper. While idly reading, I noticed a full page listing of people with unclaimed property in the State of Maryland. As one is wont to do, I skimmed the list for my name, not really expecting to see it. But there it was - “TERMINI, BENEDICT, WEST VIRGINIA AVE.” - my name and the street I had lived on when I was a child in Bethesda, Maryland. I had not lived at that address since the early 1950s when our rapidly growing family had moved to a larger house. I could not believe that there was unclaimed property in my name, now held by the State of Maryland, dating from my childhood, over half a century ago.

I called the telephone number listed in the notice and spoke with an employee of the State Comptroller’s office. She said there was indeed a nice sum of money (over $400) in their unclaimed property fund with my name on it, although she did not have any idea where it came from. She said all I had to do was go online, download the appropriate form from their website and send it in with a copy of my driver’s license. I did so. But I had not reckoned with the obstacles of government bureaucracy. Six weeks later I received a response stating that in order for them to send me a check I would have to document that I had lived at the specified address on West Virginia Avenue. This was easier said than done. My parents were deceased, and I had only lived at that address as a small child. How do you go about proving where you lived when you were five years old? After a thorough search I located some of my report cards from grade school. Alas, they only listed my name and age, and helpful comments like, “Could do much better.” But while searching for my report cards, I came across a letter to Santa Claus that I had written, with the help of my father, in 1947. At the age of four, I sat on my father’s knee while he carefully wrote out my letter to Santa, listing all the presents I wanted for Christmas – a sail boat, toy trucks, a bag of candy, and others. I have no idea how the pair of size 11 slippers got on the list. I found the letter with my father’s papers after his death - he had saved it all his life. And yes - it did give an address, on West Virginia Avenue, for Santa to deliver my presents. It even had a couple of torn 1947 Christmas seals at the top. I copied the letter and sent it to the State Comptroller’s office with an explanation and the comment that, “If you can’t trust Santa Claus, who can you trust.” Three weeks later I received my check. Benedict (Benny) Termini Fort Worth, TX

Fancy cancels and fancy revenue stamps I have thoroughly enjoyed every issue of The American Philatelist since re-joining the APS a number of years ago, but the November 2020 issue was spectacular in my humble opinion! I especially want to thank you, and Nick Kirke, for the very educational article on “New York Foreign Mail Cancels on the Large Bank Note Issues, 1870-75.” I had run across “foreign mail cancels” terminology before and had made a mental note to do some research on exactly what that entailed, so this article, in all its detail and examples, was extremely interesting and informative. Very useful is the “Further Reading” section at the end. I can’t wait for Mr. Kirke’s Part Two! The next article that impressed me was the very next article, “Revenues and Who Authorized Them,” part of a new “The Collector of Revenue” series, by Ron Lesher. A relatively new area of collecting for me, so there was much new info in the article. I especially appreciate the portion dealing with the plethora of nonpaper revenue materials. Who knew? Certainly not me! Very much looking forward to this series!

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Thank you, again, and keep up the excellent work! Vincent Cox Greensboro, GA

Pandemic philately

The cover shown depicts a new German cancel on the topic of the coronavirus, from Briefzentrum 30 (Postal Center 30), which serves the Hannover area. It reads: “Gemeinsam gegen Corona” (together against corona) and “sich selbst und andere schutzen” (protect yourselves and others) with a heart formed by two arms hugging-from a distance. The stamp is a 110 Eurocent value from the flower series and pays the standard letter rate to the US from Germany. It is an interesting postal sign of the times. Ken Gilbert Columbus, OH (Editor’s note: Many nations have issued stamps or cancellations about the COVID-19 pandemic. The American Philatelist will be publishing information on this philatelic topic in coming months.)

as close as I dared to where they began their investigation – I wanted to know how two Doctors of Philately went about diagnosing a patient. As I watched, Mortimer picked up the stamp in his fingers – no tongs – and placed it on the bottom of an overturned black-glass ashtray that happened to be handy. He then poured some watermark-detecting fluid over the stamp. At that point the real analyzing began. Sad to say, thirty-plus years later, I don’t remember the stamp or what the prognosis was. I suppose Mr. Neinken washed his hands before coming into the offices – I know he didn’t do so while I was there. At first I was appalled, remembering the things I was taught along the same lines as Mr. Korr’s Dad taught him. But I later became more philosophical about it and accepted that Mortimer and Herb had a lot more experience in these matters than I and for them it was “no big deal.” But I have not abandoned my lessons and, while on very rare occasions I will handle a stamp with my fingers, my tongs are a part of my hands. Michael A. Rainer Huntington Beach, CA

The challenges of publishing a stamp magazine

Memories for the tongs…

After reading the spate of letters in the December issue of The American Philatelist commenting on FDR’s lack of tongs when handling a stamp, particularly that of Mr. Fred Korr, I recalled an event that I was lucky to observe. I had an occasion to be in New York on a day in April in the early 1980s. I had a morning to kill so I decided to visit the offices of the Philatelic Foundation whose expertizing services I had used several times. While I was scanning their bookshelves, Mortimer Neinken (Chairman of the Foundation at the time, I believe) strode in. He announced that he was there to look at a stamp that had been submitted for expertizing. It was not too many minutes later when Mr. Herb Bloch (lot describer for the H. R. Harmer auction of FDR’s stamp collection) arrived for the same reason. After some casual banter, Mr. Neinken retrieved the patient and began to huddle with Mr. Bloch. Call me “nosy” but I sidled 14 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Today, November 16, 2020, my wife came in with the mail and said “you got another stamp magazine.” I could not figure out which one it would be because none were due. Much to my surprise, it turns out it was the October issue of The American Philatelist. It was a little rumpled but other than that it was ok. A comment on the November issue. Two long main articles on esoteric subjects did not catch my attention. The magazine needs more variety and shorter articles to serve a larger audience. The same thing seems to be happening to the American Stamp Dealers Association magazine. The last one had two long articles on CSA material. Not my cup of tea. Bob Marousky Ocean Springs, MS

Do not throw away stamps

Recently a widow whose husband had recently passed contacted me to tell me to remove his name from my mailing list. When I asked her about her husband’s specialty stamp collection, she told me a dealer had come by, purchased the other stamps and told her the specialty collection was worthless and to throw those stamps away. This she had done. Thirty years ago, he had shown me a small portion of his specialty collection and I would have gladly paid her $300 just for that portion. Please do not tell someone a collection is worthless. Please do not throw stamps away just because they are of no interest to you. If you do not want them, donate them. A good place which I recommend is “Stamps for the Wound-

ed” P.O. Box 297 Dunn Landing, VA 22027. This is part of the Stamps for Wounded Veterans program whose mailings most of us have received. David W. Smith Trumansburg, NY

Crypto confusion

The “New World Issues” column on page 1138 (Dec 2020) noted the June 2020 “Crypto” issue from the Austrian Post Office. The United Nations (Nov. 24, 2020) also released a set of Crypto currency postage stamps. You can read details at the UN website: https://crypto.unstamps. org/ Likely, most APS members are not familiar with crypto currency issues, yet alone what “Blockchain” means or how it works. When I copied the text “cryptocurrency” and “blockchain” from the UN website’s description of the stamps, Microsoft’s hotmail email service rejected that email, which I sent 3 times to 3 different email addresses of friends with whom I regularly correspond. Clearly there must be something problematic about those words, although the Yahoo. com email system does not block emails with these “darned, problematic” words. I have no computer expertise, but one of the purposes of encryption programs, especially as it relates to allowing secure transmission of information from banks, is to allow the consumer to do ATM transactions. The use of 27 digit random-number generators, which are not kept or tracked, allows such secure transactions. Similarly, the “attraction” of Bitcoin transactions is that they are secure and not traceable. Can someone kindly explain WHY (or how) this crypto postage is of any value to anybody, especially if there is no way to track it – and thus confirm delivery of, for example, money sent? Fred Korr Oakland, CA

A message of mutual support

Many years ago, forty or more, my wife and I began to save stamps from the mail we received. During that same time, we were raising our four teenage children. We had a couple of starter stamp albums, but they were not generally

Errata NOVEMBER

Page 1048. The heading for the “Taiwan Can Help” stamp should be “Republic of China (Taiwan).”

DECEMBER

Page 1091. The correct date in the Figure 4 caption is 1919. Page 1104. The image described as the reverse of the Figure 17 cover is incorrect. Page 1134. The 2020 Kwanzaa stamp is the 14th Kwanzaa stamp to be issued and the eighth unique design.

used. But we kept the stamps, and in fact my wife found a couple of world stamp albums at a local place that bought and sold articles from estates. She also found envelopes with stamps from countries around the world. In March 2020, when we were told to stay home because of the pandemic and COVID-19, I decided it was time to explore stamp collecting again, this time in earnest. I purchased Mystic’s 3 Volume American Heirloom Album, and began to educate myself about the many aspects of stamp collecting. I went online, discovered the American Philatelic Society, and promptly joined when I discovered they have a wealth of educational information for stamp collecting. I also quickly learned how helpful Mystic’s Guide to Stamp Collecting, particularly “Stamp Collecting Thoughts from Don Sundman” which states: “Stamps, like tiny mirrors, reflect what we as Americans feel is important. The people, places, and events that have shaped us and our society, as well as those of the world beyond our borders, and highlighted on postage stamps.” Here are some of my favorite United States stamps that I discovered and which I believe reflect what was once important, and still is important today: 1956 Children’s Stamp (Scott 1085) - Friendship - the Key to World Peace. 1960 World Refugee Year (Scott 1149) - Family Walking Towards New Life

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

We encourage readers to send their comments, questions and feedback to The American Philatelist. Submission of a letter implies consent to publish, unless specifically prohibited by the sender. The decision of whether to publish is made by the editorial staff of The American Philatelist. Generally, letters will be published unless determined to be offensive, disrespectful, libelous, slanderous or not chiefly related to the stamp hobby. The opinions expressed in a Letter to the Editor are those of the author and not The American Philatelist. We do not publish or accept requests for the publication of anonymous letters. To allow more Letters to the Editor, you are respectfully requested to limit submissions to 500 words or less. If your submission is longer, the editorial team will ask you to resubmit a shorter version, or provide you a copy of an edited version to review prior to publication. Submit your letters to letterstotheeditor@stamps.org or mail a typewritten copy to: Letter to the Editor, The American Philatelist, 100 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, PA 16823.

JANAURY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 15

1962 World United Against Malaria (Scott 1194) – This stamp publicized the Malaria eradication drive of the World Health Organization. 1993 AIDS Awareness (Scott 2806) reflects compassion for those suffering from complications caused by AIDS. These four are an exceedingly small sample of the many wonderful stamps that reflect positive important themes reflected on stamps. In this fast paced world we live in, with cell phones, e-mail and social media it seems that some of the more important and simple messages from stamps get lost. The past months have been a learning experience for me. Now I am starting to delve into the stamps from around the world that we have collected over the years. Having begun with United States stamps and having the benefit of Mystic’s 2020 U.S. Stamp Catalog, I thought collecting and placing world stamps would be straight forward. I subsequently learned that there is no similar free catalog for world stamps.

Find the rare gem among more than 80 million collectibles!

And I also discovered that my world stamp albums do not, could not, have pictures and places for all the stamps from each country. I’m still learning. People from all around the world are going through this terrible time dealing with COVID-19. Can we all share a message of mutual support, respect, and love for all our sisters and brothers regardless of race, creed or color? That is what I believe is most important! For example, would it be possible for a new stamp to be designed for the World United Against COVID-19 with a picture of a person wearing a face mask? Or a stamp that says, “Stay strong, we’ll get through this together!” Happy Collecting! Deacon Alfred R. Manzella Slingerlands, NY

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Our Story BY Scott English Executive Director scott@stamps.org

A Remarkable Step for Civil War Philately

November, the Confederate Stamp Alliance’s this young man, fueled by anger and brandishing the Conmembership voted overwhelmingly to change federate flag as a symbol of pride, believed he would start a its name to the Civil War Philatelic Society. race war, 150 years after the end of the Civil War. The South With 365 total votes cast, 310 supported the move while 55 Carolina legislature voted to remove the flag from the State members opposed it. Beginning in 2021, the quarterly jourHouse grounds later that year. nal for the Society will become the Civil War Philatelist. It was then the first effort to change the name of the SoWhen the CWPS Board proposed the name change, they ciety began and failed. APS Vice President Trish Kaufmann, recognized the reality of where we are today. Among the who has served the Society in various capacities, including reasons were national efforts to remove Confederate statues, President and editor of the journal, was one of the outspocollections losing value, a loss of advertisers for the journal, ken leaders to the change. Over time, she’s remained an adand even difficulty booking hotels. It rightly noted the word vocate, and in November, her efforts and those of countless Confederate “equates to pro-slavery and others accomplished that goal. racism to most citizens.” For me, I didn’t support the change For full disclosure, I’ve been a membecause of hotel reservations, advertisber of the Society since 2017, and I voted ing, or even my dear friend, Clem, but in favor of the name change. Though rather because I thought it was the right I’m hardly a high-level philatelist in any thing to do. History needs perspective subject, I am a historian. In college, I foand focusing on one aspect of the Civil cused on the landscape of the Civil War War, rather than the whole story, fails to and Reconstruction through every lens teach. Stamp collectors are some of the possible. It is an important subject to unmost important historians because we derstand, given the nation continues to preserve the direct connections between struggle with the War and its aftermath. people and tell their stories. By transitioning to the CWPS, the Society opens We cannot deny the Confederacy’s the door to collectors of Union philacause has been hijacked by those who telic material and postal history from want hate to keep the nation as divided the same era. We know the War divided as it was then. We should not deny what Scott 77 15¢ Abraham Lincoln families, but in some ways, the country the Confederacy represents to many felremained intertwined. low Americans. We also know that philately should be apolitical. Though When I joined the South Carolina Governor’s staff in politics invade too many corners of our world today, phi2003, the State had just voted to remove the Confederate flag lately is a welcome escape for most of us. In time, politics from flying over the Capitol Dome. The flag was relocated to would have found its way to the CWPS, gradually eroding the State House grounds by the Confederate Veterans Meits membership and relevance. We do not need to celebrate morial. Throughout my time in the Governor’s Office, differthe Confederacy’s cause, but we need to understand it and ent groups lobbied to remove the flag altogether, while othhand those lessons to the next generation and on. As George ers wanted to restore it to the Dome. Though I had hoped we Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are could restart the discussion of full removal, but other crises condemned to repeat it.” got in the way. I learned to regret that we didn’t at least try. On the occasion of his second inaugural address to the On June 17, 2015, a young white man walked into a bible nation, our 16th President, Abraham Lincoln, offered these study at the Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, words: SC. He sat through the study before murdering nine people, including the minister and state senator Clementa Pinck“With malice toward none, with charity for all, ney, whom I’d come to know as a friend. We would learn with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the 18 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in, to bind up the nation’s wounds, to care for him who shall have borne the battle and for his widow and his orphan, to do all which may achieve and cherish a just and lasting peace among ourselves and with all nations.” Lincoln delivered those words on March 4, 1865. The timing of his comments is remarkable. In February, he had signed the Joint Resolution to send to the states the 13th amendment for ratification, which outlawed slavery in the U.S. Constitution. In April, he was assassinated, and in May, the War ended. When he said those words, the question was no longer whether the Union would prevail, but when. Given that, he wanted to frame what peace had to look like for a nation in need of healing. After all this time, the work is still not done, but if philately can lead by example, it should. Thank you to the CWPS Board, Trish Kaufmann, and countless others, and the members of the Society for taking this critical step in the hobby. I look forward to seeing the organization chart this new course.

JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 19

A Philatelic Quest for Everywhere JOHN SEIDL

ike many stamp collectors, I started out with worldwide packets as a young boy. Unlike most stamp collectors, 50+ years later I still avidly collect worldwide: all years, all countries, all issues. While this may in fact be a bit crazed, there is a challenge that I know you will find much harder than you’d first think: Collect one issue from every stamp issuing entity that has put forth stamps to move the mails. I first climbed this mountain many years ago, both as an exercise in philatelic exploration but also as a way to give myself something to look for at stamp shows. I have several specialist country and topical collections but after some time and money have been invested, it becomes difficult to find new material without converting to postal history. So I took on the “everywhere hunt” as a new way to engage with our hobby. 20 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Where is everywhere? Defining the scope of your quest is the first problem. What do you want to include or exclude? For my personal definition, I decided on the following: existing countries, dead countries, military occupations, government agencies, and international organizations. I chose to exclude philatelic fantasies, cinderellas, micronations or political entities that tried to create credibility though issuing postage stamps such as Mantanzas or the Republic of South Moluccas. One of the great aspects of stamp collecting is each stamp collector is free to make their own decisions about what to include in their collection and that certainly applies here. Now that you have your categories, you must determine which entities actually qualify to be included in each. There are many sources to follow and even a few albums have been published that seek to answer this question. You can create “the list” by consulting any of the following: • Entities included in your favorite catalog (Scott, Michel, Unificado, Yvert, Gibbons, etc.) • Included on your favorite online resource (Stampworld, APS StampStore, Stamp Atlas, eBay, Wikipedia, etc.) • UPU membership • Published specialized albums (see below) You will find yourself in a personal debate as you define your own criteria for which entities should make your list or not. As an example, I chose to exclude some recent “puppet” states like Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Transnistria, but I suspect some of the people in what most consider to be Georgia or Moldova would not agree with me. I am aware of two specialized “one-from-everywhere” albums that have been published. The Single Specimen World Gazetteer Stamp Album published by Cliff Brown (Terra Nova Publishing) in the early 1990s is now long out of print and would fail to include some recent global changes like South Sudan, Kosovo or Timor-Leste. More recently in 2013, the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum website published an electronic album titled A Stamp for Every Country Album (Figure 1). The Smithsonian album was inspired by the William H. Gross Stamp Gallery exhibit of “A Stamp for Every Country.” While no longer directly available from the Smithsonian’s website, you can download a copy from the APS web site: https://aps.buzz/EveryCountryPDF. Both albums had spaces for about 800 stamps. While the Gazetteer is alphabetical for “active” and “dead” countries, the NPM album is sorted by geographic region and does a better job of showing the lineage of a region. Here is a sample page from each (Figures 2 and 3). I am also aware of one enterprising philatelist who created his own album. Mark Jochim’s work from 2015 is a thing of beauty, with each stamp-issuing entity getting two full pages of background information, a map of the country and even an illustration of their flag along with room for the example stamp (Figure 4). The point is that this is a creative

Figure 1. A Stamp For Every Country album, published by the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum.

Figure 2. From the “M” section of the alphabetized Gazetteer album. Note the maps and brief historical details.

Figure 3. Page 94 of the Smithsonian album - Malaysia. The album is sorted alphabetically within regions, includes precedent countries and other subcategories with dates, and is cross-referenced where necessary. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 21

Figure 4. Jochim’s two-page spread includes impressive detail to give the collector the proper context of each stamp-issuing entity.

exercise as well as a quest to find the stamps themselves. It took me 10 years to fill in my copy of the Gazetteer, and I’m just beginning to fill in the NPM version. I am sure that will take just as long. The experience was far more difficult than I anticipated but more rewarding as well. I learned a few facts about each country on my list as I added to the collection and increased my knowledge of history and geography. To complete my collection I used a combination of stamp shows, the APS StampStore, and online auction sites. I was willing to utilize mint or used stamps and tried to limit my expenditure to under $10, with most costing less than $1. None of this represents a serious financial outlay – just a massive investment in fun philatelic time to decide what to pursue, the actual pursuit, and of course the display. I take my completed album when I teach the Boy Scout Stamp Collecting Merit Badge program and every time the Scouts are amazed by the history of our world and how it has evolved – and how that story can be told via stamps. The Internet will make the quest easier this time around – or perhaps not, if the list of included entities also expands. The greatest part of our hobby is that we can each seek out what we enjoy. I hope you will consider joining me on this journey. Images in the header include: Canada Scott E3, Brazil Scott C67 Rotary, Russia Scott C38, and Democratic Republic of the Congo Scott 429. 22 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

he Author

John Seidl is the president of the International Society of Worldwide Stamp Collectors (www.iswsc.org). The International Society of Worldwide Stamp Collectors serves the interests of all worldwide collectors. It strives to promote the fun and fascination of worldwide stamp collecting to young and old alike, and has an active outreach program serving youth, their leaders and stamp collectors of all ages and experience levels. John is also the president of the British Caribbean Philatelic Study Group. He is a member of dozens of other philatelic societies including the APS, the New York Collector’s Club and the Royal Philatelic Society. He can be reached at john.seidl@gmail.com.

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Liechtenstein A Tale of Errors, Freaks and Oddities… and Politics JOHN R. SHOTLIFF

Introduction The Principality of Liechtenstein is one of six European microstates known for its beautiful stamps. Indeed, a select few stamps issued each year still employ line engraving. Approximately the size of Staten Island, a borough of New York City, Liechtenstein’s neighbor to the west and south is Switzerland, and to the east and north is Austria. Its western border with Switzerland is the Rhine River, and its eastern border with Austria is the Austrian Alps. Liechtenstein is a panoramic valley paradise nestled on the northern border of the Swiss/Austrian Alpine mountain range. The subject of this article was initially Michel catalog numbers MI 11-16 (Scott 11-16), a set that has what I believe is a most unique oddity in philately. However, as I researched MI 11-16, I became fascinated by the events surrounding the issuance of this set and concluded the evolution of Liechtenstein’s postal system and the resulting impact upon the Liechtenstein philatelic community pivoted upon post WWI events of late 1917 through early 1924. For collectors new to Liechtenstein philately, the story surrounding this issue provides an overview of the transition from Austrian to Swiss administration of Liechtenstein’s postal system and the resultant breadth of stamps available. Likewise, collectors of errors, freaks and oddities (EFOs) will seldom see a more diverse range of errors produced by a printer and released to the public. 24 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Calm before the Storm Prior to the end of World War I

Postal Administration. On September 1, 1817, the first post (messenger) office was opened by Austria in the village of Balzers, Liechtenstein, and was subsequently closed on August 31, 1819, due to a lack of profitability. Almost a decade later, on January 1, 1827, the Balzers office reopened followed by a second in Vaduz, Liechtenstein’s capital, on March 1, 1845. During this period, Liechtenstein’s fledgling postal system was unofficially administered by the Austrian government due to its legacy ties to Austria. In 1852, Liechtenstein executed a customs treaty with Austria. Among other things, the 1852 treaty officially integrated Liechtenstein’s postal system under Austrian administration. The Principality’s postal system began to flourish, and additional post offices were opened, as listed in Liechtenstein Briefmarken Katalog (LBK): Nendeln on October 1, 1864, closed February 29, 1912, and reopened February 1, 1960; Schaan on October 15, 1872; Triesen on July 1, 1890; and Eschen on March 1, 1912. Postage Stamps. In 1850, Austria issued its first postage stamps (MI 1-9) which were distributed for sale in Liechtenstein post offices (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Austria MI 4 (Scott 4), distributed for use in Liechtenstein.

Figure 2. Liechtenstein MI 1-3 (Scott 1-3).

In philatelic parlance, the Austrian stamps used in Liechtenstein post offices during this period 1850 to 1912, MI 1-177, are referred to as “Vorlaufers” or “Forerunners” to Liechtenstein’s own stamps to follow. In October 1911, the customs treaty was amended, and an important milestone was achieved for the Principality. It was now allowed to have its own stamps (Note 1). On February 1, 1912, the first set of stamps specifically for sale in Liechtenstein was issued, MI 1-3 (Figure 2). This set depicted the image of Prince Johann II with the annotation “K.K. OESTERR POST im Fürstentum Liechtenstein” indicating the set was printed by the Austrian State Printing Office, Österreichische Staatdruckerei, in Vienna under the auspices of the Austrian Department of Commerce. As part of the 1911 agreement, the Principality recognized the resulting net income (or loss) from the sale of its stamps. For the duration of this agreement, Austrian stamps, MI 178-315, were used concurrently with Liechtenstein stamps MI 1-60. These Austrian stamps are referred to as “Mitlaufers” or “Followers.” I prefer to call them “Transition” stamps as it is more descriptive of the period. Currency. As per the 1852 treaty, Liechtenstein formally adopted Austria’s currency (Gulden = 60 Kreuzer) which underwent two subsequent changes during the period prior to WWI: decimalization circa 1857 (Gulden = 100 Kreuzer) and then adoption of a new Krone (Crown) currency (Krone = 100 Heller) on January 1, 1900. Everything went well until the assassinations of the Archduke of Austria and his wife on June 28, 1914. The “thunderheads” began to build on the horizon… World War I.

The Perfect Storm

Post WWI, 1917 through 1922 The “storm” was World War I. The war’s aftermath certainly took its toll on the citizens of Liechtenstein. Liechtensteiners experienced political and economic isolation due to its association with the Austro-Hungarian Empire (formed in 1867), and the resultant devaluation of Austrian currency. However, from a philatelic perspective, the majority of the “storm” about to unfold was self-inflicted. Postal Administration continued under the 1852 treaty...

for a while. As WWI came to a close and the Austro-Hungarian coalition began to unravel, Liechtenstein looked to the west, across the Rhine River to Switzerland for assistance. On April 22, 1919, Liechtenstein commenced treaty discussions with Switzerland to replace the 1852 treaty with Austria. The Principality was anxious to terminate the customs treaty with Austria as customs revenue had fallen dramatically. Furthermore, the Austrian government no longer wanted the responsibility of administering Liechtenstein’s postal system (Note 2). On August 2, 1919, Liechtenstein moved to terminate the 1852 treaty with Austria, to which Austria agreed on August 30. On May 1, 1920, the existing (October 1911) postal agreement was terminated, and Liechtenstein was now free to issue its own stamps. Currency and Postal Rates. Since the Austrian currency had been severely devalued, Liechtensteiners unofficially began using Swiss currency (Franc = 100 Centime or Rappen) for daily transactions circa 1917. The Liechtenstein government unofficially followed suit in 1920 for its national accounts, for example, taxes (Note 3). The postal rates established September 1, 1918, were 20 and 25 Heller for domestic and international mail, respectively.

Censorship Liechtenstein remained neutral during WWI, albeit tenuously. The Allies were suspicious, believing Liechtenstein was aiding and abetting the Austro-Hungarian cause, and restricted commerce crossing the Swiss border into Figure 3. At right: Jam jar label. Bottom left: Gemeinde-BotenPost Vaduz-Sevelen MI 1, and right: MI 1a with error – “Pest” not Post. Certified: Marxer 95B082. The stamp was expertized and authenticated by Peter Marxer, the late expert on Liechtenstein stamps.

JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 25

Liechtenstein (Note 2). The Austro-Hungarian coalition was cautious too. Internationally bound mail originating in Liechtenstein was subject to censorship, which, in turn, greatly delayed delivery to its intended destination as well as the subsequent responses. In mid-1918, a group of Liechtenstein businessmen and Vaduz authorities convened to address the issue. A mechanism to identify internationally bound mail and a process to circumvent censorship were established. First, the mechanism to identify international mail was to overprint an existing label sold in village stores and used by housewives to label their “jam jars,” among other things. The label assumed its clandestine role when it was overprinted by J. Kuhns Erben in Buchs, Switzerland, with “Schweizer Post/Vaduz” (Swiss Post, Vaduz). The resulting “stamp” is today known as a “Gemeinde-Botenpost” or community messenger (Figure 3). Next, the process: 1. The sender affixed the necessary Swiss postage to any letter bound for an international destination. 2. The sender purchased the “Botenpost stamp,” for 10 Heller and affixed it to the letter, and deposited the letter in a mailbox installed in Vaduz specifically for this purpose. 3. A member of the Vaduz village government collected the mail once or twice a week and passed the mail along to a “community messenger” who had the proper identification to pass Swiss authorities without risk. 4. The mail was transported across the Rhine River by the messenger and deposited at the Sevelen post office. This solution, which was used for only a few months, was not endorsed by either the Swiss or Liechtenstein governments. Indeed, the Principality had to “look the other way” as it was a violation of the 1852 customs treaty with Austria. Even this little “stamp” was not without controversy. First, was the “stamp” truly necessary at the time to facilitate uninterrupted mail service and thus a postal necessity, or unnecessary and thus just a philatelic curiosity? In favor of the former, all six perforation variations and the error shown above are included in the Liechtenstein Briefmarken Katalog (LBK). Additionally, letters with the Gemeinde-

Botenpost stamp affixed and postmarked in late 1918 are very rare, and the “stamp” has sufficient collector cachet to attract counterfeiters due to its simple design: caveat emptor. Secondly, was the assigned cost of 10 Heller a fee for the messenger service, or a revenue tax for the village of Vaduz? Why the use of this stamp was limited to Vaduz is not addressed in the literature. There were five other post offices open at that time, and the mail did not seem to be impeded crossing the Swiss border, just the Austrian border to Feldkirch. Were the village elders being opportunistic?

Rise of the Consortium

Postage Stamps. In October 1919, a group of Liechtenstein and Austrian men, collectively called the “Consortium,” petitioned the Liechtenstein government to assume responsibility for the design, production and domestic distribution of Liechtenstein stamps as well as worldwide sales. The political objective was the provision of stamps “for Liechtenstein by Liechtenstein.” The more important, practical objective was to generate badly needed revenue for the Principality… and, of course, for the Consortium. After more than three months of negotiations, the terms and conditions of the contract were established, including: the duration of the contract; revenue guaranteed to the Principality; the percentage of the revenue due the Consortium; and the amount of funds to be held in escrow in the event of a shortfall in expected revenue for the Principality. In addition, the contract specified certain quality control requirements. The contract between the Principality and the Consortium was finally executed January 31, 1920. Murphy’s Law (“anything that can go wrong will go wrong”) prevailed. It took longer than expected to design, develop, print, and distribute the first set of stamps, MI 11-16, to be issued by the Consortium. As a result, Liechtenstein had to strike an informal agreement with Austria extending the use of Austrian stamps, Mitlaufers, to fulfill the need for postage stamps in its post offices (Note 4). Postal Rates. To compensate for inflation during this period, the postal rates were raised to 40 Heller for domestic mail and 100 Heller for international mail, effective January 15, 1920, and a second time to 80 and 200 Heller for domestic and international mail, respectively, on April 15, 1920. Finally, on March 3, 1920, the Consortium issued MI

Table 1. First Set Issued for the Principality, March 3, 1920

MI No. 1917

Scott No 1917.

Original Value

Overprint

New Value

MI No. 1920

Scott No. 1920

Arabesque

“40”

“1 KRONE”

“2½ KRONEN”

2½ K

26 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

11-16. The selected approach was to overprint an earlier set of six stamps depicting Prince Johann II, issued in 1917, MI 4-9. Overprinting was probably selected to minimize the “time to market” as well as the design and development (pre-production) costs. The Consortium may have also selected overprinting in order to re-tool the stamps more quickly and cheaply if further increases in postal rates demanded changes in stamp values. Or perhaps they simply wished to increase their profit. Paulussen & Co. in Vienna was contracted for the development of the letterpress plates and production of this set of six stamps. The 5, 10 and 25 Heller values of MI 4-9 were preserved, and the new issue was simply denoted by an arabesque overprint. The remaining three values from 1917, the 3, 15 and 20 Heller, were repurposed by overprinting them with the values of 40 Heller, 1 Krone and 2½ Kronen, respectively. To avoid possible confusion, the overprints of the top three values were designed to obscure the original values of the 1917 set. The “mapping” from the original set (MI 4-9) to the new overprinted set (MI 11-16) is summa-

rized in the following chart and shown in the subsequent figures (Table 1 and Figure 4).

MI 11-16 Errors Several errors were produced, much to the dismay of many in the Liechtenstein government and the general public. Some error types were noted as early as Sieger’s 1943 catalog, Liechtenstein Handbook and Catalog, but did not receive recognition in other catalogs until much later. The errors include: • inverted overprints (Figure 5); • double overprints (Figure 6); • interchanged overprints (Figure 7); • inverted overprint at the bottom (Figure 8); • overprinted twice with top one inverted (Figure 9); • “strongly” offset overprints (Figure 10); (The description, “strongly,” is subjective and not clarified in LBK. For my collecting purposes, I consider the overprint strongly or severely offset when it impinges upon the vertical perforations, i.e. horizontal offset. A severe vertical offset would reveal the original values of MI

Inverted Overprints

Figure 4. From left: Liechtenstein MI 11, MI 12, MI 13, MI 14, MI 15, and MI 16, denoted by overprint on MI 4-9.

Double Overprints

Figure 5. Inverted overprint errors can be found on MI 11-16. From left: MI 11 KI, MI 12 KI, MI 13 KI, MI 14 KI, MI 15 KI, and MI 16 KI.

Interchanged Overprints at Bottom

Figure 7. Interchanged overprints at bottom. Note that the left and right stamps should have the opposite overprints. Left: MI 12 I. Right: MI 15 I. Figure 6. Double overprint error. From left: MI 11 DD, MI 12 DD, and MI 13 DD. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 27

Inverted Overprint at Bottom Double Overprints with Top Inverted

Figure 8. Inverted overprint at bottom, MI K II.

Figure 9. Double overprint error. MI 11 DK.

Strongly Offset Overprints

Figure 10. A “strongly” offset overprint error on MI 11-16. From left: MI 11 II, MI 12 II, MI 13 II, MI 14 II, MI 15 II, and MI 16 II.

Damaged Overprints

Figure 11. The overprints have noticeable breaks in the letterpress plates. From left: MI 14 III and two MI 16 III. 28 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

4, 7 and 8, or impinge upon the bottom horizontal perforations.) • Broken/damaged (letterpress plates) overprints (Figure 11). • Drying error - occurs when sheets of stamps are stacked before ink has dried. The result is a mirror image of the overprint from the sheet below appearing on the gum (side) of the sheet above it, resulting in a setoff (Figure 12). • Printer’s waste (Figure 13).

Oddities - Chads This is probably one of the most unique oddities in the philatelic realm. The definition of a chad is a small paper disk or rectangle, formed when a hole is punched in paper tape or punch card, respectively. Therefore, the by-product of the perforation process is a chad. I worked with both punch cards and paper tape early in my career as a computer engineer and I can attest to the mess they can make. The following images (Figure 14) show examples of the random patterns of chads that can be found on each of the six stamps in the 1920 set. The air at Paulussen & Co. must have been thick with chads as many stamps can be found with multiple chad “patterns.” Or, maybe, was it deliberate? Curiously, by examining photographs on eBay and auction websites, I have noticed some patterns re-occur, i.e., the chad remained in place (glue from the stamp adhesive?) for more than one printing. The chads were noted in Sieger’s 1943 catalog: “due to perforations falling on the printing plate, black dots have formed at all possible places during printing…” I do not know if Sieger visited Paulussen to witness the chad issue during production, but his notes certainly make sense. The diameter of the chad print closely matches that of the perforation, ~0.98 mm measured with a Dino-Lite model AM4515ZT USB microscope. A note to collectors: Given the number of stamps with chad imprints and their randomness which defies cataloging, stamps with chad imprints have no incremental market value. However, they are relevant to this discussion as they represent a symptom of the Consortium’s performance vis-à-vis quality control…

Quality Control At this time, it may be appropriate to take a moment to review the impact of quality control, or the lack thereof, on this unfolding drama. Prior to the existence of the Consortium, Österreichische Staatsdruckerei had been printing stamps for Austria since 1850. By contrast, the only reference I have found pertaining to Paulussen & Co., other than LBK, is in the online list of (Austrian) printers with the notation that Paulussen was in existence for only one year, 1920 (Note 5). So why the selection of Paulussen & Co. over Österreichische Staatsdruckerei? A few points for consideration (Note 6):

The Consortium was endorsed by stamp collectors/dealers who influenced the Principality to pursue a contract with the Consortium. 2. The Consortium had a “great deal of latitude” concerning the design, production, and distribution of stamps during the term of their contract with the Principality. 3. The contract with the Consortium included terms and conditions pertaining to Quality Control. 4. The Consortium argued the Austrian State Printing house (PTT) did not offer “precise control.” The result was the Consortium “produced in violation of the contract numerous misprints and varieties in large quantities.” Therefore, I conclude that Paulussen was selected because the Consortium could manipulate the release of stamp errors and varieties while Österreichische Staatdruckerei would not be willing to compromise its reputation. Who knows, maybe Paulussen was not actually selected but established specifically to print the Consortium’s stamps, and the owners of Paulussen were either members of the Consortium, or were related to members. Postage Stamps. Besides MI 11-16, Austrian “Mitlaufers” continued to be used until January 31, 1921, at which time Swiss “Mitlaufers” (some of MI 95-213, see LBK) became available in some Liechtenstein post offices to augment the supply of stamps available for postage. Concerning Liechtenstein stamps, how does one describe what followed MI 11-16? Continuing the stormy weather metaphor, I think it would be the squall that hit when the following sets were released in rapid succession:

Drying Errors

Figure 12. Reverse of MI 11, MI 13 – a drying problem resulting in setoffs appearing on the reverse.

Printer's Waste

Figure 13. Printer’s waste on MI 11.

MI 11-16 Error Identification Quiz. Examine this letter dated April 21, 1920. How many of the stamps have errors, and how many unique errors are there? Answer key is on page 33. On the reverse of the envelope, there are five more stamps, for a total franking of 200 Heller. On the front, you can see the sender’s post office was Schaan, and the recipient’s was Mauren, a distance of approximately five miles as the crow flies. The postal rate for domestic mail at the time was 80 Heller, so the additional 120 Heller (revenue for the Principality) was for the registered mail delivery service. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 29

Figure 14. The chads on the Paulussen & Co.-printed stamps are a by-product of the perforation process, but indicative of the company’s quality control of MI 11-16. From left: MI 11-16, and below, overprint errors with the chad oddity, MI 13 KI, MI 11 DD, and MI 12 DD.

All but MI 43-44 were printed by Paulussen & Co. MI 43-44 were printed, at the direction of the Consortium, by Fa. Capri, a printing house for which I have not found any references other than LBK. MI 17-60 are a bonanza for EFO collectors as there are numerous examples that can be found, including, but not limited to, depending upon the set: • “Primary” plate errors - my term for those listed in LBK; • “Secondary” plate errors – my term for those identified in Hughes’ Liechtenstein the 1920 Issue (or in Ring der Liechtenstein Sammler (RLS) – published by the Liechtenstein Collectors Club) but not in LBK; • Color proofs; • Black & white proofs; • Perforation variations, i.e. perf count; • Perforation varieties - I have examples of MI 21 & 24 rouletted 7½; • Perforation errors including: • Missing horizontal or vertical; • Double horizontal or vertical; • Mis-registered perforations; • “Crazy” perforations due to paper folds; • Overprint errors (MI 43-4); • Other production errors, e.g. paper creases and folds; • Paper varieties; • And gum varieties. LBK covers MI 17- 60 in nine pages, including the “primary” plate errors. In the quarterly publication by the Ring der Liechtenstein Sammler, it was reported that coverage of these sets and all the errors, varieties, etc., required 103 pages. In my collection, I have allocated 169 pages - two Lighthouse binders - which allows ample spacing for presentation. To date, I have found approximately 50% of the “secondary” plate errors. Postal Administration. As mentioned earlier, in April of 1919, Liechtenstein and Switzerland began discussions to 30 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

replace the Treaty with Austria. The Swiss Treaty commenced February 1, 1921, amidst this deluge of Consortium stamps that were released. Demise of the Consortium On February 16, 1921, the Liechtenstein government commenced an investigation of the Consortium and a response was requested within three days. The underlying issues of the complaint against the Consortium included: • Failing to meet its contractual revenue goals. • The deliberate distribution of stamps to collectors and possibly speculators (in Salzburg). • Resulting in an inadequate supply of stamps at the Post Offices which, in turn, required the use of Austrian and Swiss “Mitlaufers” which diminished the revenue recognized by the Principality. • Inadequate supply of high value stamps to satisfy the increasing postal rates. • The number of errors, freaks and oddities (EFOs) released, that is, poor quality control. • The release of varieties including proofs, etc. • The continued production and distribution of stamps, MI 43-60, after the Swiss Treaty was in effect February 1, 1921, to the dismay of the Principality. • And, the “bottom line,” damage to the reputation of Liechtenstein stamps. To add further fuel to the fire, on February 26, 1921, 800 citizens demonstrated in the capital. The two political parties of that time were involved: the in-power Citizens’ party and the opposing People’s party. The People’s party was represented by approximately 200 citizens protesting the Consortium’s performance. The Citizens’ party was concerned about the possibility of more nefarious objectives of the demonstrators for the People’s party, and rallied 600 citizens in their support (see Note 1). Regardless, this is probably the first and only time philatelic activities sparked civil unrest. After a lengthy investigation, the Consortium’s contract was finally

terminated on April 25, 1922, and the remaining Consortium stamps were supposedly destroyed (Note 8).

Calm Seas and Fair Winds After 1922

Postal Administration. The Treaty with Switzerland went into effect on February 1, 1921. Switzerland assumed the responsibilities of its predecessor, Austria, including administration of Liechtenstein’s postal system, which continued to grow, adding six additional post offices: Triesenberg on February 1, 1921; Mauren on July 1, 1925; Ruggell on January 1, 1926; Schellenberg on August 10, 1946; Gamprin-Bendern on February 1, 1960; and Schaanwald on April 30, 1970 (LBK). Currency. On May 26, 1924, Liechtenstein officially adopted Swiss currency. Epilogue. The political climate remained tense during the period between World War I and II. Since World War II, the microstate of Liechtenstein has enjoyed a period of stability, growth and tranquility. From my perspective, Liechtenstein has avoided much of the turmoil in Europe due possibly to its relatively isolated location, but more likely due to the excellent stewardship of its Princes: Prince Johann II until February 11, 1929; Prince Franz I until July 25, 1938; Prince Joseph II until November 13, 1989; and currently, Prince Hans Adam.

Notes.

1. Liechtenstein’s postal contracts prior to WWI are described in Marxer’s “Postal Contract” and Agreement Concerning the Management… (1911). 2. As narrated by David Beattie in Liechtenstein, A Modern History. 3. As described to the author by Liechtenstein National Museum Head of Collections and Research Donat Buchel in July 2020. 4. As explained in the RLS catalog, Adams’ 50 Years Liechtenstein Post, and Marxer’s “Postal Contract.” 5. A reference to Paulussen & Co. can be found in Morgan’s “Stamp Printers By Country: Austria” article online. 6. Details of the printing agreement with Liechtenstein can be found in Adams’ 50 Years Liechtenstein Postal Material (1962), Hassler’s “Philately,” and Gabriel von Werner’s Principality of Liechtenstein History of the Postal System… (1937). Quotes are from Adams. 7. More information is available on the supposed destruction of MI 11-16 in Liechtenstein Handbuch (RLS).

Acknowledgments Thanks to Cynthia Shotliff Tanta-Nanta, Professor Heinz Rennenberg (Chairman, RLS) and Donat Buchel (Curator, Liechtenstein National Museum).

References

Adams, Bertrand (ed.). 50 Years of Liechtenstein Postal Material, 1912-1962 (Vaduz: Liechtenstein Government; 1962): 102 – 105. Agreement Concerning the Management of the Postal, Telegraph and Telephone Service in the Principality of Liechtenstein, Article IV (October 4, 1911): 2. Beattie, David. Liechtenstein, A Modern History. (van Eck Publishers; 2004): 26, 50-7, 381-2. Benedikt Zäch. “Money,” Historisches Lexicon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein online. (Published December 31, 2011). https://historisches-lexikon.li/Geld Dittrich, Dr. Gerhard. Lexikon zur Liechtenstein-Philatelie (Reutlingen: Ring der Liechtensteinsammler; [1970]). Hassler, Hermann. “Philately,” Historisches Lexicon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein online (Published December 31, 2011). https://historisches-lexikon.li/ Philatelie Hughes, H.S. Liechtenstein: the 1920 Issue (Birmingham: Hughes, H.S.; 1962). LBK MICHEL Liechtenstein-Spezial 2018/2019 (Michel / Schwaneberger Verlag GmbH). Liechtenstein Handbuch (Ring der Liechtensteinsammler e. V. (RLS); February 1995): 8-10. Marxer, Roland. “Postal Contract,” Historisches Lexicon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein online. https://historisches-lexikon.li/Postvertrag Morgan, Glenn H. “Stamp Printers By Country: Austria,” Stamp Printers Info (Updated 2016). https://www.stampprinters.info/SPI_country_austria. htm#AUSTRIA Otto, Rudolf. Gemeinde-Botenpost Vaduz-Sevelen 1918 (RLS Booklet: Ring der Liechtensteinsammler; 1966). Quaderer, Rupert and Lenherr, Stefan (interviewer). “For Liechtenstein, its very existence was at stake,” Liechtenstein. https://www.liechtenstein.li/en/ economy/foreign-trade/interview-ruper-quaderer/ Quaderer, Rupert. “Museum Stamp Affair,” Historisches Lexicon des Fürstentums Liechtenstein online (Published December 31, 2011). https://historisches-lexikon.li/Briefmarkenaff%C3%A4re Ray, Michael. “Timeline of World War I,” Britannica. https://www.britannica. com/list/timeline-of-world-war-i Sieger, Hermann E. Liechtenstein Handbook and Catalog 1943 (Lorch/Wurttemberg: Sieger-Verlag; 1953): 52-3. Sluszkiewicz, Anna and Tom. “World Paper Money Catalog and Austrian Currency History,” ATS Notes. http://www.atsnotes.com/catalog/banknotes/ austria.html “The postal stamps and postal history of Liechtenstein,” Postal Museum. https://stamps.postmuseum.li/history Voss, Werner. Principality of Liechtenstein: History of the Postal System with Especial Consideration to the Stamps (Book Printer of Fr. Kaiser): 28-37

Table II. The "Squall that Hit" - Liechtenstein's rapid stamp issues.

MI No.

Scott No

Issue Date

Design

17-24

18-25

May 5, 1920

National Coat of Arms & Castle (Imperforate)

25-39

32-46

June 1920

National Coat of Arms, Castles and Prince

1 – 12

J1-J12

June 1920

Postage Due

40 – 42

47-49

Oct. 5, 1920

Madonna, Birthday of Prince Johann II

Feb. 1, 1921

National Coat of Arms

Feb. 27, 1921

National Coat of Arms

45 – 52

54-61

Feb. - April, 1921

National Coat of Arms & Cherubs

53 – 60

62-69

Feb. – Nov. 1921

Castles & Princes JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 31

he Author

In summer of 1965, John Shotliff was hosted by Dr. and Mrs. Wagner of Stuttgart, Germany. Their son, Thomas, and John were both stamp collectors. During their return from a week in Locarno, Switzerland, they stopped at the post office in Vaduz, the capital of Liechtenstein. John was intrigued by Liechtenstein’s stamps, and bought every stamp for sale at the time. (Needless to say, he had to borrow a few Marks from Dr. Wagner.) He has been collecting and studying Liechtenstein stamps ever since with special interests in Errors, Freaks and Oddities (EFO), and the artifacts of the design, development on production processes. He is a member of the America Philatelic Society (APS), (European) Liechtenstein Collectors Club (RLS), Error, Freaks and Oddities Collectors Club (EFOCC) and the Institute for Analytical Philately (IAP).

MI 11 KII

MI 13 DD

MI 11 KII

MI 12 DD

MI 11 KII

MI 14 II

Answer sheet. Answer: 8 and 4, respectively: 2 each of MI 12 DD; 4 each of MI 11 KII; MI 14 II; MI 13 DD

MI 12 DD

For Further Reading

Katalog uber die Maschinenstempel 1911-1969 Schweiz, Liechtenstein by Max Ziesel and Verein Schweizerischer Maschinenstempelsammler (VSM). (Aarau: VSM), 1970. G6041 .M149 V489k

Recommendations from the APRL research staff: Katalogue des Timbres Suisses: Suisse, Liechtenstein, ONU Geneve, Campione by Verband des Schweizerischen Briefmarken-Handels (VSBH); Association suisse de negociants en philatelie (ASNP). (Basel : VSBH/ASNP (Multipress Verlag AG), 1998. G6040 .A1 V476s 1998

Handbuch der Werbedatumstempel Schweiz: Liechtenstein by Schweizerischer Verein der Poststempelsammler, Association suisse des collectionneurs d’empreintes postales, and G. Balimann. (Olten: SVP and ASCEP), 1993. G6041 .P857 S413h 1993

Faroe Islands Stamps New September 2020 Stamp Issues

FØROYAR 12KR

FØROYAR 27KR Ludwig van Beethoven 250 Yrs

The Faroese artist, Heiðrik á Heygum has designed the mini-sheet. He has dressed the great composer up in the Faroese national costume, placed him in quintessential Faroese surroundings. Also available as a poster - A3.

Faroese Chess Traditions

In the Faroe Islands, the chess tradition also gained its local characteristics and these stamps describe two of them: the “Rook” and “Four-Player-Chess”. Design: Ole Wich.

Buy Faroese Stamps at www.stamps.fo

32 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

26KR

125 Years of Motion Pictures

2020 marks the 125th anniversary of the first public motion picture screening. The stamps display 2 movies by a Faroese film director, Bye Bye Blue Bird and Ludo.

Our agent in the US: Nordica Inc./ David Bein E-mail: nordicad@optonline.net

Posta Faroe Islands - one of the smallest Postal Services in the world, yet known for its unique, beautiful and creative stamps, which have gained worldwide recognition since 1976. Posta Stamps, Óðinshædd 2 Tel. +298 346200 FO-100 Tórshavn, Faroe Islands stamps@posta.fo

FØROYAR

Carriers and Locals Society The Society’s mission is to encourage the collecting and study of United States carriers and locals. THE NEXT SOCIETY AUCTION WILL BE HELD FEBRUARY 2021 ON OUR WEBSITE.

Its principal areas of interest are: • U.S. official and semi-official Carrier services • U.S. Independent Mail Companies • U.S. Local Posts of the 19th century • U.S. Eastern Expresses of the 19th century • Fakes and forgeries of U.S. Carriers and Locals • U.S. and Canadian fantasy stamps of the 19th century Benefits of membership include the C&LS’s award winning journal, its auctions and on line access to back issues of The Penny Post.

To join, or renew your membership, visit our website at www.pennypost.org.

The Allure of

AMG

Collecting RICHARD PEDERSON

here are many reasons why a stamp or postal history collector might select a specific area on which to focus. The Allied Military Government (AMG) specialty, more than most collecting areas, has something for everyone, spanning multiple geographic and political states, several languages, changes in government and administration, and a rich historical situation – over the course of just a few years. The AMG either issued or sanctioned the issuing of stamps in Italy, the Free Territory of Trieste (FTT), Venezia Giulia (VG), Austria, France, Germany, Korea, and the Ryukyu Islands. Figure 1 pictures stamps issued or sanctioned by the AMG for use in each of the areas that were under AMG administration – just a few of the numerous stamps and postal stationery items issued under AMG authority between 1945 and 1972. Before discussing those areas, some background on what the AMG was and the role it

played during and following World War II (WWII) is necessary. During the latter part of WWII, as the Allied forces liberated territory that was previously held by the Axis powers, military representatives from the Allied forces filled a temporary vacuum by providing administrative functions normally supplied by local and national governments until newly constituted governments could be established. The term AMG refers to the representatives from one or more of the Allied military forces supplying administrative services until those local and national governments were able to resume normal services under new leadership. Among the services provided were law enforcement, taxation, judicial services, and postal services. Postage stamps were issued to allow people to communicate with those within and outside liberated areas and revenue stamps were created to

Figure 1. Examples of AMG issues for Italy (pictured from left to right and top to bottom) Italy (Scott 1N10, 20 Centesimi, 1943), Austria (Scott 4N1, 1 Groschen, 1945), France (Scott 476H, 10 Francs, 1944), VG (Italy Scott 1LN10, 20 Lire, 1946), FTT (Italy Trieste Scott 9, 10 Lire, 1947), Germany (Scott 3N6a, 8 Pfennigs, 1945), Korea (Scott 56, 5 Cheun on Japan 14 Sen, 1946), and the Ryukyu Islands (Scott 3, 20 Sen, 1949). 34 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Map 2. Map showing U.S., British, French, and Soviet zones in Austria. Map 3. Map showing U.S., British, French, and Soviet zones in Germany.

Map 1. Map of the FTT (from VFW, September 1991) showing areas under AMG control (Zone A) and Yugoslavian control (Zone B).

facilitate payment of taxes and fees collected on business transactions, licenses and permits. Those postal and revenue stamps were issued under the authority of the AMG in liberated areas administered by the AMG. The AMG administered various areas in Europe and Asia following the liberation of Sicily in 1943 and the defeat of Japan in 1945. The administered areas, dates of administration, and AMG forces responsible for administration are shown in Table 1. The area of VG, which included the city of Trieste, was jointly administered by U.S. and British forces until the creation of the FTT in 1947. The FTT (see Map 1) was split into two parts, Zones A and B. Zone A was governed by the U.S. and British militaries (the AMG) and control, the two countries and the German city state of Zone B by the Yugoslav forces. In October 1954, the FTT Berlin were broken into areas administered by the U.S., was divided between Italy and Yugoslavia in the London British, French, and Soviet military forces (see Maps 2, 3, Memorandum, which was signed by the U.S., Britain, Italy, and 4). The areas administered by the U.S., Britain, and and Yugoslavia. Most of FTT Table 1. AMG-administered areas. Zone A, which included the city Administered Area AMG Administrator(s) Dates of Administration of Trieste, went to Italy and Zone Austria U.S., Britain, France, USSR 4/27/1945 - 7/27/1955 B, along with a small portion of France Free French Forces 1944 - 1945 Zone A, went to Yugoslavia. The Free Territory of Trieste (FTT) U.S., Britain, Yugoslavia 9/15/1947 - 10/5/1954 1975 Treaty of Osimo formally ended all disputes regarding the Germany U.S., Britain, France, USSR 1945 - 1949 areas around Trieste by legally Italy, including Sicily U.S., Britain 8/17/1943 - 1945 ceding the previously divided Korea U.S. 9/8/1945 - 8/15/1948 areas to Italy and Yugoslavia. Ryukyu Islands U.S. 1945 - 5/14/1972 In 1945, once Austria and Venezia Giulia (VG) U.S., Britain 6/1945 - 9/14/1947 Germany came under Allied JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 35

Map 4. Map showing U.S., British, French, and Soviet sectors in Berlin.

France were then unified as the Federal Republic of Germany (West Germany) in 1949. The area administered by the Soviets became the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) and remained under Soviet influence until October 3, 1990, when the German Democratic Republic became part of the Federal Republic of Germany. The four Allied forces remained in Austria until it was given full independence in 1955, after assurances that it would remain neutral in political conflicts between the communist Soviet Union and the three democratic powers. When the AMG collecting area first evolved shortly after the conclusion of WWII, many of those attracted to it were people who served in the Armed Forces or supported the war effort during the war. In the U.S., the collecting of AMG stamps and postal history was primarily driven by the efforts of a single individual, Joseph V. Bush, who founded the Joseph V. Bush Co. while recovering from injuries sustained when stationed in Britain during WWII. Many of his early customers had a direct personal connection to the AMG postage and revenue stamps as, in some instances, they served or worked in the liberated areas and used or

Figure 2. Italy Scott 1N1, 15 Centesimi, released by the AMG in August 1943 for use in Sicily.

Figure 3. Italy Scott 1N11, 35 Centesimi, overprinted “GOVERNO MILITARE ALLEATO” on Italy Scott 217 in December 1943 for use in Naples.

36 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

received the AMG stamps on mailings. Although most of those directly involved in the conflict are no longer with us, there are still many who had parents and grandparents or other relatives that fought in World War II. Since many of those relatives were involved in the conquest and/or occupation of lands previously held by the Axis Forces, it is only natural for their descendants to have an interest in the stamps and postal history associated with those efforts, an interest that might be increased if those descendants also had family roots in the occupied areas. The very first stamps issued by the AMG (Figure 2, Italy Scott 1N1) were designed and printed by the Bureau of Engraving and Printing (BEP) and released in Sicily on August 24, 1943, after the island was fully secured by Allied military forces. Although those stamps were valid for use in any liberated areas of Italy, very few were ever used outside of Sicily. Once an armistice was agreed upon with the provisional Italian government on September 8, 1943, the AMG did not think it appropriate to issue the Sicily stamps on the mainland as that was the responsibility of the provisional government with the sanctioning of the AMG. For example, stamps from the Italian Royalist issue of 1929-1942 (Figure 3, Figure 4. Italy Scott 439, Italy Scott 1N11) were watermarked 50 Centesimi Bari overprinted “GOVERNO Wolf issue, authorized by the MILITARE ALLEATO” AMG in 1944 for use in liberated areas of Italy. (ALLIED MILITARY GOVERNMENT) for use in Naples under the authority of the AMG. The provisional government also issued stamps sanctioned by the AMG, picturing the Bari Wolf (Figure 4, Italy Scott 439), for use in other liberated areas of Italy. Many of the earlier issues for use in Europe have a significant tie to the U.S. as they were designed and/or printed by the U.S. BEP in Washington, D.C., including the Italian/ Sicilian, French, German AM Post (i.e., Allied Military Post), and the Austrian issues. Figure 5 shows examples of stamps from each basic set produced by the U.S. BEP. Later printings of the AM Post issues were printed in London, England, and Brunswick, Germany. The London printings used the same designs and the Brunswick printings used slightly altered variations of the BEP designs. Many AMG collectors believe that the BEP-designed stamps should be included in the Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps & Covers since it is the reference used by most advanced U.S. collectors. Unfortunately, there is currently no good single source of information for those issues, forcing collectors who require in-depth information to use

Figure 5. Examples from each set of stamps designed and produced by the U.S. BEP (from left to right), issues for Italy (Scott 1N7, 2 Lire, 1943), France (Scott 476C, 1 Franc, 1944), Germany (Scott 3N5a, 6 Pfennig, 1945), and Austria (Scott 4N10, 20 Groschen, 1945).

Figure 6. Examples of (from left to right) inverted overprint (Italy Scott 1LN1, 10 Centesimi, 1945), doubled overprint (Italy Scott 1LN8, 60 Centesimi, 1945), and closed “G” errors (Italy Scott 1LN12, 50 Lire, 1946) on AMG VG stamps.

multiple catalogs, including those produced by Scott, the German publisher Michel, the French publisher Yvert et Tellier, and Italian publisher Sassone. For those who enjoy collecting errors, freaks, and oddities, there is an abundance of AMG material that fits within this collecting area, particularly the many overprint errors and varieties on the stamps issued by the AMG for use in VG and the FTT. Many of the stamps for those areas were created by overprinting Italian stamps. VG errors include inverted overprints, doubled overprints, overprints printed on the reverse side of the stamp, and overprints with a closed “G”. Varieties include horizontally and vertically misplaced overprints, printing offsets on the reverse, and overprints with broken or malformed letters. The stamp on the left in Figure 6 (Italy Scott 1LN1) has an inverted overprint, the middle stamp (Italy Scott 1LN8) has a double overprint, and the right stamp (Italy Scott 1LN12) has a

closed “G”. Figure 7 pictures several overprint varieties with the pair of stamps on the left (Italy Scott 1LN14) containing a horizontally displaced overprint, the center stamp (Italy Scott 1LN5) has a vertically displaced overprint, and the stamp on the right exhibits an offset of an overprint on the reverse. Many of these errors and varieties have the benefit of being affordable for the average collector. Back-of-book (BoB) stamps and postal stationery are popular with many collectors and there is an abundance of AMG BoB material. In particular, the FTT offers a wide variety of BoB items as it was governed by the AMG for over seven years and a broad range of BoB items were needed to finance a full range of government services. AMG BoB items include airmail, special delivery, postage due, parcel post, authorized delivery, semi-postal, Christmas seals, and revenue stamps, plus letter sheets, air letter sheets, and postal cards. A few of those BoB AMG issues are shown in

Figure 7. Examples of (from left to right) horizontally displaced overprint (Italy Scott 1LN14, 25 Centesimi, 1947), vertically displaced overprint (Italy Scott 1LN5, 2 Lire, 1945), and overprint offset varieties on AMG VG stamps. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 37

Figure 8a. AMG Austria postage due (Scott J200 , 60 Groschen, 1946), VG special delivery (Italy Scott 1LNE1, 10 Lire, 1946), FTT airmail (Italy Trieste Scott C20, 10 Lire, 1949), and FTT air letter sheet.

Figure 8a anf 8b. For those desiring to start an AMG BoB collection, the easiest place to start is with some of the more basic issues such as airmail, special delivery, postage due, and parcel post, since most are listed in the Scott catalogs. When those areas are exhausted, the collector can turn to postal stationery and the wide range of revenue and fiscal issues, which will require access to specialized catalogs, many of which are not available in English. Revenue stamps were issued in abundance in the AMG-administered areas of VG and the FTT. At the left in Figure 9 are the left and right sides of used 100 Lira Industrial-Commercial tax stamps (Bush AMG-VG IC11) and at the right is an intact mint 5 Lira FTT stock transfer se-tenant stamp (Bush AMG FTT ST24). Both Industrial-Commercial and Stock Transfer stamps were printed as setenant pairs. For both the IndustrialCommercial tax stamps and the Stock Transfer stamps, the left side of the pair was attached to the portion of the invoice retained by the seller and the right side of the pair was attached to the piece of the invoice given to the purchaser. Some AMG collectors have spent decades building specialized collections of the revenue issues. A particular challenge is finding many of the revenue issues properly used on-document. Only a limited number have survived, as the stamps were 38 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Figure 8b. FTT air letter sheet.

Figure 9. AMG VG Industrial Commercial tax stamps (Bush AMG-VG IC11, 100 Lire) and FTT Stock Transfer stamps (Bush AMG FTT ST24, 5 Lire).

Figure 10. Scott Trieste 166 with “FTT” overprint on Italy Scott 622 issued to commemorate the 1953 running of the annual Mille Miglia (1,000 mile) motorsport endurance race which was won by drivers Giannino Marzotto and Marco Crosara in a Ferrari 340 MM Spyder Magnale.

Figure 11. The 3 Franc value of the second AMG issue for France picturing the Arc de Triomphe (France Scott 523J, 3 Francs, 1945), Austrian AMG Post Horn issue (Scott 4N2, 3 Groschen, 1945), and the Italian AMG Bari Wolf issue (Scott 440, 50 Centesimi, 1944, unwatermarked).

Figure 12. Censored, registered letter to Vienna, Austria with a 12 Groschen (Scott 4N8) and a 30 Groschen (Scott 4N12) paying the domestic surface rate and registration fee.

either removed from the documents or the documents were destroyed after they were no longer of use. For those interested in the emissions for Korea, there are also numerous provisional and local issues, although many are quite expensive. Another popular collecting area involves issues with a topical or thematic interest. Many of the AMG issues have simple, practical designs, such as those created for use in Italy/Sicily and Germany, and do not lend themselves to topical or thematic collecting. Despite that, there is still plenty of material for the topical collector to pursue. The regular, commemorative, and BoB issues for the FTT and VG, along with many Ryukyu Islands stamps, fit nicely in topical or thematic collections. Figure 10 shows a 1953 FTT stamp (Trieste Scott 166) picturing racing cars, which according to the Scott catalog was issued in commemoration of the 20th annual Mille Miglia (1,000 mile) auto race. Figure 11 pictures examples from the French issue depict-

ing the Arc de Triomphe (France Scott 523J is pictured), Austrian issue picturing a post horn (Austria Scott 4N2 is pictured), and Italian Bari Wolf issue (Italy Scott 439 is pictured), which all have a place in topical collections. Postal historians wishing to specialize in the AMG area have a wide variety of AMG issues to focus on. Finding the many varieties of the AM Post issues for Germany on cover could keep you occupied for many years, especially if you want examples where the stamps are used to pay fees such as registration, special delivery, insurance, and postage due. Although some AMG issues are not hard to locate on cover, such as many AM Post and FTT Zone A issues, there are others that are quite challenging. Finding on-cover Korean stamps issued during the relatively short period of U.S. military administration from 1945 to 1948 is not easy, as there were only 26 different stamps issued and it is likely that most of those used were removed from the envelope or the envelope containing them was thrown away. Many revenue JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 39

Figure 13. Domestic surface letter to Eschenbach, Germany with three 8 Pfennig AM Post stamps (Scott 3N6a, 1945) paying the 24 Pfennig domestic surface rate.

Figure 14a. Ryukyu Islands classic opera issue (Scott 196, 3 Cents, 1970). Figure 14b. FTT Festival of the Mountain issue (Scott Italy Trieste 181 with “FTT” overprint on Italy Scott 634, 25 Lire, 1953) FDCs.

40 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

issues for VG and FTT Zone A are also quite hard to find used on-document as many of those documents were not retained after the need to show payment of the tax or fee had passed. Figure 12 pictures a cover mailed from Villach to Vienna in Austria and censored by the British military censor. The cover, which has 30 Groschen (Scott 4N12) and 12 Groschen (Scott 4N8) AMG stamps paying the domestic surface rate and registration fee, was mailed on October 18, 1945, and received on October 20, 1945, in Vienna. Covers showing payment of postal fees, such as registration, are much harder to find than those just paying the basic domestic rate. Figure 13 shows a typical AM Post cover with three 8 Pfennig Washington-printed stamps (Germany Scott 3N6a, 1945) paying the 24 Pfennig domestic surface rate for a letter sent on March 22, 1946, from Auerbach to Eschenbach, Germany, both within the U.S. occupied zone. First day cover (FDC) collectors will not feel left out, as there are FDCs available for many AMG regular issues, commemoratives, and some BoB issues. There are both addressed and unaddressed FDCs, with and without cachets. In many instances, there are multiple cachets for a single issue and cachet artists/creators who designed cachets for a wide range of issues. Thus, it is possible to develop a collection that is focused on either a single AMG issue or a cachet designer. FDCs are easiest to locate for the issues of the FTT and Ryukyu Islands, as those areas issued stamps over a longer time frame than any other AMG-administered areas.Figures 14a and b show FDCs for the 1953 FTT 25 Lire mountain festival issue and the 1970 Ryukyu Islands 3 Cent classic opera issue (Scott 196). Since AMG stamps and postal history cover such a broad range of collecting interests, it is only natural that many different types of collectors are drawn to AMG collecting. Despite the breadth of the AMG collecting area, a basic AMG collection containing one of each face-different AMG-issued stamp, although a challenge, is possible to complete, unlike a worldwide collection or even many country collections. An AMG collection also offers the opportunity to specialize, whether it be in the issues and postal history for a given country (e.g., Italy, Germany) or in a specific type of stamps (e.g., all revenue issues). Since my goal is to introduce readers to AMG collecting, I have only touched on a few of the possible ways to collect AMG

stamps. Once you have started down the AMG collecting path, many other options will present themselves. If you’re having trouble finding affordable new material for your current collecting area(s) or you are looking for an interesting new challenge, AMG collecting may be the solution. There is a group dedicated to the study of AMG collecting, the AMG Collectors’ Club (AMGCC), which is also an APS chapter. Dues in the AMGCC are only $20 a year and it publishes the A.M.G. Courier, a quarterly awardwinning journal (Large Silver at 2017 APS StampShow and Vermeil at 2020 Chicagopex). The AMGCC website (www. amgcollectors.org) also has an abundance of reference material, including album pages and back copies of the journal, available for download by members. Do yourself a favor and become an AMG collector today. You will not regret the decision. For information on joining the AMGCC, either go to the club website or contact the club Secretary/Treasurer, David Arking, via email at arkmail@comcast.net or mail at 223 Williamsburg Rd., Lansing, MI 48917. Comments about this article or general question regarding the AMGCC or AMG collecting area may be sent to me via email at rich@pedersonstamps.com or by mail at PO Box 662, Clemson, SC 29633. The photo negative in the header is of Catania, Sicily, in 1943, by photographer Nick Parrino. The Allied military government supplied flour for the towns hardest hit by the war after all local sources had been exhausted. Courtesy of Farm Security Administration - Office of War Information photograph collection (Library of Congress).

References

Wilcke, Harry W., M.D. (ed.). Bush A.M.G. Catalog – Handbook (Joseph V. Bush, Inc.; 1993). Cass, Harry, and Bush, Joseph (eds.). Bush – Cass Catalog of AMG Revenue Stamps (Joseph Bush; 1956). Houseman, Donna (ed.). Scott 2018 Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps & Covers (Amos Media Co.). Snee, Charles (ed.). Scott 2015 Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue, volumes 1-4 (Scott Publishing Co.)

he Author

Richard Pederson is editor of the A. M. G. Courier, webmaster for the AMGCC, the club’s APS representative, and a past president and vice president of the AMGCC.

For Further Reading Recommendations from the APRL research staff: A.M.G. Catalog-Handbook by Harry Cass. (Bonita, CA: Joseph V. Bush, 1958. G5700 .A1 C343am The AMG Story: The Philatelic Story of the Allied Military Government in Europe at the Close of World War II by

Harry Wilcke. (Columbus, OH: United States Possessions Philatelic Society, 1994. G5701 .O15 W667a 1994 A.M.G. Courier: The Journal of the AMG Collectors' Club by AMG Collectors' Club. (Clemson, SC: AMG Collectors' Club, 2015-Present). JOURNAL AMG Courier JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 41

From Hubble to Hale-Bopp and Other Stories KATRIN RAYNOR-EVANS

Figure 1. Visions of the Universe, designed by Robert Ball and issued in February 2020 by Royal Mail. 44 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

The Bicentenary of the Royal Astronomical Society

year ago, my article “A Stamp on the Universe” appeared in the January 2020 issue of The American Philatelist. Many readers have sent me parcels of their astronomy- and space-related philatelic material. I decided to write about some of the covers, and stamps that I have received. These gifts form an incredible historical timeline of achievements in space and have encouraged me to read deeply into the history of U.S. space research, comets, astronauts and Apollo missions, many of which are subjects I knew little about before now. I have also included a recent set of astronomy and space stamps issued on my side of the pond, which will allow me to kick off this article with a rather lovely set of colorful astronomy stamps issued at the beginning of 2020 in the United Kingdom.

On February 11, 2020, the Royal Mail issued a set of stamps to commemorate the bicentenary of the Royal Astronomical Society (RAS). Formed on January 12, 1820, at a tavern in London, the society has now grown to 4,000 members and is one of the most eminent societies in the world, promoting astronomy and geophysics. The issue, called Visions of the Universe, has eight stamps in total illustrating astronomical phenomena: Comet 67P, the Cats Eye Nebula, geysers on Enceladus, pulsars, Jupiter’s auroras, the galaxy Cygnus, gravitational lensing and black holes (Figure 1). Each stamp includes one simple line of text that describes phenomena which have been discovered or investigated by British astronomers and astrophysicists. For example, the 1st class Black Hole stamp displays the text “Black holes are super-dense regions of space” and is a nod to the English natural philosopher John Michell who first suggested their existence in 1783 and the famous late British professor and theoretical physicist, Stephen Hawking, who made predictions about their behaviour. Illustrated by London-based artist Robert Ball, the stamps are colorful in hues of blues and red and bring to life these amazing phenomena in a way that photographs certainly could not. In particular, the Black Hole stamp is based on the work of Dr. Ziri Younsi of University College London, who was part of the Event Horizon Telescope team that captured the ground-breaking first image of a black hole in 2019. Younsi shared computer models of his work on black holes with Robert Ball to inform the illustrated design. These stamps are a fitting celebration for the bicentennial of a prestigious society and the contributions of British scientists to research in this field.

Figure 2. The Black Hole pictorial cancellation used here pays homage to Stephen Hawking’s work in the study of black holes.

JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 45

Figure 3. The 1981 Space Achievement issues (Scott 1912-9) include one premature stamp depicting the Hubble Space Telescope (Scott 1919), which would not be launched until nine years after the issue.

Companies such as Benham and The Westminster Collection, and private organizations that produce their own official first day covers, can sponsor their own special handstamps or pictorial handstamps. These sponsored astronomy-themed handstamps have been used to cancel the stamps on certain Visions of the Universe covers and add to the delightful theme of the stamps. To obtain a special handstamp, the collector must affix the stamps to a cover and send it to special handstamp centers located throughout the UK, where it is stamped and returned to sender. For this issue, special handstamps include the original logo of the RAS – Herschel’s 40-foot telescope (the RAS unveiled a new, updated logo in January for its bicentenary) – an image of a black hole, and an illustration of the solar system (Figure 2).

Figure 4. Three custom covers canceled on important dates in the Hubble Space Telescope’s history: April 24, 1990, the date of Discovery’s launch; April 25, 1990, the date of the Hubble Space Telescope’s deployment; and April 29, 1990, the date that Discovery touched back down to Earth.

Figure 5. This combo cover marks three additional dates in Hubble Space Telescope’s history: May 21, 1981, the date of issue of the Comprehending the Universe stamp depicting the HST; April 24, 1990, the date of Discovery’s launch; and December 2, 1993, the date of Endeavor’s launch with the servicing team. 46 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Hubble Space Telescope On May 21, 1981, eight stamps were issued by the USPS at the Kennedy Space Center to commemorate the nation’s achievements in space (Scott 1912-9). One of the stamps depicts the Hubble Space Telescope (HST), which was set to be launched in October 1986; however, the Challenger disaster halted all space shuttle programs until a full investigation of why the shuttle broke apart 73 seconds after launch had been carried out. Hubble was finally launched on April 24, 1990. The 18¢ stamp displays the text “Comprehending the Universe” (Figure 3).

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) celebrated its 30th anniversary on April 24, 2020. In 1990, the telescope launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida aboard the orbiter Discovery. The telescope’s launch was the 35th mission of the space shuttle program and massively transformed our understanding of the universe and our place within it. Orbiting 340 miles above the Earth, the telescope has discovered moons orbiting Pluto, collected data about galaxies and even contributed data for research on black holes. In the past months I’ve received postmarks and signatures on covers that tell the story of Hubble to an extent. What follows are three custom covers depicting printed

Figure 6. These autographed covers were a gift to the author from collector John Macco. The four covers, all date stamped February 11, 1997, were signed by four Mission Specialists who were aboard Discovery. Macco sent the covers individually to the Astronaut Office at the Johnson Space Center with a request for signatures. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 47

Figure 7. A full sheet of the Apollo 11 airmail stamps (Scott C76), issued September 9, 1969.

cachets of the HST and date stamped with three key dates of the mission: April 24, 1990, the date of Discovery’s launch; April 25, 1990, the date that the telescope was deployed; and April 29, 1990, the date that Discovery touched back down to Earth (Figure 4). Each postmark is at Greenbelt, Maryland, which is home to the Goddard Space Flight centre, the control center for the HST. The custom covers are printed with an image of the HST orbiting the Earth. The mission number is printed below the image - Space Transportation System STS-31/ Space Shuttle Discovery, the shuttle that launched the HST into orbit. Two of the covers are embellished with a stamp that was issued for the 20th Universal Postal Congress on November 27, 1989, and depicts a shuttle involved in a midspace mail transfer. This stamp was issued as a set of four 48 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

with each stamp illustrating what postal delivery may look like in the future. The stamp affixed to the cover dated April 25, 1990, has an interesting history. It is a self-adhesive stamp depicting an Eagle and Shield (Scott 2431). Costing 25 cents, this selfadhesive imperforate stamp was unveiled on November 19, 1989, at the annual VAPEX stamp show in Virginia after a 15-year hiatus in the production of self-adhesive stamps. “Why the hiatus?” you may ask. One of the first selfadhesive stamps (Scott 1552), issued in 1974 and depicting a dove weathervane on the top of George Washington’s home, Mount Vernon, was deemed a failure due to the expense of production, the gum bleeding through onto the stamp paper and ease of re-using the stamps. Production was halted until 1989, when the USPS decided to try again,

this time using an acrylic-based adhesive. The Eagle and Shield was available to only fifteen cities in Virginia and deemed another failure because of the higher premium that customers had to pay for the stamp booklets. The USPS finally issued its first nationally distributed self-adhesive stamp, the 29¢ Eagle and Shield stamp, in 1992. When the first images from the HST were returned to Earth, there was a noticeable problem. The images were not as clear as they should have been and were significantly below the expected quality. Further analysis showed that the mirror had been ground into the wrong shape ever so slightly – a minor flaw, but enough to compromise the telescope’s use almost entirely. So, on December 2, 1993, with seven astronauts aboard Endeavour, Servicing Mission 1 was launched from the Kennedy Space Center to correct the problem (Figure 5). On February 11, 1997, seven further crew members were launched aboard Discovery to undertake repairs and upgrades of the HST. This was the 82nd mission of the space shuttle program. Four covers in my collection have been signed by four of the five Mission Specialists - Joseph Tanner, Mark Lee, Steven Smith, and Steven Hawley. Mark Lee and Steven Smith carried out three of the five EVAs (Extra Vehicular Activity) while Gregory Harbaugh, also a Mission Specialist and Joseph Tanner undertook the other two. Steven Hawley, already an accomplished astronaut, was part of STS-31, the mission that launched the HST in 1990 (Figure 6).

Apollo 11 One of the greatest achievements in U.S. space history, the Apollo program ran from 1961 to 1972. The Apollo 11 mission in particular will forever be stamped firmly in the

Figure 8. Mission patch for Apollo 11, courtesy of NASA on the Commons Flickr.

Figure 9. An cover autographed from Luboš Kohoutek, discoverer of Comet Kohoutek in 1973. The cover is date stamped January 15, 1974, the date of the comet’s closest approach to Earth. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 49

Figure 10. This cover is date stamped March 24, 1995 – two days after Hale-Bopp’s closest approach to Earth, and eight days before the comet passed perihelion. The cachet’s artwork comes from Alan Hale’s book Everybody’s Comet: A Layman’s Guide to Hale–Bopp.

history books in more ways than one for successfully sending mankind to the moon on July 20, 1969. An abundance of stamps, covers and other memorabilia were created to mark this occasion. Thanks to an exceptionally generous APS member, I have been sent a large amount of Apollo 11 material spanning 50 years, including a mint sheet of thirty-two 10¢ Moon Landing stamps issued on September 9, 1969, which is a wonderful new addition to my collection (Figure 7). The single stamp, designed by Paul Calle, was issued to celebrate mankind’s historic visit to our celestial neighbor and illustrates Neil Armstrong setting foot on the Moon, embarking from Eagle, the lunar lander. This stamp’s design was the subject of Chris Calle’s 50-year retrospective, published in the July 2019 issue of The American Philatelist. Using some of the Apollo 11 material that had been sent to me, I entered a Stanley Gibbons competition in May. The aim of the competition was to display, on a single page, a window into a significant moment in history. Judged by Peter Cockburn, vice president of the Royal Philatelic Society and Graham Winters, chair of the Association of British Philatelic Societies, I was one of the eight winners in the Master class with my exhibit called “We Choose to Go to the Moon in This Decade.” While working on my exhibit and sorting through the material, the most interesting detail that I came across relates to the Apollo 11 logo that had been designed for the mission by Aldrin, Collins and Armstrong (Figure 8). The logo depicting an Eagle clutching an olive branch appears regularly on covers and philatelic memorabilia, but it may have gone unnoticed to some that the illustration of Earth from the Moon is incorrect. The Earth phase, or “Terra 50 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

phase” is a term used to describe the sunlit portion of the Earth. During these phases, the shadow would never fall on the “left-hand side” of Earth. This mistake was never corrected, for reasons I have yet to find out!

Comets Comet Kohoutek is perhaps best remembered as the comet that never was. Discovered in 1973 by Luboš Kohoutek, a Czech astronomer, this icy visitor from the outer Solar System is a long-period comet, which means that it has an orbital period exceeding 200 years and we won’t see it again for another 75,000 years. The comet was hyped to be the comet of the century but unfortunately, it was not to be. The nakedeye comet largely disintegrated upon its approach to the Sun and consequently was not as bright as expected. I was sent a homemade cover signed by Kohoutek along with a note from the sender, dated July 15, 1974, asking Kohoutek to autograph the cover. An 8¢ black and orange stamp (U.S. Scott 1488) celebrating the 500th anniversary of the birth of Copernicus, famous 15-century astronomer, is affixed to the cover. The cover has been date stamped on January 15, 1974, the date of Kohoutek comet’s closest approach to Earth (74,940,000 miles) and a pictorial postmark cancels the stamp. Kohoutek returned the signed cover to the sender on August 25, 1974 (Figure 9). It has been 25 years as of July 2020 since comet HaleBopp was discovered; I remember in my teens, whenever nights were clear, gazing up at the comet hanging effortlessly in the dark. Moving across our skies for approximately 18 months, Hale-Bopp was the most observed comet of the twentieth century. Discovered independently by Alan Hale and Thomas Bopp in the United States on July 23, 1995, the comet passed perihelion, its closest approach to Earth,

on April 1, 1997, and shone bright at magnitude of +2, roughly the same brightness of Polaris, the North Star. However, due to its size (approximately 80 km) and proximity to Earth, even in light-polluted towns and cities, it was visible to the naked eye. I was sent a cover date stamped at Cloudcroft, New Mexico, where Alan Hale first made his discovery (Figure 10). Earlier this year, I had the privilege of interviewing Alan for the Sky at Night and The Society for Popular Astronomy. I asked him how he felt when he made the discovery: “I was very excited about the discovery. The comet was dim, at only 11th magnitude so I had no way of knowing at the time that it would turn out to be such a bright object . . . I figured that, at best, it might be a newly found short-period comet which would be returning every few years.” At the time of the discovery, Alan was observing two comets, 71P/Clark and 6P/d’Arrest. “I had finished observing 71P/Clark, and I had an hour or so to wait before 6P/d’Arrest became high enough to observe, so I passed the time by looking at deep-sky objects. When I turned the telescope to the globular star cluster M70 in Sagittarius I noticed a dimmer, fuzzy object in the same field of view.” Alan confirms that we have learned a great deal from the comet’s visit from the outer Solar System: “Many of the substances identified in Hale-Bopp have also been detected in interstellar gas and dust clouds and in forming planetary disks within those

clouds, so study of the comet has certainly helped fill in gaps in our knowledge about how planets form.” To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the discovery of Hale-Bopp, Alan has compiled Ice and Stone 2020, a weekly series of online presentations throughout 2020 covering small bodies of the solar system such as comets and asteroids. It is available at no charge to educators and students around the world from earthriseinstitute.org.

What Will the Future Bring? The celebration and commemoration of space achievements, technological advancements and discoveries throughout history has produced an endless, beautiful cornucopia of stamps, covers, postmarks and even numismatic delights. There are some really exciting events to look forward to in the coming years, as those who have followed the recent SpaceX launch in the U.S. will agree. This includes the launch of the James Webb Telescope on October 31, 2021, the European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter, which will begin scientific operations in November 2021, and the Mars Rover 2020 Perseverance landing on the red planet in February 2021. There is so much scope for future commemorations and celebrations of space exploration and astronomy. I think it is a rather exciting time for us stamploving astronomers, and I for one cannot wait to see what the world of philately holds.

he Author

Katrin Raynor-Evans is a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society and Royal Geographical Society. She is a member of the European Astronomical Society and Astro Space Stamp Society. She writes articles and interviews for popular astronomy magazines including the BBC Sky at Night, Stanley Gibbons and is the Features Editor for the Society for Popular Astronomy’s magazine, Popular Astronomy. She is co-authoring her first book. Asteroid 446500 Katrinraynor was recently named after her.

For Further Reading

Recommendations from the APRL research staff: Astronomy and Philately by Astro Study Unit, American Topical Association. (Milwaukee: American Topical Association, 1977). HE6183 .A1 A512a (ATA) No.90 Space Weather, A Philatelic Journey: Solar and Space Effects on Earth and Other Planets and on Humans and Their Technology by Garry Toth and Don Hillger. (Carterville, IL: American Topical Association, 2017). HE6183 .A1 A512a no.166 Astronomy on Stamps by Alphonse Mayernik. (Cam-

bridge, MA: Harvard College Observatory, 1962). HE6183 .A859 M468a The Official Halley’s Comet Collection Postage Stamp Catalog by InterPostal Philatelic Corporation. (Sag Harbor, NY: InterPostal Philatelic Corporation, 1989. HE6183 .S732 O32 Astrofax - Bulletin of the ATA Astronomy Study Unit by ATA Astronomy Study Unit. (San Antonio, TX: ATA Astronomy Study Unit, 1972-Present). JOURNAL Astrofax

JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 51

The Collector of Revenue BY RON LESHER

PAYING A TAX OR TAX EXEMPT

the last column, I examined the first aspect of the definition of revenues, governmental authority. Let us begin the current exploration with the first of the many purposes of revenue stamps, namely to show that a tax has been paid or that something is exempt from taxation. Stamps that were intended to pay a tax on various kinds of transactions that are recorded on paper are commonly called documentary stamps. Most stamp collectors attracted to revenues begin with the so-called First Issues Revenues, the first issues that collectors encounter in the revenue section of the Scott Specialized Catalogue of U.S. Stamps & Covers listings (Scott R1-102). Most, but not all of these are documentary stamps. That list of stamps is so lengthy because all were inscribed with the kind of document on which they were to be placed. In Figure 1, we see a stamp inscribed Bank Check and placed on the intended type of document, a bank check. The tax on bank checks, regardless of the amount to be paid, was two cents, and is appropriately covered by the documentary stamp. The wide variety of variously inscribed documentary

stamps, often in multiple denominations, made equal distribution to all parts of the country difficult. The requirement for the tax stamp to match the usage proved impractical, and was discontinued after a mere three months, at the end of December 1862. Nonetheless, most collectors of the First Issue relish finding these stamps on the intended type of document, even after the matching usage requirement was discontinued. Figure 2 shows a certificate stamp on a marriage certificate, another matching usage. Certificate stamps were required on any certificate with legal implications or standing. Interestingly, this marriage certificate is written in German, reflecting the large German immigrant population in the state of Pennsylvania, many of whom were still speaking German, or a dialect, Pennsylvania Dutch, which by the 1860s was no longer a written language. As a young boy, well I remember Pennsylvania Dutch being spoken by my grandparents when they did not wish me to understand what was going on! Most, but not all, of the First Issue revenue stamps were intended to be used on documents. Stamps inscribed

Figure 1. Check drawn on the Bank of the Republic with a 2¢ stamp (Scott R6c) inscribed Bank Check. 52 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Fgure 2. German language marriage certificate with a 10¢ stamp inscribed Certificate (Scott R33c).

“Proprietary” or “Playing Cards” were reserved for use on certain consumer goods such as matches, medicines, perfumes, or playing cards. Figure 3 shows an improper use of a 2¢ stamp inscribed “Playing Cards,” used on a bank check. This was in violation of the regulations. Since the tax was paid and there was no attempt to evade the tax, these improper uses appear to have been tolerated. Most collectors of the First Issue revenues seek to add such improper uses to their collections. In spite of collectors dubbing these stamps the First Issue revenue stamps, they were not the first adhesive revenue stamps used in the United States. The state of California used adhesive stamps as early as 1857 to collect taxes on bills of exchange, bills of lading (receipt of cargo shipments), and insurance policies. These adhesive stamps were validated with a handstamp showing the initials of the state controller. The example on a Second Bill of Exchange shown in Figure 4 is stamped with S.H.B, the initials of Samuel H. Brooks, who served from March 16, 1860, to November 20, 1861. Bills of Exchange functioned somewhat like bank checks, and were sent from California and other western states across the country for payment at a bank in New York

City. Because of the uncertainty of arrival in New York, the normal practice was to send two Bills of Exchange by different routes to the bank in New York and save a Third Bill in the company records for the unusual case that neither of the other two arrived safely. The Figure 4 example is a Second Bill of Exchange, and includes wording that it was to be paid, provided that the First Bill was unpaid. In other words, the first that arrived would be paid and the second that arrived would be ignored. There is no evidence that this particular bill was actually paid, so we can assume that the First Bill arrived and had already been paid. Nevertheless, all three bills were subject to the tax. California’s tax in this case was $1.00 for each of the bills over $400, up to and including $500. For the convenience of taxpayers, Internal Revenue also contracted with printers to imprint stamps on checks and other taxable documents during the Civil War era and lasting until June 30, 1883. In this way, the taxpayer did not have to worry about licking a stamp and pasting it on their check (Figure 5). In the example illustrated here, the contractor A. Trochsler of Boston used a design featuring the USS Monitor in the right portion of the design. Almost JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 53

Figure 3. Bank check with a 2¢ stamp inscribed Playing Cards (Scott R11c), a nominal improper use of a stamp reserved for playing cards, matches, medicines or perfume. CAR are the initials of check signer, canceling the stamp.

Figure 4. An 1861 Second Bill of Exchange sent from California for payment at the Bank of the State of New York, subject to the California state tax of $1.00 for bills over $400 and not exceeding $500.

all the recorded examples of this particular imprinted stamp are from the New England states. Significantly, there is one 1880 example recorded used in Savannah, Georgia. The USS Monitor could not have been a popular sight in Georgia ten years after the end of the Civil War, which makes the provenance of this imprint curious. Although we do not know for certain, I can easily imagine that a “carpetbagger” from New England went south after the end of the war and set up a business in Savannah. When it was time to get checks printed with imprinted stamps, the “carpetbagger” recalled his roots in New England and had them produced back home! Although the examples just described are all stamps for use on documents, these are still not the earliest examples of documentary taxes in the United States. Figure 6 shows a 1798 foreign bill of exchange written in Alexandria, Virginia, for 230 pounds sterling payable in Liverpool, England. There is an embossed seal for 50¢ (Scott RM102) in the upper left corner, the amount of federal tax due for 54 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

bills of exchange for $500 to $1000. My research shows that the value of 230 pounds sterling in 1798 was about $1,000 in United States currency (over $21,000 today). Perhaps of greater interest is that the embossed seal or stamp is inscribed for Maryland; the tax was collected by the federal Supervisor of Revenue for Maryland, even though there was a Supervisor of Revenue for Virginia. Such uses are fairly unusual. In the World War I era and after, the tax laws specified that the stamps for several of the documentary taxes had to have the name of the specific tax on them. This included taxes on future delivery transactions and stock transfers. Because of the enormous demands on the Bureau of Engraving & Printing because of the war, an expedient solution was implemented: one set of stamps for general documentary taxes, overprints for the stamps to be used for future delivery (Figure 7) and a different overprint for the stamps for use on stock transfers (Figure 8). This temporary measure for stock transfer stamps lasted thirteen years until

Figure 5. An example of a check which has had the 2¢ tax stamp imprinted on the check before it was delivered to the New England News Co. of Boston for its use.

Figure 6. An example of a bill of exchange subject to a fifty cent tax, with the payment shown by an embossed 50¢ stamp at the upper left corner. Paid in 1798, a very early use of documentary tax stamps.

1940, when they were replaced by a permanent design for showing the tax on stock transfers. These separate stamps easily allowed for Internal Revenue to track how much was collected for each tax category and advise Congress about the revenue implications of possible tax rate changes for these categories. All of the above examples involve taxes on some form of financial transaction or on legal documents, like the marriage certificate. These examples follow the pattern of the initiation of taxation in most countries. As societies evolved a middle class, additional taxes on consumable products were initiated. These are often referred to as excise taxes. Excise taxes generally target two kinds of products: luxury goods and goods that the government is trying to discourage. Perfumes were one of the luxury items taxed under the

general category of proprietary taxes during the Civil War era. Playing cards, sometimes known as the Devil’s cards because of their use in gambling, are an example of something in the same Civil War era that the government was trying to discourage. General proprietary stamps were issued for these excise taxes during the Civil War era – Figure 9 shows proprietary stamps canceled by Thomas Kensett & Co. and Ruth & Fleming, two canners in Baltimore, an example of luxury goods that were taxed beginning August 1, 1866. The tax was eliminated on most canned goods on March 1, 1867. Although canned goods may not seem like a luxury good today, after the Civil War canned goods grew in popularity due to their ubiquity and convenience for soldiers. In Figure 10 we see an example of a proprietary stamp canceled by a JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 55

Figure 7. Several examples of stamps used to pay the taxes on the contracts for the future delivery of commodities. The first example, with the handstamp “F.D.” (unlisted in Scott), was a provisional in use prior to the delivery of the proper stamps from Internal Revenue.

Figure 8. Several examples of stamps (Scott RD10, 12, and 21) used to pay the taxes on the sale or transfer of ownership of stocks.

Figure 9. The use of general proprietary stamps (Scott R3c) to pay the tax on canned goods by two Baltimore canners, Thomas Kensett & Co. and Ruth & Fleming.

playing card manufacturer, Samuel Hart & Co. Samuel Hart later ordered a stamp from the government with a design to be used by only one firm (Figure 11). This so-called private die proprietary stamp served the dual function of paying the tax and acting as trademark protection to discourage anyone who wished to imitate Hart’s cards and try to trade on the name of that firm. The taxation of alcohol and tobacco products are two more areas that fit into this discussion. Each of these encompasses a very large number of stamps. Both beer stamps and wine tax stamps are well covered in the Scott U.S. Specialized. But the area of distilled spirits – includ56 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Figure 10. The use of a general proprietary stamp (Scott R29c) to pay the tax on playing cards by Samuel Hart & Co.

ing alcohol warehousing, distilled spirits, wholesale liquor dealing, and rectified spirits stamps – for the most part is not covered in Scott. There is also a whole area of stamps that were applied to bottled spirits which are not truly tax stamps, even though they denote that the taxes have been paid. The catalogers of state revenue stamps have dubbed these “liquor seals,” to differentiate them from the stamps that actually collected the taxes on alcohol. In addition, the field of United States tobacco taxpaids is totally untouched by the Scott U.S. Specialized. This includes stamps for Class A and Class B cigarettes, cigars, small cigars, snuff, and pipe or chewing tobacco. I leave each of these fields for a

Figure 11. The use of a private die proprietary stamp (Scott RU9b) for paying the tax on the playing cards manufactured by Samuel Hart & Co.

later discussion, because in number of stamps each comes close to the size of the entire listings of revenue stamps in the Scott U.S. Specialized. Instead, I move to the interesting area of special tax stamps that most stamp collectors, when they encounter them, say are not stamps. These are known as special tax stamps because those three words appear on these overly large pieces of paper (Figure 12). The item in Figure 12 measures about 6 1/4 inches wide by 6 inches tall. Before 1920 these special tax stamps measured about 11 1/2 inches wide and 7 1/4 inches tall. These are much better understood if we look at their function: to collect annual taxes on certain occupations. Once again, this is a vast field of revenues, embracing occupations dealing with tobacco, alcohol, and medicinal narcotics. There are additional occupations, but this will suffice for this overview of paying these annual occupational taxes. The size of the special tax stamps are a turnoff to many collectors; those in use prior to 1920 were even larger! There is an interesting story from about forty years ago, when the president of the American Revenue Association decided to enter his exhibit of special tax stamps in a World Series of Philately show. When the judges saw this exhibit, they told the show committee that they were not going to judge this exhibit, because it was not an exhibit of stamps. When informed

Figure 12. Special tax stamp for paying the annual occupational tax for a Brewer of at least 500 barrels of beer (15,500 gallons).

Figure 13. Export beer stamp from the Act of June 1890 used to designate that the beer was exempt from taxes. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 57

Figure 14. Export beer stamp for bottled beer used in the 1890s to designate that it was exempt from tax.

of that decision, the exhibitor asked the show committee to open the frames so he could remove his exhibit. He then told them that not only would he never exhibit again, but that he did not plan to attend any national level stamp shows again. To the best of my knowledge that exhibitor kept his word. Today, an exhibit of special tax stamps would be accepted and judged. Just as we have explored these stamps that were issued to pay a tax, there are several stamps used by Internal Revenue to designate that something was exempt from a tax. We will look at just two of these stamps, both used to identify that beer (“fermented liquor”) was exempt from tax because the beer was designated for export. There were advantages for both the brewery and government. The nonpayment of taxes only to be refunded upon export was (1) preservation of the brewery’s capital and (2) elimination of paperwork for the government. These export stamps for beer were first initiated by a law passed in June 1890. Stamps issued for this purpose could be used on different sizes of kegs by cut-

ting off the coupons on the left. It appears that this stamp (Figure 13) was intended for a quarter barrel of beer but was never used. The export beer stamp in Figure 14 was to be applied to beer that had been bottled. Again, this stamp could be used for multiple sized containers. It has been cut off for six gallons. Neither of these stamps should appear in a local store or tavern. Only kegs of beer with a taxpaid stamp on them should have ever been seen at the local bars in this country. Both of these beer examples and stamps for export of various kinds of tobacco products are rather scarce in general – especially used examples, which would have had to make their way back to this country after they had been exported. This concludes our brief survey of stamps issued to show the payment of a tax or to designate that a product is exempt from tax because it will be exported. My purpose here was not to be comprehensive, but to illustrate a broad range of examples that fulfill this one of many possible functions of revenue stamps.

For Further Reading

by Brewster Kenyon. (Long Beach, CA : Brewster C. Kenyon, 1920). G3701 .R451 K37d

Recommendations from the APRL research staff:

An Introduction to Revenue Stamps by Bill Castenholz. (Pacific Palisades, CA: Castenholz & Sons, c1994). G3701 .R451 C349i Introduction to United States Revenue Stamps by Richard Friedberg. ( Sidney, OH: Linn’s Stamp News, 1994). G3701 .R451 F899i 1994a Documentary State Revenue Stamps of the United States 58 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

An Historical Reference List of the Revenue Stamps of the United States, Including the Private Die Proprietary Stamps by George Toppan. (Pacific Palisades, CA: Castenholz and Sons, 1990). G3701 .R451 T675h 1899 Reprint 1990 The Revenue Stamps of the United States by Christopher West and Elliot Perry. (Pacific Palisades, CA: Castenholz and Sons, 1979). G3701 .R451 W516r 197

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www.garyposnerinc.com • GaryPosnerInc@aol.com

1950s

Cataloging U.S. Stamps CHARLES POSNER

3¢ OKLAHOMA STATEHOOD (Scott 1092)

The making of the stamp When Postmaster General Arthur Summerfield issued a statement on November 2, 1956, of five commemorative stamps his department intended to issue during 1957, it came as no surprise that one was to be included to mark the golden anniversary of the granting of statehood to the Oklahoma Territory. The enthusiasm of Oklahoma institutions combined with the skillful advocacy of its energetic governor Raymond Daniel Gary (1908-1993) was behind Summerfield’s announcement. In May 1953, the Drumright newspaper publisher and editor Lou Stockton Allard (1909-1974), an enterprising member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives, secured the unanimous support of that legislative body to establish an Oklahoma Semi-Centennial Commission to arrange statewide events in honor of Oklahoma’s admission to the American Union. Oklahoma Governor Gary named the commission charged with coordinating local events, which included rodeos, parades, festivals, pioneer days and Native-American ceremonial dances. It was inevitable that

Allard should serve as its chair. The first land rush in what is present-day Oklahoma occurred on April 22, 1889, and statehood came into effect on November 16, 1907. As a result, the Commission scheduled a bevy of statehood semi-centennial events to take place between April 22 and November 16, 1957. The Commission’s foremost goals were to ensure that each city and town would organize its own celebrations, that a statewide fair be organized at the State Fair Grounds in the capital, and that tourists from all over the country would be attracted by slogans such as “Visit Oklahoma First,” “From Tepees to Towers,” and, what became the central theme of the celebration, “From Arrows to Atoms.” From the outset, it pressed for the Post Office Department to give philatelic recognition to the event. In this endeavor the Commission had the unanimous support of the state government, in particular of the governor and the business community and trade unions. While it was a foregone conclusion that a stamp would be issued, there was considerable discussion about how

Figure 1. Three vertical essays for the Oklahoma stamp, courtesy of the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum Library, the Third Assistant Postmaster General Stamp Design Files.

60 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Figure 2. The slightly odd horizontal design that was approved for the Oklahoma statehood stamp. Courtesy of the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum Library.

in Oklahoma City – exactly 51 years after Congress had passed an Enabling Bill to set in motion the march towards statehood. On February 9, 1957, Bureau of Engraving and Printing artists submitted four designs for Summerfield’s consideration, and he promptly made his choice. Three of the submissions were vertically arranged and one had a horizontal layout (Figure 1). Each of the Figure 3. Scott 1092 and 1087 (Polio Prevention) shared designs featured the theme the dubious honor of “Worst “Arrows to Atoms” and the Design” from a Linn’s poll of wording “50th Anniversary that year. of Statehood” or, in the case of the horizontal model, “50th Anniversary of Oklahoma Statehood.” The centerpiece of the vertical stamps was the exposition logo, consisting of a symbolic arrow piercing an atom. Two of these designs contained a tiny map of Oklahoma at the center of the atom atop the shaft of the arrow. One had a larger map located behind the symbol. They were true to the impressive 190-foot-tall steel and corrugated arrow and atom sculpture that was erected to tower over the fairgrounds. Located at the heart of the exposition site, it served as its symbol and centerpiece. One might ask why BEP designer William Schrage proposed a horizontal layout (Figure 2). The vertical layout allows the depiction of the tower in its full glory. In the horizontal version, however, the tower, flipped on its side, looks at best like an arrow about to be fired or an

many stamps should be issued. Oklahoman business interests and the state’s congressional delegation would have preferred two stamps: the first to be issued at Oklahoma City on April 22, the date of the 1889 land rush when the territory of Oklahoma was opened to settlement by European Americans, and the second on November 16, the date when statehood was granted, to be issued at Guthrie, the former state capital. The two dates were widely promoted by the tourist industry, as it meant that visitors would come from spring to autumn. It was proposed that the design of the April 22 stamp would feature the semi-centennial theme “Arrow to Atoms.” The lawyer Earl P. Enos suggested that the November stamp have as its centerpiece a map delineating the Indian and Oklahoma territories that coalesced to form a single entity. On the left the map would be flanked by an image of the bronze sculpture by Percy Bryant Baker (1881-1970) called the “Pioneer Woman”; on the right, a portrayal of the statue by Jo Davidson (1883-1952) of the Oklahoma-born humorist and prominent member of the Cherokee Nation, William Pen Adair “Will” Rogers (1879-1935). Will Rogers already appeared on a 3¢ postage stamp in 1948 as an extension of the Famous American Series (Scott 975). To complicate the process of deciding the venue for the first day of issue ceremony, the Oklahoma Philatelic Society announced that, as Tulsa would be the site of its annual convention to be held during the week of November 16, the stamp should be issued there. When it became clear that the policies of the Post Office Department would allow only one stamp to be issued, the tourist industry weighed in. Its representatives argued that April 22 was too early in the year and November 16 too late. They wanted a date that coincided with the June state fair organized by the Commission. For that rea- Figure 4. The official semi-centennial emblem, right, uses the son, Postmaster General Summerfield slogan “Teepees to Towers,” as does the Artmaster cachet on the first day cover, left. Emblem courtesy of Oklahoma City opted for the date of June 14, to coin- Chamber of Commerce Collection, and cover courtesy of APS cide with the opening of the exposition StampStore.

JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 61

oddly designed parliamentary mace. Schrage also included a much-enlarged map of the state in his design. His model was accepted by the Post Office Department on February 9 and the die proof was approved on April 5.

The design The awkward design of the semi-centennial stamp is a good example of what happens when there are too many cooks in the kitchen. The Commission made several suggestions, and Governor Gary intervened at an early stage of the process. He wanted the stamp to serve as publicity for the June 14-July 7 “America’s New Frontiers Exposition,” to be held at the Oklahoma City fairgrounds. The central motif of the stamp is a horizontal arrow superimposed on a solid outline map of the state of Oklahoma. The arrow pierces the atomic symbol of interwoven ellipses, representing electron paths that supposedly symbolize atomic energy. The arrow epitomizes the frontier days of Oklahoma prior to its attainment of statehood in 1907, and the atomic symbol represents the promise of science, a veritable new frontier. Across the top of the stamp the text reads, “1907 Arrow to Atoms 1957” and across the bottom, “3¢ United States Postage.” Both are in dark Gothic typeface. Arranged over five lines within the eastern half of the map of the state is the wording “50th Anniversary of

Oklahoma Statehood” in white-faced Gothic. The design was not wildly popular with philatelists. In the annual poll undertaken by Linn’s, it shared the accolade of worst design of the year with the Polio stamp (Scott 1087, Figure 3). For members of the newly constituted Citizens’ Stamp Advisory Committee, it represented everything they wished to change in postage design.

The subject The history of modern Oklahoma begins with the forced removal during the 1830s of the “five civilized tribes” – the Cherokee, Muscogee (Creek), Seminole, Chickasaw, and Choctaw nations – from their lands as a result of the Indian Removal Act of 1830, which resulted from an insatiable hunger for land and the discovery of gold in Georgia in 1828. Historians have compared the forced removals to “death marches” because of the large number of people who died on route. They were dragooned into present-day eastern Oklahoma. In this land, called “Indian Territory,” the “five civilized tribes” enacted their own constitution and established democratic systems of government and courts of law. However, this did not stop incursions by European Americans, particularly when oil was discovered in 1857. The land to the west of “Indian Territory” was opened for settlement in 1889 and European American settlers

3¢ OKLAHOMA STATEHOOD Technical information: Date of issue: June 14, 1957 Catalogue numbers: Scott 1092 Designer: William Karl Schrage Vignette engraver: Matthew Daniel Fenton Letter engraver: George L. Huber Color: dark blue (Scott); blue (Post Office Department) Format: Electric eye plates of 200 divided into 4 post office panes of 50 by horizontal gutters - arranged 5 horizontally by 10 vertically Perforation: 11 x 10 ½. Size: 0.84 x 1.44 inches (21.34 mm x 36.58 mm) Printing: Bureau of Engraving and Printing, using a Cottrell Electronically Actuated Web Press Anomalies: None. Quantity issued: 102,219,500 Plate. No. Impressions Printed 25683 140,542 May 21, 1957 25684 145,655 May 17, 1957 25685 145,655 May 17, 1957 25686 140,542 May 21, 1957 First day site: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma First day covers serviced: 327,172 62 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Figure 5. The “Arrows to Atoms” semicentennial of statehood arrow, courtesy of Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce Collection.

Figure 6. The Oklahoma Philatelic Society designed the blue and gold cachet on this first day cover canceled from the Boomtown Post Office.

staked claims to what previously had been Native American territory. Further land runs occurred between 1891 and 1895. The area became Oklahoma Territory. In 1905, representatives from the Cherokee, Seminole, Creek, Choctaw and Chickasaw nations submitted a draft constitution for the state of Sequoyah, which Congress refused to consider. The tribes joined representatives of the Oklahoma Territory to promote the acceptance of a single state. On June 14, 1906, after years of attempting to obtain statehood for Oklahoma and the Indian territories as one or two states, Congress passed an enabling act calling for a constitution convention of members from the Oklahoma and Indian Territories and the Osage nation to draft the fundamental law required for admittance to the Union. On September 17, 1907, in a referendum, the residents of the two territories voted in favor of statehood, and on the following November 16, President Roosevelt issued Presidential Proclamation 780 admitting Oklahoma as the fortysixth state of the Union.

First day ceremony Almost two months prior to the first day of issue ceremony, on April 22, 1957, statewide events were inaugurated in Guthrie with a parade (Figure 4). The “Arrows to Atoms” two-hundred-foot-tall tower at the Oklahoma City state fairgrounds was dedicated and lit (Figure 5). Actor Joel McCrea, who starred in the movie The Oklahoman (1957), participated in the Guthrie parade, and joined the lighting ceremony at the state fairgrounds. On opening day of the four-weeklong fair, the entrance to the 320-acre site was arranged to resemble pioneer stockades. Governor Raymond Gary, wielding a golden tomahawk, split the lone barrier at the entrance for the

formal inauguration of the festivities. Towering above the fairground was the flamboyant symbol of the semi-centennial, an elongated arrow piercing an atom, erected in the center of the grounds. Banners abounded, including one proclaiming that the purpose of the exposition was to bring the “frontiers of science to the man in the street.” The stamp was issued on the second day of the exposition at State Fair Grounds in Oklahoma City. On the designated day, at 1:30 pm, Friday, June 14, 1957, despite an intermittent dousing by rain, Master of Ceremonies Harold B. Groh (1908-1999), president of Oklahoma City Chamber of Commerce and general manager for Southwestern Bell, opened the proceedings. Governor Raymond Gary and Mayor Allen Morgan Street (1885-1969) of Oklahoma City extended a welcome to the assembled guests. Following a presentation of the dignitaries, Abe McGregor Goff (1899-1984), general counsel of the Post Office Department, mistakenly declaring that more than one postage stamp had been issued, delivered the principal address saying, “Today’s opening

Figure 7a. A combo cover canceled in Oklahoma City on June 14, 1957, the first day of issue of the semi-centennial stamp, and November 16, 1982, the actual 75th anniversary of Oklahoma’s statehood. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 63

of this magnificent America’s New Frontiers exposition will post office claimed that the stamp would be “more valuable further serve to remind the entire world of the strides made for collectors than ordinary issues” because initially only by this and other areas of the dynamic southwest.” He then 80 million were printed. The Post Office Department was proceeded to the ceremonial presentation of the traditional half expecting a rise in the cost of first-class postage and leather-bound souvenir albums. As always, each album contherefore printed fewer stamps than the 120,000,000 that tained a sheet of stamps autographed by Postmaster General had become common by the middle of the 1950s. When it Summerfield. became clear that the request for an increase in the cost of a In terms of philately, beginning on January 1, 1957, the first-class stamp would not be accepted, however, the printOklahoma City post office placed a cancellation publicizing ing was jacked up to 102,219,500. the exposition in use. The towns of Enid and Guthrie also applied special cancellations. There was an exhibit in a railway mail van, and a highway mail bus was used to dispatch mail from the fair. A marking of “HPO” for Highway Post Office or “PTS” for Post Transportation Service was applied. Twenty-seven year old Ray Yanosko, an instructor at Fort Sill 617th Field Artillery Observation Battalion, who helped man the Boomtown Post Office, designed official blue and gold first day covers for the Oklahoma Philatelic Society (Figure 6). On the left side of the cachet is a drawing in blue of the exposition’s Boomtown. Above it was the contemporary Oklahoma City Figure 7b. FDC with cachet by Ken Boll. Courtesy of APS StampStore. skyline. The Arrow and Atoms symbol was in gold. As for the lettering, “Oklahoma” is on the far left of the design and “Semi-Centennial Exposition June 14-July 7” across the top. A special non-official “Boomtown USA” cancellation in red ink was affixed on request. The Oklahoma Philatelic Society also arranged an exhibition of early covers from the Oklahoma and Indian Territories. The Post Office Department sent a special crew, led by Ralph David, to assist the Oklahoma authorities in dealing with the influx of request for first day covers (Figures 7a-c). Enthusiastic officials of the Oklahoma City Figure 7c. FDC with block of Scott 1092s and an Artcraft cachet, courtesy of APS StampStore.

For Further Reading Recommendations from the APRL research staff: “Indian Territory, Oklahoma, and the Neutral Strip” by George H. Shirk., 1955. American Philatelic Congress Book. The Butterfield Overland Mail through eastern Oklahoma by I.C. Gunning. (Oklahoma City: Eastern Oklahoma 64 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Historical Society, 1965. G4021 .E968 G976b Oklahoma Post Offices by Sharon McAllister. Oklahoma City: S. McAllister, 2001. G4021 .P855 M114o First Post Offices within the Boundaries of Oklahoma by George Shirk, George H. -- [Oklahoma City? OK]: Oklahoma Philatelic Society, 1948. G4021 .P855 S558f

Adventures in Expertizing BY Ken Martin APS Director of Expertizing kpmartin@stamps.org

get lots of phone calls, the majority of which are from individuals who believe they have very valuable stamps. One caller this month claimed he has at least 50 copies of U.S. Scott 596. I told him I did not think it was likely as only 15 copies of the stamp are known and ten of those have Kansas City bureau precancels. To avoid disappointment I suggested that he just submit one example each of three or four of his rarities and wait for the results rather than submit hundreds of stamps at once. This individual was not a collector and not familiar with the Scott catalog. However, if he were, I also would have suggested that he review the identifier of definitive issues at the front of the Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps & Covers. Scott 596 is design type A155 and there are 16 catalog numbers issued for this design (which is not quite as overwhelming as the 43 listed for the 2¢ Washington Franklin design type A140.) Disappointment may be avoided if the other catalog numbers for the design type can be eliminated. And when there are tremendous differences in value for the different catalog numbers, think about whether a relatively low value stamp could be altered to resemble a more valuable variety. For ex- Figure 1. The Kiusalas gauge ample, could perforations measures U.S. perforations and offers a more accurate have been added to an measurement, as not all “perf inexpensive imperforate 11s” are created equal. stamp? Or perhaps could perforations have been trimmed off one or more sides of a sheet stamp to resemble a coil or imperforate? A very narrow stamp or very small margins may be a sign that perforations have been added to an imperforate or coil stamp. For United States stamps, an investment in a Kiusalas perforation gauge could also pay dividends (Figure 1). Perforations were first measured in Europe and the European method uses the number of perforations per two millimeters. In contrast, U.S. perforating machines have had pins that do 66 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

the perforating spaced in 1000s of an inch – NOT in millimeters. The Kiusalas gauge measures U.S. spaced perforations. Your stamp may appear to be properly perforated 11, but there are three different sizes of U.S. perforated 11 U.S. stamps. Perforated 11-72 (72 represents the thousands of an inch between the center of perforation holes) was first used

Figure 2. The same stamp measured against perf 11-72 and 11-70. The 11-72 is the correct measurement. Table 1. Specialist Gauge readings of the 1908-1923 Washington-Franklin designs for easy identification. Courtesy of stampexpertizing.com.

SCOTT No.

SPECIALIST GAUGE

331-342

12-66

348-356

12-66

357-366

12-66

374-382

12-66

385-389

12-66

390-396

8.5-95

405-407

12-66

410-413

8.5-95

414-423

12-66

424-440

10-79

423A

12-66 X 10-79

423B

12-66 X 10-79

423C

12-66 X 10-79

423D

10-79 X 12-66

423E

10-79 X 12-66

441-447

10-79

448-458

10-80

SCOTT No.

SPECIALIST GAUGE

460

10-79

461

11-72

462-478

10-79

486-497

10-80

498-518

11-72

519

11-72

525-530

11-72

536

12.5-63

538-541

11-72 X 10.80

542

10-80 X 11-73

543

10-80

544

11-72 or 11-73 at top or bottom or both X 11-72

545-546

11-72

546a

11-72 X 11-72 X 11-72 X 10-80

in 1915 on two cent watermarked stamps and became generally used in 1917 on all flat plate issues (Figure 2). It was also used from 1918-22 on offset printings and rotary and more recently on Giori Press Stamps. Perf 11-73 was also used from 1917-22, though it is not as common as 11-72. The diameter of the perf holes are larger than the 11-72, being the same size as perf 10s. And perf 11-70 was used in combination with 10½ - 75 Rotary issues (Figure 3). If your stamp has the wrong perforations, they have probably been added. In addition to phone calls, other inquiries come by email. Earlier this week, a member asked me: “I have nine Sardinia stamps, which, according to the catalog have a high value. Is there any way of knowing if they are legitimate without paying for expertizing?” With reference materials and study, she might be able to form an educated opinion, but if the catalog notes that counterfeits or forgeries are common for a high value stamp, it will not sell easily without an expert certificate. We also recently had an inquiry about becoming an expert on the APEX Expert Committee. We are always happy to hear from members who are qualified and interested in helping. Offering expertizing services for all countries is very challenging. Many of our 180 experts cover only a sin-

Figure 3. The same block measured against perf 11-70 and 11-73. Perf 11-70 is the correct measurement.

gle country, and in a few cases, only a single issue of stamps. In order for all items to be reviewed by at least two outside experts, we realistically need at least three experts for every area, in case of vacations, health issues (unfortunately, some of our experts have had COVID-19), or even dangerous weather evacuations. Also, several of our experts are dealers and cannot be consulted on stamps that they sold. More experts are needed for areas with significant submissions. We currently have 75 experts for United States stamps but only three primary experts for U.S. Washington Franklins issues – and that really is not enough. We currently have five experts for the German area and would welcome additional help. APEX does not have a single test to determine if someone is qualified, but we do expect positive recommendations and references. In some cases, we may be able to find a mentor to help a potential expert. A large percentage of our experts are dealers, exhibitors and/or authors. Several have previously or presently provide their expertise for other expertizing services. Most have collected the stamps they review for 30 years or more and have their own reference collection and library. Because of postage and insurance issues, APEX experts need to reside in the United States, although occasionally we turn to an expert abroad to help with typing or plating of a stamp or review of an overprint based on scans. We ask experts to review and return items within two weeks of receipt (we provide the return postage), complete a checklist for each item, and when they find an item to be a forgery or counterfeit to give a brief explanation of why to share with the submitter. For this work we pay them $2 per item (and many generously donate the payment back to the APS). Our external experts’ names are not included on our certificates and some ask that their name not be released as an APS expert. A few areas where additional experts are currently sought: Belgian Congo Belgium British Commonwealth Bulgaria Canal Zone Czechoslovakia Diego Suarez France Haiti Germany Italy Japan Middle East Monaco Netherlands Rouad, Ile Samoa Scandinavia Switzerland Member questions related to expertizing are welcome and can be sent to me at kpmartin@stamps.org. If you are interested in becoming an expert (for the listed or any other philatelic areas) please contact me at the same address or at 814-933-3817. Please include a list of the types of material you would like to expertize as well as a brief description of your qualifications. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 67

My Stamp Story:

Ardis Quick

started collecting U.S. stamps when I was ten. Mystic or put them into a topical Stamp Company was my go-to dealer for new stamps. book at the Northern PhilaMy “album” at the time was a photo album where you telic Library located in Minpull back the cover sheet to expose the tacky page where neapolis. you mount pictures, or in my case, stamps. Oh, do I hear I have been a member at you all groaning? – what did I know, I was only ten! the Library for the past three Four years ago, at age 62, I attended my first stamp years and volunteered to organize and load donated stamps show. I was invited to join the Maplewood Stamp Club of into over 90 Red Boxes. I’ve added a small topical collecWhite Bear Lake, Minnesota. tion of donated stamps to the library. One meeting a month and $5 Presently I am working on designing dues, what could I lose? I did and pulling together games, puzzles, not lose anything, but gained etc. that are stamp related and making the friendship of a whole bunch an activity book that can be given to of people who enjoy stamp colkids, young and old. lecting. One of my other hobbies is quiltAfter the first year in the ing. I found some postage stamp fabric stamp club, I decided to get seand decided to make a lap quilt for an rious and bought my first Scott upcoming stamp club auction. HowMinuteman album for my U.S. ever, our club hasn’t met in person stamps. I understood quickly since February because of COVID-19, my mistake at age 10 as I pulled Handmade masks with postage stamp fabric. so instead of making the quilt, I made my first two stamps out of the 100 face masks and mailed one to each photo album. They were demolmember as a little surprise with our ished, of course. With great care I was able to remove most July newsletter. We have had the pleasure of resuming without damage. I am still working to fill a few holes in meetings and auctions over Zoom in recent months. my 20th century book. That’s where my collection startA stamp club member introduced me to another stamp ed but it has since grown to 15 albums that include the Canal Zone (I find the engineering of the Panama Canal interesting), an eclectic Abraham Lincoln collection of stamps, covers, coins and other Lincoln materials, U.S. revenue stamps (still waiting to be organized) and cats. One of my first Mystic Stamp packets was cats on stamps. As I began attending more stamp shows in my area, I started looking for cat stamps to add to my slowly growing collection. I am a big cat person and look for all felines, whether wild or domestic. My cat collection now has over 2,600 stamps – I am known as the “Crazy Cat Lady” by several dealers. I am no longer surprised to hear, “Hey, I’ve got something for you,” and discover a packet of cat stamps they have laid aside for me. I share any duplications with two teenage girls in the club A cover sent through the Art Cover Exchange. 68 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

related group last year called ACE, otherwise known as Art Cover Exchange. Members design cachets to send to each other. As I love to draw and collect stamps, this was a perfect fit. I correspond and share my art with members in New Zealand, Israel, and across the U.S. I would like to acknowledge the Maplewood Stamp Club members and the Northern Philatelic Library. Through them I have learned so much about collecting, displaying and identifying stamps. Over the last two years I have entered exhibits in the Minnesota State Fair (earning a ribbon for each entry), given a presentation on topical stamp collecting with a highlight on cats, and helped identify and file stamps at the library. Now stamp collecting is so much more to me than just sticking a stamp in an album! Ardis with an exhibit for the Minnesota state fair.

WOULD YOU LIKE TO TELL YOUR STAMP STORY?

Please send us yours, in 500 words or less. Please include a picture of yourself and your stamp collection. Email your submission to aparticle@stamps.org or mail a typewritten copy to: American Philatelic Society, 100 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, PA 16823 Attn: Stamp Story

Albums! Boxes! Collections! Chris knows that many collectors and dealers like to buy their stamps by the book full, or the box full. That’s why our regular Auctions are bulging with a wide variety of bulk lots in every price range.

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Buying China, Japan Korea: stamps & covers PR China Buy Price for Mint, NH XF Scott # We Pay Scott # We Pay

344a 100 1211-14 357a 200 1399 542-59 400 1433 566a 400 1452 620-7 800 1483 620i-7i 2,500 1492 628 8,000 1518 716-31 450 1540 782 800 1586 798a 1,400 1607e 967-80 1,500 1647a 996a 2,500 1761

150 250 130 140 70 300 700 100 900 200 90 100

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Rising Sun Stamps 3272 Holley Terrace, The Villages, FL 32163-0068 Phone: 352-268-3959 E-mail: haruyo_baker@msn.com JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 69

Buy and Sell BY Carol Hoffman Director of Sales choffman@stamps.org

A New Year for Circuit and Internet Sales

appy New Year! Let me introduce myself. I am Carol Hoffman, the new Director of Sales. I have been with the American Philatelic Society in Circuit Sales since 1979, where I started as a Retirement Clerk. Since then, I’ve moved on to various positions in between, and to my current position as Director of Sales. I never pictured myself becoming a collector, but as years passed, I became a collector of pigs on stamps. Some people have asked, “Why pigs?” and my response is that they are fascinating animals. I find myself leaning towards pig-related postal history and have found some neat items at stamp shows. The best part of my job is interacting with members, whether it be by phone, email, at shows, or the American Philatelic Center. So, let me offer you a suggestion for the holiday season: Why not make a New Year’s resolution to add a new country or work on your existing stamp collection? The APS is here to help you to carry out this resolution through Circuit Sales and StampStore – and both can be enjoyed from the comfort of your home. Circuits are mini stamp stores sent to your home for a hands-on shopping experience. Each circuit book caters to specific collecting interests and areas, and the contents are sold by APS members like you. Join by simply filling out a circuit request form at: https://classic.stamps.org/Circuit-Request. StampStore is an online shopping experience at stampstore.org. The search page gives users the opportunity to find very specific items, look for topicals, or browse through the offerings of different stamp-issuing entities. Each item has a high quality scan so you can get a closer look before you buy. Both StampStore and circuit books are excellent resources for anyone whose resolution is to add to their collection. Maybe your resolution is to downsize your collection. If so, both Circuit Sales and StampStore can help you sell your extra stamps or collection – and as you’ve read in the column many times before, the Circuit and Internet Sales team takes this work right out of your hands. To sell through Circuit Sales visit https://stamps.org/how-to-sell-thru-mail, and to find out how to sell through StampStore, visit https://stamps.org/services/how-to-sell-online.

Don’t Forget! Club schedules for 2021 were mailed in October 2020. If your club has not returned its schedule, do so as soon as possible to avoid circuit book interruption.

70 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

APRL Notes BY Scott Tiffney Librarian & Director of Information Services stiffney@stamps.org

A Year of Digital Growth

“The chief beauty about time is that you cannot waste it in advance. The next year, the next day, the next hour are lying ready for you. You can turn over a new leaf every hour if you choose.” -Arnold Bennett

goes without saying that the year 2020 was a challenging one for all of us. COVID-19 introduced us to regularly wearing masks, social distancing, contact tracing, and herd immunity to name a few societal shifts. Here at the American Philatelic Center and the American Philatelic Research Library it was no different. From being closed entirely for the initial two months of the pandemic to being open with a partial staff, finally by the end of the year, a little more normality set in with the library and the library staff.

Keeping in Contact Through Service Along the way we repositioned our services to focus on those requests that came in remotely via mail, phone and email, even going so far as to introduce curbside pickup and drop-off services for those members that could come by the APC. Here at the APRL, the staff made every effort to reach out and keep in contact with our library patrons through the new work environment – and the response received from library users was overwhelming. In the months after the staff returned to the library, there was a steady increase in the number of reference and research requests received

Figure 1. Library requests have been slowly but consistently increasing. 72 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

by the library, each month surpassing the next (Figure 1). So too, back in June it was decided to open the library’s digital collections database, APRL Digital, to both members and non-members. The results were dramatic. Normally reserved as a benefit of APS membership, due to the pandemic and the fact that many of our members and regular library visitors could not use the library and its resources in person, the APRL provided free access to the database, giving everyone the opportunity to research their own library requests from home. Starting in late June and early July, the database saw an exponential increase in the number of unique users using the database (Figure 2). In addition to that, roughly a third of those using the database in the last six months of 2020 were non-APS members, giving the APS and APRL the opportunity for member recruitment.

Continuing the Outreach and Looking Ahead The growth of remote interactions with the library at the close of 2020 has the APRL looking forward to 2021 and the opportunity to provide even more content and access for our users. As has been stated in the past, our mission for APRL Digital is to grow both the size and scope of the database, which in turn will grow the digital presence of the APRL. In the former case, the APRL has received permissions from societies and organizations for 34 complete journal runs, which are currently in a queue to be uploaded to the database. These journals are in a variety of formats – some are still in paper form, some in paper and digital form (i.e. pdf file format) and finally some are in complete digital form. Each journal provides our staff with unique challenges to prepare the complete run for upload to the database but the APRL is excited by the opportunity to grow the journal content of the database significantly in 2021. In terms of the scope of the database, we are also looking in 2021 to grow the types of research resources that are in the database to include a larger number of books, exhibits, maps, photographs, and video files. In the case of exhibits, we have received permissions from 54 exhibitors who participated in the 2020 Virtual Stamp Show presented by the APS back in August to

funding becomes available, will begin the task of digitizing the American Bank Note Company files which are housed in the Archives section of the library.

Help Us to Grow As we improve the database and make some of the aforementioned additions, we need your help to make this happen. Your one time or continuing donation to the Adopt-A-Book campaign (support. stamps.org.adoptabook) will help the library begin and further its digitization goals for the year and enable the APRL to bring its resources to members worldwide in the future. In addition to donating to the Adopt-A-Book campaign, clubs, societies and organizations can also assist us by contacting the Figure 2. The APRL Digital collection has roughly doubled its monthly unique library (stiffney@stamps.org) to begin the process users (members and non-members alike) since June. of having their journal, newsletter or publication become part of the digital collections database. include 72 digital exhibits. In addition, there are a number We look forward to hearing from you and continuing the of books that we will pursue to digitize and upload into services, content and access that our members expect and the database. For 2021, the APRL is also looking into the inclusion of the Annual Postmaster General Reports, and if demand from your philatelic library.

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Bridges BY Kathleen Edwards Education Coordinator kedwards@stamps.org

Making Friends at the Friends School

hile in-person outreach may be suspended for tory. A Mule Mail cancel is also a great example of a unique the near future, coming up with outreach ideas, way mail can travel (Figure 2). After seeing the special canespecially for youth, is always a good idea. cellation, the students learned about the meaning of a stamp “Teaching” stamp collecting can be broad and overwhelmcancel and then designed their own animal cancellation and ing, so when talking with a group of children, its best to cachet. come up with a “theme” In the third lesson, or specific track within planes, trains and autothe hobby. mobiles delivering mail Over a year ago, were a big hit. We disthe APS Education cussed how mail went team was able to take from carriage to train to part in the enrichment plane and to the current program at the local USPS vehicles. The kids Friends School. This were particularly enprogram gives students tertained by the threefrom Kindergarten to wheeled Mailster (Fig4th grade a chance to ure 3)! But the highlight choose a topic of learnof the lesson was talking for a four-week sesing with the students sion. From recycling about how they think to puppet-making, the Figure 1. Owney, mascot of the Railway Mail Service, rode the rails and mail will be delivered Friends School offers a traveled the world until 1897. Scott 4547. in the future. The kids wide variety of handsdesigned futuristic mail on learning experiences. delivery devices on paper and explained their use – children In January 2020, one of the topics the kids could choose was truly have amazing imaginations! stamp collecting! At the end of each of the lessons, the idea of actually Our first task to assist the program was coming up with COLLECTING stamps was broached by handing each child what “theme” we wanted to tackle. The story of Owney the their very own mini stamp album. Each week they added Dog is always a favorite among children, especially ones who some new stamps to their albums related to the topics we are new to stamp collecting (Figure 1). So we decided to focus the first three weeks on mail delivery, beginning with a covered in the day’s lesson. After the program was over, the short and catchy Owney video and then sharing the various places Owney traveled with the mail, including countries all over the world. Stamps from foreign countries are always fascinating to children – especially because the country names on the stamps are in the language of that country and not in English. You can find a Country ID worksheet and Country Key on Collecting and Connecting Central (C3a, at aps.buzz/C3aPlatform), under the “Bridges - Activities For Sharing” folder for your own use in youth programs. To continue on the topic of mail delivery, the next lesson focused on other animals delivering mail. From the Pony Figure 2. A Mule Mail cancel. Supai, Arizona, capital of the Havasupai Express to dog sled mail, the students were fascinated by the Indian Reservation, rests inside the Grand Canyon and is the only animals that play a big role in mail delivery throughout his- place in the U.S. to still receive mail delivered by mule. 74 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Figure 3. The “Westcoaster Mailster” was used in the 1950s to 60s by the USPS and could carry up to 500 lbs of mail. Despite the risk of tipping over when turning corners, the Mailster was extremely popular. Courtesy of the Smithsonian’s National Postal Museum, Flickr.

kids were able to take their stamp albums home, partially no prior knowledge of stamp collecting or know very much filled with stamps, but with plenty of space for future collectabout stamps in general. If you get too detailed in describing ing. You can find mini stamp album PDF print outs on C3a the hobby that you know inside and out, the kids might not in the “Bridges - Activities for Sharing” folder. “get it” and tune you out. The Friends School enrichment program runs four Connect and share. Many kids are collectors. Ask them weeks, so what did we do on the last week? A field trip to the about what they collect. They will tell you all about their American Philatelic Center, of course! The students were able to visit the APS headquarters, learn all about the historrock, comic, and Pokémon collections! By appealing to their ic Headsville Post Office, write, cancel, and mail a postcard collecting nature, they may just become stamp collectors in the APS mail room, and learn about some unique finds themselves. in philately by checking out the Alphabetilately exhibit. We Do you have tried and true tips for youth outreach procaptured the visit on video, which you can watch at aps.buzz/ grams? Share them with us! Email education@stamps.org, FieldTrip. we would love to hear your ideas! The Friends School outreach was a success, and your outreach efforts can be too. Here are a few basic tips to help you begin: Find out what the children like to do or learn about. Is it animals (Owney and Mule Mail), arts and crafts (stamp design and cachet-making), technology (pneumatic mail and micro printing) or history (the Penny Black and the Inverted Jenny)? You can create a stamp collecting activity to go with any interest, no matter how niche. Always plan more activities than the time allotted for the lesson! Things can go faster than you anticipate. Don’t get stuck with 20 minutes left on the clock and nothing more to present. Bring some back-up activities. It can be as simple as a Design a Stamp worksheet or just a box of Director of Education Cathy Brachbill, Education Coordinator Kathleen Edwards, and stamps the kids can dig into. Development Assistant Erin Seamans teach a mini-lesson about stamps at the Friends Keep it simple! Most children have School. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 75

In Touch BY Wendy Masorti Director of Membership and Shows wendy@stamps.org

Embracing Change

Web Tip

oin me in my next APS adventure! I began with the Society 31 years ago in membership administration and have since transitioned to several departments. For the past five years, I’ve served as the Director of Sales working with our sales team to streamline processes, introduce new features, and reach some record high sales. While I will miss working directly with the Sales team, I look forward to again working with Membership and Shows. I’ve titled this column “In Touch” as the Membership team works to communicate with and grow relationships among our community of members, dealers, clubs and specialty societies. Communication is the essence and strength of all great teams and organizations. In this article, we will share ideas on how together we can promote and support our hobby, we’ll celebrate milestones and awards, feature member exclusives you may have missed, give quick tips for using the website, discuss ways to give back, provide stamp show updates and more. We encourage you to share your experiences so that we can share with our community.

Want to stay up-to-date? Visit www.stamps.org and click the “News” link located in the upper right of the navigation. Here you will find the most current APS news and happenings.

Congratulations to our 25 and 50 year members!

Amazon Smile is a simple and automatic way for you to support the APS every time you shop on Amazon. It's free for you and it all adds up for the APS. See details at aps.buzz/AmazonSmile

Each year we honor those who have reached 25 and 50 years of membership with the APS. The honorees are invited to attend the annual show to be presented their award. Unfortunately with the pandemic this past year, the annual show was canceled and all awards were mailed. In 2020, 497 members who joined in 1995 received a “25 Year Pin” and 331 members who joined in 1970 received a “50 Year Medallion.” Visit aps.buzz/Milestones to see an alphabetic listing of those honored in 2020. The 2021 recipients will receive invitation letters in April.

SAVE THE DATE

Ways to give back

Member Reminder

Great American Stamp Show August 12-15, 2021 LOCATION:* Donald E. Stephens Convention Center 5555 N River Rd • Rosemont, IL 60018

*Pending COVID restrictions. 76 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

Also, be sure you are signed up to receive the weekly member newsletter– full of reminders, specials, featured groups and more!

If you haven’t already paid your 2021 membership dues, you can pay online or contact our Membership team at 814-933-3803.

Stay in touch If you or your group has recruiting ideas or experiences you would like to share, email to InTouch@stamps.org or mail to Attn: In Touch, at the APS address. Ideas will be considered for possible use in future columns or newsletters.

Membership Report No. 11, NOVEMBER 30, 2020

NEW APPLICANTS The following applications were received during November 2020. If no objections are received by the Executive Director (814-933-3803) prior to January 31, 2021, these applicants will be admitted to membership and notice to this effect will appear in the March 2021 issue. Ahlers, John P. (232634) Cle Elum, WA Austria-Air Mails-19th Century-20th Century-Civil War Covers-Used US; 69; Lawyer Aitken, Frances A. (232579) Reading, PA CommemorativesFirst Day Programs-Cut Squares; 56; Accountant Allen, Stephen (232614) Harlan, IA US-Iceland-Greenland-IsraelEgypt; 68; Retired Ash, Mylon (232649) Bella Vista, AR; 50 Axel, Frank (232668) Stamford, CT USA-Canada-IsraelCzechoslovakia-Poland-AustriaGermany-Korea-Japan-UKWorldwide-Dead Countries; 76; Exec. Barten, Chris M. (232628) Mc Callsburg, IA Science FictionFamous People-US-SportsDisney-Childhood-Movies; 50 Benjamin, Ludy T. (232608) Keswick, VA Canadian Provinces-Canada-19th Century20th Century Bernard, Michael J. (232669) Fairmount, IL US-Antarctic Territories; 62; Retired Senior Accountant Borozenski, Anthony (232665) Chicago, IL Air Mails-19th Century-20th CenturyErrors, Freaks, Oddities-Used Worldwide-US; 61 Bortz, Mary (232595) Glenview, IL; 76 Bosevich, Joseph (232659) Easton, PA 19th Century-20th Century; 60 Brassey, Joyce (232666) Carlsbad, CA US-Americana-Foreign Covers-Europa/CeptCommemoratives-Foreign Postal History; 61 Brouwer, Albert (232585) Wichita, KS Precancels-US/Canada Classics; 66; Program Mgr Aerospace (Retired) Brown, David F. (232656) Maynard, MA US; 71 Brown, Karen Sheaffer (232615) Snow Camp, NC

Carroll, James (232676) Manorville, NY 20th Century19th Century-Air Mails-USRevenues/Tax Paids (State/ Local)-Officials/Official Mail Carver, Charles (232630) Montgomery, AL US-EuropeanGermany-Great Britain-FranceBalkans; 78; Retired Military/ Business Chapman, Charles L. Jr. (232663) Warner Robins, GA US; 86; Retired Chapman, David (232664) New York, NY First Day Covers-Plate Blocks-CommemorativesOccupation Issues-Triangles/ Odd Shapes-Former/Dead Countries; 66 Compton, Jeanne (232643) San Diego, CA 88; Retired Connors, Richard (232603) Halifax, MA Air Mails-20th Century-19th Century-Plate Blocks Cooper, Gary M. (232596) Tucson, AZ US Cooper, Karen M. (232616) Davenport, FL US StatehoodUS Flags-Flowers; Caregiver/ Homemaker Crutchfield, Diane V. (232642) Southport, NC Used USUsed Worldwide-Overprints & Surcharges-Errors, Freaks, Oddities-Bulls Eye/Son CancelsForeign Perfins; 76 Dahlberg, John (232631) Fort Mohave, AZ US; 74; Retired Davidson, Bob (232644) Statham, GA US; 78; Retired Deheegher, Andreas G. (232652) Roosdal, Belgium 19th Century-20th Century-First Day Covers-Flight Covers-Cancels; 82; Retired Demmer, Richard (232670) Newport, TN 19th Century-20th Century-Errors, Freaks, OdditiesAir Mails-Postage Dues-US; 71; Diaz, Robert (232590) Carlsbad, CA 19th Century-20th Century-Air Mails-British Commonwealth; 52; US Navy Dice, Leroy (232651) Nokesville, VA Dilks, Lawrence S. (232607) Lake Charles, LA 19th CenturyCovers-Canal Zone; 69; Neuropsychologist Douglas, Russell (232605) Mountain Brook, AL Christmas Seals-20th Century-Christmas Eisinger, Stephen M. (232636) Tucson, AZ US-ClassicsGermany; 66; Retired Military/ Army Ekstrom, Mark (232671) Omaha, NE Commemoratives-AustriaFrench Colonies-BahamasBermuda-Christmas; 61; Retired

NEW MEMBERS Applications 232292 through 232340 and 232342 through 232453 as previously published have been accepted for membership by the Board of Vice Presidents.

Ellerston, Joel M. (232679) Phoenix, AZ 20th Century-19th Century-Air SUMMARY Mails-Confederate StatesDefinitives; 57; Accountant Total Membership, Elwell, Jonathan (232589) October 31, 2020................. 27,264 Midlothian, VA; 38; Stamp New Members 161 Dealer Reinstated 26 Deceased 57 Emnett, Charles (232681) Lutz, Resignations 8 FL Commemoratives-ScoutsDrop Non Payment of dues 39 Definitives-Orchids-Nurses; Total Membership 69; Retired November 30, 2020 27,347 Esselstrom, S. Dallen (232594) (Total Membership, November 30, Portland, OR Oregon-19th 2019 was 27,968 a difference of Century-20th Century-Air 621) Mails-Errors, Freaks, OdditiesSheets/Small Panes; 62 Farah, George S. (232633) Janairo, Elizabeth (232674) Madison, WI 19th CenturyShorewood, WI Art-AstronomyAir Mails-Occupation IssuesMushrooms-Music/Musicians/ Aviation-Ships/Boats-Trains Instruments-Mythology; 51 Fiattarone, Vincent (232662) Boca Karow, James S. (232619) New Raton, FL; Retired London, WI Monaco-French Fischer, Martin (232635) Pleasant Colonies-US; 69; Retired Hill, CA 19th Century-20th Klega, Debra (232613) Bremerton, Century-Cancels-Great BritainWA Plate Blocks-Covers-Blocks/ France-Germany; 77 Guideline Blocks-US-First Day Frum, Carlos M. (232647) Covers-Postal Cards; 48 Northbrook, IL Amateur/Ham Kok, William L. (232672) Windsor, Radio; Retired CO German Federal Rep.German 3rd Reich/OccupationsFrye, Linda (232617) Grand Germany Junction, CO; 72; Retired Kolze, Kathleen M. (232660) Lake Gauthier, Lori A. (232584) Grants Zurich, IL US-Foreign; 59; Pass, OR Classics; 59; Dental Human Resources Mgr. Admin Landers, Jerry (232581) Giannini, Kari (232678) Daly City, Collingswood, NJ GermanyCA; 34 Foreign Perfins-First Day Gordy, John C. (232611) Yuma, AZ Covers-Precancels (City)-Lots & Commemoratives-Classics-Naval Collections-Picture PostcardsCovers-Louisiana-US-Ukraine; 60 Transportation; 65; Retired Greenbaum, Gary M. (232604) Leber, Philip (232593) Bradenton, Fairfax, VA Aden; Retired FL Plate Blocks; 70; Realtor Greenberg, Julian H. Jr. (232685) Lewis, Robert W. (232577) Lone Pine, CA US; 72; Retired Sterling, VA Classics-Used Harrison, Richard C. (232618) US-Air Mails-Bureau IssuesMontville, ME Early US Stamps; Definitives; 64 81; Retired Lo, Charles (232597) Elk Grove, Hegedus, Katrina (232657) Parker, CA Hong Kong-China-JapanCO 60; Retired Manchukuo-Taiwan-Far East; 59 Henderson, Rodney (232601) Logan, Douglas G. (232667) Laceys Spring, AL 73; Retired Vernon Center, NY Revenues/ Military Tax Paids (Federal/State/Local)Hershey, Patricia (232637) Aviation-Space-PhotographyGeorgetown, TX; 57 Ships/Boats; Retired Hey, Stephen C. (232586) Baileys Love, Larry W. (232648) Dallas, Harbor, WI US; 78; Professor TX Advertising Covers-19th Emeritus Century; 61 Hromada, April A. (232680) Tinley Macneil, Kelly S. (232645) San Park, IL; 78 Antonio, TX US Postal HistoryIbieta, Jaime (232591) RmEurope-Military-Occupation Metropolitana, Chile South Issues-War Covers/StampsAmerica-Chile-Europe-AsiaUnited Nations; 50; Information Central America; 58; Agricultural Technology Engineer Magnifico, Dennis (232621) Irani, Amy (232602) Nevada City, Bridgewater, MA Italian CA 19th Century-US Postal Colonies-Italian States-IrelandHistory-Cancels; 52 Japan-Brazil-Russia JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 77

Manning, Gary L. (232625) Durham, NC 19th Century-Air Mails-Space Covers-Plate Blocks; 65 Mashoud, Mike (232587) San Francisco, CA US-Middle East; 71; Retired Mcginnis, Charles E. (232646) Ocean City, MD Commemoratives-Revenues/Tax Paids (Federal); Retired Mcrae, Arthur S. (232606) Dallas, TX 19th Century-20th CenturyAir Mails-Revenues/Tax Paids (Federal) Murphy, Iain R. (232629) London, United Kingdom Middle EastBritish Commonwealth-British Asia; 33; Head Of Philatelic Auctions Murray, Bryce L. (232598) Spring City, PA Covers-US Postal History-19th CenturyAdvertising/Illustrated CoversEphemera-Foreign Covers; 19; Student Nurmi, Karen L. (232588) Stayton, OR Worldwide-WildlifeTransportation; 71; Retired USPS O’Hara, Henry Thomas (232583) Cavan, Ireland 19th CenturyBulls Eye/Son Cancels-Patriotic Covers-Confederate States-Civil War Covers-Ireland; 25

Ocampo, Victor (232684) Cambridge, MA Commemoratives-French Colonies-British ColoniesSports-Space-Butterflies/ Insects-Wallis And Futuna-New Caledonia Patti, Ronald (232609) Berlin, MA US Pecchold, Engelbert (232592) West Grove, PA Blocks/Guideline Blocks-Austria-German Federal Rep.-Germany-Switzerland; 87; Retired Pelaez, Michael (232675) Hialeah, FL Pfurtscheller, Hilde (232661) Seattle, WA 19th Century-20th Century-Air Mails-Booklets/ Panes; Retired Pressley, Jackson R. (232640) Albuquerque, NM MexicoJamaica; 69 Recksiek, David J. (232654) West Covina, CA; 48; Coin And Stamp Dealer Reiss, Helene (232627) Trenton, NJ; 74; Team Member At Six Flags Great Adventure Remein, Warren (232686) Bay Village, OH CommemorativesNetherlands-Hungary-Duck Stamps-Space; 72; Retired Architect

Confederate Stamps and Postal History

Rice, Christopher A. (232626) Laramie, WY Duck/Hunting/ Fishing Stamps-MilitaryRevenues/Tax Paids (Federal)US-Wyoming-Propaganda Stamps/Covers; 36 Romanowicz, Stephanie S. (232677) Marstons Mills, MA; 34 Sandgren, Gilbert R. (232620) Kenosha, WI US-19th Century; 70; Retired Tax Attorney Saulich, Jeff (232612) Tallahassee, FL US; Semi-Retired/Web Designer Scoble, Rod A. (232578) L’original, ON Canada Canada-20th Century-Russia/USSR/ Independent Republics-China (People’s Rep.)-Germany-British Commonwealth; 75 Shimmin-Okey, Susan G. (232655) Rescue, CA 19th CenturyCalifornia-Stampless CoversExpress Covers-Western CoversCommemorative Panels; State Park Interpretive Specialist Smith, Rilda J. (232623) Shawnee, OK Kenya-Uganda-Tanzania; 59 Spencer, Mark J. (232682) Kansas City, MO First Day Covers-Plate Blocks-Space Covers-Art; 63 Speyer, Adrian (232580) DollardDes-Ormeaux, QC Canada Canada-Canadian Postal History-Canadian Plate Blocks; 43; Head Of Community

Stanley, Edward J. Jr. (232624) Reisterstown, MD Plate BlocksLots & Collections-SportsCommemoratives-DefinitivesOfficials/Official Mail; 63 Stevens, David (232599) Otsego, MN 20th Century-19th CenturyAir Mails-Blocks/Guideline Blocks-Booklets/PanesCommemorative Panels; 77 Stopka, Thomas C. (232687) Elk Grove Village, IL US-Bureau Issues-Cancels-Canal ZoneAstronomy-Naval Covers Stych, Ed (232600) Concord, NC; 59 Tebow, Kenneth R. (232658) Hayward, CA US-US Postal History-CommemorativesDefinitives-Air Mails-Used US; 74; Retired Tietjen, Matt (232638) Durham, CT Coils-Covers-Vatican CityChristmas Seals-ChristmasMadonnas; 41 Tolbert, Robert W. (232582) Santa Fe, NM Plate Blocks-British Oceania-New Zealand-Canada; 59 Tousignant, Katie (232632) Austin, TX Cats-Triangles/Odd ShapesFakes & Forgeries-WorldwidePostage Dues; 31 Viggiano, John A. (232650) Milford, NH Worldwide; 73; Retired

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Professional Philatelist Since 1973 Life Member: CWPS, APS, APRL, USPCS Member: ASDA, NSDA, CCNY; FRPSL

NEW CHAPTER Connecticut Cover Club (232405), New Haven, CT. CONTACT: Michael Clark, 130 Horseshoe Hill Rd., Pound Ridge, NY 10576

DECEASED Baker, Bruce R. (5390-155556), Pittsburgh, PA Berenson, William (146124), Shelburne Falls, MA Blood, John M. (1750-046778), Holyoke, MA

Calhoun, Robert L. (116820), Alexandria, VA Chinnery, Donald G. (7104-050399), Marinette, WI Christiaansen, Amy L. (228702), Gilman, VT Cleveland, Grover (8836-061251), Burlingame, CA Cutler, Morris (11187-060440), N. Las Vegas, NV Damkaer, Donald M. (8052-123002), Olympia, WA Davis, Winston R. (106345), Longwood, FL Day, Richard D. (130484), Apple Valley, MN Day, Robin W. (11838-047814), Plattsville, ON Donahue, Nancy J. (8389-056995), Madill, OK Doring, Martin R. (6346-046055), Fort Lauderdale, FL Eggleston, C. T. (11654-048611), Riverview, FL Etkind, Irving M. (6218-041579), Cambridge, MA Fritz, Cerel M. (212265), Charlotte, MI Gagliardi, Fred R. (128360), Stamford, CT Genuit, Marian A. (193386), Stockton, CA Glasofer, Stan I. (139438), Newport News, VA Gleason, Fred C. (10071-069495), Cascade, ID Gottesman, Michael H. (11618062031), Sonoita, AZ Gottlieb, Julian (6808-059112), Cos Cob, CT Green, Art J. (226958), Roseville, CA

Hancock, George (230202), Tempe, AZ Hankey, Joan R. (9664-053097), Gettysburg, PA Hemmings, John A. (126209), Swedesboro, NJ Holzbauer, Herbert (5971-044540), Grand Junction, CO Homola, Gerhardt (183675), Bottineau, ND Irwin, Harold E. (225595), Oaklyn, NJ Johnson, Tom D. (125279), Palm Harbor, FL Joyce, Edward R. (5973-044123), Jacksonville, FL Kleasen, Hubert W. (198072), Cuyahoga Falls, OH Koglin, Herbert H. (6652-043600), Qualicum Beach, BC Krause, Richard G. (11360-058102), Waddell, AZ Krazeisen, Roland R. (220946), Webster City, IA McClarren, Robert R. (9494-065953), Perrysburg, OH Monroe, Charles P. (213411), Blacksburg, VA Nagaran, Michael (223706), San Diego, CA Nowak, Roy E. (7288-049381), Fort Gratiot, MI Packard, Donald H. (211304), Pocasset, MA Parks, Larry C. (8097-061399), Thousand Oaks, CA Pezza, Peter P. (180594), Little Rock, AR

Poulson, Meredith M. (8298057729), Salt Lake City, UT Rayburn, David A. (9517-065618), Jefferson, TX Reinhardt, Richard R. (095143), Forest Lake, MN Rocawich, George (186223), Millersville, MD Sauer, William K. (0937-040734), Johnson City, TN Sexton, Robert A. (5175-157593), Chicago, IL Shalimoff, George V. (7929-053540), Sebastopol, CA Sheaffer, James C. (227366), Whitesboro, NY Stowe, Tamara (229529), Boerne, TX Thomas, C. Stetson (7117-045285), Middleboro, MA Todaro, Nicholas J. (7769-055046), Liverpool, NY Vida, Kenneth J. (180305), Port Charlotte, FL Wacinski, Andrew K. (10708084830), Lakewood, CO Wallenhaupt, Tom (6674-177890), Coeur D Alene, ID

APPLICATION REJECTED Prosser, Jeffrey (232341)

Christoph Gärtner

Vollbrecht, Michael (232520) Lawrence, KS ArtCommemoratives-First Day Covers-Coins; 39 Weber, Peter (232653) Minneapolis, MN Hawaii; 69; Mapmaker Weiss, Lawrence M. (232639) Pasadena, CA Classics-IsraelCanada-Australia; 64 Westby, James O. (232641) Reno, NV US-Plate Blocks; 78; Retired White, Max E. (232610) Demorest, GA; 74 Wilkinson, John (232622) Schoharie, NY US Yang, Yang (232673) Wynnewood, PA 19th Century-China (People’s Rep.)-Korea-Austria-BelgiumChina; 35 Zamzow, Lois (232688) Byron Center, MI CommemorativesDefinitives-US Zimmerman, Gary B. (232683) Lewisville, TX 19th Century-20th Century-Washington/FranklinsAir Mails-Bureau Issues-US; 53; Arborist

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UNITED STATES Classic + www. hipstamp.com/store/ralphsroom (1439)

TRADE BETTER QUALITY STAMPS mounted in books with advanced long-time collectors. Pete’s Exchange, 4470 Chippewa, Boulder CO 80303 (1439)

FREE Buy It Now MAILBID catalog. US, Foreign stamps; coins & currency Reeves Box 407 Huntingdon PA 16652 (1446)

www.triple-sonline.com 25,000 WORLDWIDE COVERS (1458)

US MINT/USED 1840-1940 singles and plate blocks send on approval. See it before you buy it. Philatelic Friends, Box 802, Bear, DE 19701 (1442) EARLY TO THE LATEST PLATE BLOCKS on approval. Positions filled. Send me your want list today John Robie, PO Box 2-A, Linden, CA 95236 (1445) www.stampstore.org Seller ID 738268 (1440)

US APPROVALS Beginners welcome. Lowest prices. Lists welcome. John Barkdoll POB 751024 Petaluma CA 94975 (1447) 5-20% of Scott. All Stamps, AvgXF, are accurately described. For catalog contract E-Z’s Stamps POB 1052 West Seneca NY 14224 or mzim@roadrunner.com (1440) Wanted: US#231 CDS with readable names, mcarthur@cox.net (1442)

U.S. BOOKLET PANES www. stampstore.org Seller ID 738268 (1439)

Surprising! www.JaySmith.com (1451)

stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

U.S. POSSESSIONS

www.USatFACE.com (1440) FREE 83 PAGE PRICELIST. Call, write or email. Includes 19th century to Forever issues, Air Mail, Ducks and other BOB. Or, visit my website and shop my online store. Enter www.thenorthwoodsstamps. com into your address bar at the top of the page. Major credit cards and paypal accepted. John Brown. Northwoods Stamps. PO Box 823 Rochester, MN 55903. brown55902@aol.com.( 507 ) 2525956 (1440) 20-33% OF SCOTT $1,000,000 WW inventory. Lots of 19th cent US & officials, many at CV $200++ Catalog avail. www.BillsStamps. com Unconditional money-back

www.stamps.org/Classified-Ads

www.stampstore.org Seller ID 738268 (1444)

CANADA CLASSIC CANADA ON APPROVAL. See it before you buy it. Philatelic Friends, Box 802, Bear, DE 19701 (1442) www.nfldstamps.com Walsh Specialized eCatalogues 2022 Newfoundland 2022 BNA Canada (1451) stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

BRITISH COMMONWEALTH BRITISH EMPIRE – Extensive stock with emphasis on pre-1960.

BALKANS

Advise us of your wants. TOGA ASSOCIATES, Box 396, Fairfield, CT 06824 203-255-8885 e-mail: tbansak@aol.com (1455)

WANT LISTS FILLED, Year Sets, Extensive stock www. buyhungarianstamps.com, HSE, POB 4028, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, 888/868-8293 (1450)

www.commonwealth-stamps.com (1458) GREAT BRITAIN & Channel Islands, Request list from GG Campman, 10608 Rio Puerco Tri, SW. ABQ, NM 87121 or Email: glencampman@ yahoo.com (1440)

BALTICS WANT LISTS FILLED, Year Sets, Extensive stock www. buyhungarianstamps.com, HSE, POB 4028, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, 888/868-8293 (1450)

www.triple-sonline.com 25,000 WORLDWIDE COVERS (1458) 20-33% OF SCOTT $1,000,000 WW inventory. Lots of GB & cols. Catalog avail. www.BillsStamps. com Many finer sets & singles up to $1,000 Unconditional money-back guarantee doctoryes007@aol.com 214-213-8066 (1440)

AFRICA

BELGIUM www.StampsBelgium.com (1440)

BRAZIL www.castlerockstamps.com (1442)

CANAL ZONE

ETHIOPA. Request list from GG Campman, 10608 Rio Puerco Tri SW, ABQ, NM 87121 or Email: glencampman@yahoo.com (1445)

JOIN: www.CanalZoneStudyGroup. com (1444) www.canalzonestamps.com (1440)

PITICAIRN ISLAND – selling complete, MNH collection thru April 5, 2018 in archival, transparent stock sheets, 5900. – danchaij@epbfi.com (1440)

CHINA BUY STAMPS at www. ChinaStampSociety.org (1441) stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

ARMENIA

CHINA TOP $. jon@chinesestampbuyer.com www.chinesestampbuyer.com (1443)

www.ArmenianStamps.com (1440)

AUSTRALIA

www.Stamps-China.com (1440)

www.stampstore.org Seller ID 738268 (1444)

www.castlerockstamps.com (1442) BUY/SELL, washingtonstamps.com (1445)

stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

AUSTRALIAN STATES

COLOMBIA

stampstore.org Seller ID 502981 (1440)

www.castlerockstamps.com (1442) JOIN: www.COPAPHIL.org (1443)

AUSTRIA

CUBA

AUSTRIA AND RELATED AREAS — Ask for our free price lists. RSchneiderStamps@gmail.com. 1000s of stamps online at www. RSchneiderStamps.com (1439)

www.stampstore.org Seller ID 738268 (1439)

www.StampsAustria.com (1440)

www.castlerockstamps.com (1442)

www.ilastamps.com (1441)

GET NOTICED WITH CLASSIFIED ADS Classified advertising in The American Philatelist is a cost-effective way to get the attention of nearly 26,000 American Philatelic Society members around the world. Call or email Chad today for more details (CCowder@ stamps.org). Payment in advance. No change of copy. No refunds.

1 line 2 lines 3 lines 4 lines 5 lines 6 lines 7 lines 8 lines 9 lines 10 lines 11 lines

1 month $ 3.94 $ 7.88 $ 11.82 $ 15.76 $ 19.70 $ 23.64 $ 27.58 $ 31.52 $ 35.46 $ 39.40 $ 43.34

6 months $ 21.28 $ 42.55 $ 63.83 $ 85.10 $ 106.38 $ 127.66 $ 148.93 $ 170.21 $ 191.48 $ 212.76 $ 234.04

12 months $ 37.82 $ 75.65 $ 113.47 $ 151.30 $ 189.12 $ 226.94 $ 264.77 $ 302.59 $ 340.42 $ 378.24 $ 416.06

To calculate the number of lines for your ad, count all letters, numerals, punctuation and blank spaces between words. Divide the total by 34 and round up to the next whole number. Advertising is restricted to current APS members; please include your APS number. All classified ads must be prepaid. The best way to submit classified ads is online at www.stamps.org/ Classified-Ads. Classified ads are also

accepted via mail by sending your ad text and payment to AP Advertising, 100 Match Factory Place, Bellefonte, PA 16823. When submitting your ad, please include your card number (VISA, MasterCard or Discover only) and expiration date. Checks must be drawn on a U.S. bank. Renewal Notice: If (1439) appears after your ad, it expires after this issue. Deadline for the February issue is December 24.

JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 81

CZECHOSLOVAKIA WANT LISTS FILLED, Year Sets, Extensive stock www. buyhungarianstamps.com, HSE, POB 4028, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, 888/868-8293 (1450)

EASTERN EUROPE stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

FRANCE FRANCE and colonies, Request list from GG Campman, 10608 Rio Puerco Tri SW, ABQ, NM 87121 or Email: glencampman@yahoo.com (1445)

www.StampsFrance.com (1440) stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

guarantee doctoryes007@aol.com 214-213-8066 (1442)

ALL PERIODS, washingtonstamps. com (1445)

GERMANY

FRENCH COLONIES www.stampstore.org Seller ID 738268 (1444) www.disler.com (1441) stampsforcollectors.net (1447) 20-33% OF SCOTT $1,000,000 WW inventory. Lots of France & cols. Catalog avail. www.BillsStamps. com Many finer sets & singles up to $1,000 Unconditional money-back

82 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

GERMAN AREA ON APPROVAL. See it before you buy it. Philatelic Friends, Box 802, Bear, DE 19701 (1442) stampsforcollectors.net (1447) www.Stamps-Germany.com (1440)

GREAT BRITAIN www.british-stamps.com (1458)

HUNGARY WANT LISTS FILLED, New Issues, Extensive stock of all Eastern European countries. www. hungarianstamps.com, POB 4028, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, 888/868-8293 (1445) stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

ICELAND stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

IRAN/IRAQ www.stampsofIRAN.com (1440)

ITALIAN COLONIES

PANAMA

20-33% OF SCOTT $1,000,000 WW inventory. Lots of Italy & colonies Catalog avail. www.BillsStamps. com Many finer sets & singles up to $1000 Unconditional money-back guarantee doctoryes007@aol.com 214-213-8066 (1440)

JOIN: www.COPAPHIL.org (1444)

ITALY

www.stampstore.org Seller ID 738268 (1440)

www.StampsItaly.com (1440) www.gdgphila.it sell at 10% of Sassone Catalogue on your wantlist (1440)

JAPAN https://myjapanstamps.com (1441)

LATIN AMERICA ALL LATIN AMERICAN COUNTRIES. Sets, singles, mint, used. Guy Shaw, P.O. Box 27138, San Diego, CA 92198 www.guyshaw.com (1441) www.castlerockstamps.com (1442)

MEXICO stampsforcollectors.net (1447) www.castlerockstamps.com (1442)

NEW ZEALAND stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

PERU www.castlerockstamps.com (1442)

PHILIPPINES

buyhungarianstamps.com, HSE, POB 4028, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, 888/868-8293 (1450)

Order Now! www.Lake-EdgeStamps.com (1439) 1840/1940 60%-80% off Scott cat. Used stamps, covers, labels, US, Canada, Britain & Col, Europe. S. Cal, CP 864 Succ B, Montreal, Que. H3B 3K5 Canada (1439)

RUSSIA / USSR / INDEPENDENT REPUBLICS WANT LISTS FILLED. Extensive stock. www.buyhungarianstamps. com. HSE POB 4028, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568. (888) 868-8293 (1448)

60% OFF SCOTT 2019-20, WW pricelist, early to modern, many topicals, Quality stamps, Les Timbres J&M, 1200 Louis-Cyr, Joliette, QC, Canada, J6E 7B2, breaultjg@videotron.ca (1440)

POLAND

SCANDINAVIA

POLAND SPECIALIZED: Classics to New Issues, Year Sets, Back of Book. Lubelski Philatelic LLC 111 Helen Drive, Rossford, Ohio 43460 Ph: 419-410-9115, Web: www. Lubelskistamps.com Email: Dan@ Lubelskistamps.com (1440)

HUGE STOCK AND GREAT SERVICE since 1973. Price lists: js@JaySmith. com or 2880-page website www. JaySmith.com (1451)

WANT LISTS FILLED, Year Sets, Extensive stock www. buyhungarianstamps.com, HSE, POB 4028, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, 888/868-8293 (1450)

U.N. PRICE LIST, Wm. Henry Stamps, POB 150010, Kew Gardens, NY 11415 www.allunstamps.com (1445)

UNITED NATIONS

WORLDWIDE www.philbansner.com (1456)

www.StampsPortugal.com (1440)

www.dickkeiser.com (1439)

stampsforcollectors.net (1447)

stampsforcollectors.net (1441)

WANT LISTS FILLED, Year Sets, Extensive stock www.

SELLER ID 534232: US, Polynesia (1450) gardencitystamps@yahoo.com, worldwide, M @ U USA, 1st Day Covers. (1442)

PORTUGAL

ROMANIA

20-33% OF SCOTT $1,000,000 WW inventory. Lots of Euro cols. 19th century. US, Russia (1920-70), Japan, Iceland, Liech., Souv. Sheets Catalog avail. www.BillsStamps. com Many finer sets & singles up to $1,000 Unconditional money-back guarantee doctoryes007@aol.com 214-213-8066 (1440)

www.triple-sonline.com 25,000 WORLDWIDE COVERS (1458)

www.stampconnections.com (1442) COLLECTOR FRIENDLY Foreign Packets & Special Monthly Offers!

US/UN COLLECTIONS STAMPS & extras from old collection & newer set, For CD of items, 2buystamps@ gmail.com HH PO Box 4 Scotland

VATICAN CITY YEAR SETS Year 2018 2017 2016 2015

Mint $105.00 $91.00 $97.00 $87.60

Entire Vatican catalog is stock; 1929 to today Please add 3% postage & shipping

PENNY BLACK STAMP COMPANY P.O. Box 78, Dexter MI 48130-0078 Phone: (734) 424-3043

www.pennyblackstamp.com JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 83

CT 06264 Prices 1/2 Scott 2020. (1441)

White Ace topical blank pages (1441)

US AND WORLDWIDE. See it before you buy it. Philatelic Friends, Box 802, Bear, DE 19701 (1442)

APPRAISALS

US AND WORLDWIDE. Great prices beginner to advanced. Sets and Singles. State interest. Larry Serenari, 766 Nestle Quarry Rd., Falling Waters, WV 25419 (1445)

SELLER ID 534232: US, Ireland (1441) SURPRISING! www.JaySmith.com (1451)

WORLD WIDE STAMP APPRAISALS Valuation and written report provided. Sellers agent services info@hungarianstamps.com (888)868-8293 HSE PO Box 4028, Vineyard Haven MA 02568 (1446)

FILL IN THOSE EMPTY ALBUM SPACES at a mere fraction of catalog. Receive my free comprehensive catalog of thousands of US + WW stamps priced at 5-20% of the Scott 2019 catalog. Also listed are country collections priced at 2-5 cents per stamp. All stamps, whether Avg-XF, are accurately described. Contact E-Z’s Stamps POB 1052 West Seneca NY 14224 or mzim@ roadrunner.com (1440)

APPROVALS Worldwide Books of Mounted Singles by country. Pre 1941 to 2000’s. Some sets available. Many books with issues of last 10 years. State interests. Howard Mundt, 415 N Lenfesty, Marion IN 46952 (1450) WORLDWIDE APPROVALS DISCOUNT 66 2/3% from Current Scott. Send APS# to Robert Ducharme, C.P. 592, St. Jerome, QC J7Z 5V3, Canada (1447)

ALBUMS SEARCH “MAC’S ALBUM SUPPLEMENTS” on eBay, U.S. 2017-2019; Ducks 2010-2020;

GREAT STAMPS FAIR PRICES Personal Service, Global sets & singles. Emporium, 10 Wilmington Ave., Apt. 109W, Dayton, OH 45420 (1442) CUSTOMIZED WW APPROVALS Strong collections, Pick @ 50% All countries & levels to advanced AKM PO Box 30010, Mesa, AZ 85275 kenstampneb@cox.net www.akmstamps.com (1447)

CENSORED www.dickkeiser.com (1439)

COVERS www.philbansner.com (1456) www.dickkeiser.com (1439) www.triple-sonline.com 25,000 WORLDWIDE COVERS (1458)

DONATIONS BOYS TOWN invites donations of U.S. and foreign stamp collections, coins, currency, and mint U.S. postage. Help us help kids! Leon Myers Stamp Center, 13628 Flanagan Blvd., Boys Town, NE 68010. Email stampcenter@ boystown.org Phone 402-498-1143 (1441)

AUCTIONS

EXCHANGE

www.auctions.sterlingstamps.com (1442)

TRADE BETTER QUALITY STAMPS mounted in books with advanced

WWW.MOZIANSTAMPS.COM

UNITED STATES, POSSESSIONS, BRITISH, FOREIGN Lawrence J Mozian PO Box 5774 Williamsburg, VA 23188 E-mail lmozian@cox.net Phone (757) 220-2007 Serving philatelists since 1901

Our website is finally up and running

PO Box 8689 Cranston, RI 02920 Phone: 888 262 5355 (Toll Free) Phone: +1 401 688 9473 (Mobile) Email: info@ INDIA and STATES.com Many Graded Stamps from 80–100

QUALITY U.S. STAMPS

HB Philatelics

Proofs & Essays • Federal & State Hunting Permits

Guy Gasser

P.O. Box 2320 • Florissant, MO 63032 Phone 314-330-8684 E-mail: guy@hbphilatelics.com

1st $68 FREE So You Can TEST UPA www.upastampauctions.co.uk Most of my stock has been scanned Click on “New Material” on my website USA Postal History Colonial to Prexies: Transatlantics, Destinations, Expos, Inland Waterways, Railroads, Express, Possessions & Military

STEPHEN T. TAYLOR

5 Glenbuck Road, Surbiton, Surrey KT6 6BS England

www.hbphilatelics.com

Phone: 011-4420-83909357 info@stephentaylor.co.uk https://stephentaylor.co.uk

Official APS Web Sponsor

Your American Dealer in Britain

84 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

long-time collectors. Pete’s Exchange, 4470 Chippewa, Boulder CO 80303 (1439)

Alfins, 168 Eaglecrest Drive, Buffton SC 29909 (1444)

EXCHANGE YOUR DUPLICATES at Scott catalog value, 10% in stamps. Joe Thatcher, P.O. Box 38, Ironton, MN 56455 (1447)

FREE CATALOG. US, British, Europe, W/W. Many Starter Collections. Various Sized Lots. No Buyers Fee. Jarema PO Box 359100, Gainesville, FL 32635 (1441)

INTERNET

MILITARY

BLUE MOON PHILATELIC WW selection w affordable pricing Fast & Friendly ServiceBMAStamps2. com (1439)

LITERATURE www.philbansner.com (1456) www.pbbooks.com Leonard H. Hartmann (1451)

www.dickkeiser.com (1439)

NEW ISSUES ALWAYS FUN getting new stamps from your favorite countries. Free info, radio97208@gmail.com Dave Becker, 731 NW 209th St. Ridgefield, WA 98642 (1439)

POSTAL HISTORY

MAIL BIDS SALES

www.philbansner.com (1456)

100 COLLECTORS sell discounted packets, country collections on pages/sets in 36 page free newsletter. Great description.

www.dickkeiser.com (1439) www.triple-sonline.com 25,000 WORLDWIDE COVERS (1458)

1939-1945 BOHEMIA & MORAVIA

Complete (181 different) 181 diff Mint NH $190.00 181 diff Mint $125.00 181 diff Used $250.00

www.DonSCal.com

Don S. Cal PO Box 1732 • Port Angeles, WA 98362

Tel: 250-383-6211 • E-mail: dcal@victoriastamp.com Dealer member APS since 1985

Auctions Stamp Shows Retail Store Internet

215CAL10 Bohemia Moravia.indd 1

8/27/2015 8:50:38 AM

www.mgjpostalhistory.com +ephemera (1446)

www.westernstampco.com (1450)

WANTED

www.castlerockstamps.com (1442)

FOREIGN POSTAL STATIONERY. I can use almost anything in foreign postal stationery. Steve Schumann, 2417 Cabrillo Drive, Hayward, CA 94545 stephen.schumann@att. net (1439)

REVENUES www.dickkeiser.com (1439) World Revenues Liquidation collections, sets, singles, of everywhere from A-Z. also documents and Cinderellas. Gordon Brooks. box 100, Station NDG,Montreal, Quebec, Canada H4A 3P4. (1452)

Lighthouse SELECT S3 stock sheets (now out of production)... will pay a premium. Contact Bob Dix at dixiex22@gmail.com (1440)

SUPPLIES PHILATELIC SUPPLIES All major brands. B and G Sales $35+ order gets free U.S. shipping. www.ebay. com/str//bandgsales or call 317627-5242 (1450)

TOPICALS EJstamps@gmail.com (1442)

FREE

DC AREA Stamp Collections; Alex: 301-309-3622; ARogolsky@gmail. com (1444) WANTED Clipper airmail to or from Shanghai 4th Regiment – jonpac@ aol.com 954-547-0544 (1440) Duck Sheet I am needing a RW-6 sheet. Please call or email Gerald R. Forsythe, 847-541-6215 or gforsythe@newmidwestgroup. com (1442)

NEW 200-PAGE WORLDWIDE PRICE LIST

Find out why most collectors place orders when they receive our lists. We have the stamps you need at the prices you like.

Martin Winter

800 W. Willis Rd., Apt. 1045 • Chandler, AZ 85286 E-mail: winter310@aol.com Established in 1960

APS Life Member

D & P Stamps

Next Auction January 30th sterlingstamps.com auctions.sterlingstamps.com

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Sterling Stamps• Mark Vervaeke 455 E Grand River, Suite 103 Brighton, MI 48116 810-220-6000

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mark@sterlingstamps.com APS Dealer, ATA, MSDA

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Please send us your Want List APS ATA, ISPP, NSDA Members

Stamps, stationery, postal history, die proofs from around the World. Send a note of your interests and we’ll advise you of suitable items we have. If in London, please visit our offices and browse our stock. Have you visited our DELCAMPE STORE?

1, Wardour Street London W1D 6PA Great Britain Phone: 011-44-20-7930-6100 Fax: 011-44-20-7494-2881 E-mail: philatelists@argyll-etkin.com Website: www.argyll-etkin.com JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 85

RUBBER STAMPS

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next auction closes February 27, 2021

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Mexico

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ck stamps LLC

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Remember the APS and APRL in your Will

W A N TED

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#C10 Proof. Are You on our Mailing List ?

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P.O. Box 425 East Longmeadow, MA 01028 413-785-5348 • E-mail: suburbanstamp@verizon.net

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FSDA ASDA

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buyers and builders of great stamp collections visit

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FSDA ASDA

www.columbianstamp.com New Zealand’s Leading Auction House oﬀers you free monthly postal auctions with 3000+ lots! Join our mailing list NOW!

www.mowbraycollectables.co.nz Private Bag 63000, Wellington, New Zealand 6140 Ph: + 64 6 364 8270 • mowbray.stamps@xtra.co.nz

Year 2019 2018

HAWAII

Vogt Stamps 1301 Broadway • Burlingame, CA 94010 650-344-3401 Full website www.vogtstamps.com 86 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

VATICAN CITY YEAR SETS Mint $100.00 $105.00

Year 2017 2016

Mint $91.00 $97.00

Entire Vatican catalog is stock; 1929 to today Please add 3% postage & shipping, minimum $0.75

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ALL

FRANK BACHENHEIMER

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P.O. Box 78, Dexter MI 48130-0078 Phone: (734) 424-3043

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When in Naples (Florida) stop in and examine our large stock of U.S. and Foreign Stamps, Covers, Collections, Wholesale Lots

NEW ENGLAND STAMP 4987 Tamiami Trail East Village Falls Professional Ctr., Naples, FL 34113 Ph: 239-732-8000 Fax: 239-732-7701

Established 1893

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2021 SCOTT SPECIALIZED CATALOGUE OF UNITED STATES STAMPS AND COVERS

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33 42-43

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5, 8-9

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D&P Stamps —www.dpstamps.com

Delcampe —www.delcampe.com

Denali Stamp Co. —www.denalistamps.com

Deveney Stamp —www.deveneystamps.com

Don S. Cal —www.DonSCal.com Dutch Country Auctions —ww.DutchCountryAuctions.com Dr. Robert Friedman & Sons —www.drbobfriedmanstamps.com

85 73 11

E.S.J. van Dam, Ltd. —www.canadarevenuestamps.com

ebay —www.ebay.com/philately

Eric Jackson— www.ericjackson.com

Frank Bachenheimer —www.astampdealer4u.com 86 Gary J. Lyon (Philatelist) Ltd. www.garylyon.com 19 Gary Posner, Inc. — www.garyposnerinc.com 59 Gregg Nelson Stamps — www.greggnelsonstamps.com 86 Guernsey Post/Guernsey Stamps www.guernseystamps.com 10 Haiti Philatelic Society — www.haitiphilately.com 13 HB Philatelics — www.hbphilatelics.com 84 Hipstamp — www.hipstamp.com C3 Hugh Wood Inc. Insurance — www.hughwood.com 90 India and States —www.indiaandstates.com 84 James E. Lee — www.jameslee.com 92 J.R. Mowbray, Ltd. —www.mowbrays.co.nz 86 Jon Krupnick 86 Kay & Co. — www.kaystamps.com 10 Kelleher & Rogers, Ltd. — www.kelleherasia.com 5, 8-9 Nieser Stamp and Coin —www.kennieser.com 84 Laurence L. Winum 83 Lawrence J. Mozian — www.mozianstamps.com 84 Markest Stamps—www.markest.com 1 Martin Winter 85 Michael Eastick & Associates Pty. Ltd. — www.michaeleastick.com 86 Miller’s Stamp Company — www.millerstamps.com 86 Mountainside Stamps, Coins & Currency— — www.mountainsidestamps.com 10 Mystic Stamp Company — www.mysticstamp.com C2, 3 New England Stamp — www.NewEnglandStamp.com 86 Noble Spirit — www.noblespirit.com 65 Palo Albums Inc. — www.paloalbums.com 93 Paradise Valley Stamp Company, Cornerstamp, Inc.—www.stamp-one.com 80

Patricia A. Kaufmann —www.trishkaufmann.com Penny Black Stamp Company —www.pennyblackstamp.com

78 83, 86

Philasearch.com — www.philasearch.com

Posta Faroe Islands — www.stamp.fo

Postal Stationery.com — www.postalstationery.com

Randy Scholl Stamp Co. Have Tongs Will Travel — www.randyschollstampcompany.com/ have-tongs-will-travel.asp C4 Rasdale Stamp Company — wwwrasdalestamps.com

Rising Sun Stamps — www.risingsunstamps.com

Robert A. Siegel Auction Galleries, Inc. — www.siegelauctions.com

Rocky Mountain Philatelic Library — http://rmplauctions.org

80, 86

Rubber Stamps —shop.wcp-nm.com

Scott A. Shaulis — www.shaulisstamps.com

Space Cover Store — www.spacecoverstore.com

Stampbay, Inc. — www.stampbay.com

Stanley Gibbons Auction House —auctions.stanleygibbons.com

Stephen T. Taylor — www.stephentaylor.co.uk

Steve Malack Stamps — www.malack.com

Sterling Stamp —auction.sterlingstamps.com

Suburdan Stamp

Tropical Stamps, Inc. — www.tropicalstamps.com

United States Postal Service — www.USPS.com

Universal Philatelic Auctions —www.UPAstampauctions.co.uk

Vance Auctions Ltd —www.vanceauctions.com

Vogt Stamps —www.vogtstamps.com

Westpex —www.westpex.org

About the Index of Advertisers This index is included to help readers find advertisers included in this edition of The American Philatelist. The support of these dealers and services is very important to the APS and to The AP. Advertising is a privilege of membership and each business represented here is a member in good standing of the Society. Some postal organizations, like the U.S. Postal Service, are not directly members, but are afforded the opportunity to advertise because of their standing, reputation and impact on the hobby. Advertising is open to any member of the American Philatelic Society. For any advertiser that maintains a website, that web 88 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

address is listed with their information above. Additionally, the online version of the journal includes clickable links for each of these companies and individuals. These links make visiting the advertisers’ websites easy and avoids the possibility of mistyping the web address from these listings. As you interact with these advertisers, please tell them you saw their ad in The American Philatelist and let them know that you appreciate their support of the journal and the hobby in general.

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Show Time

stampshow@stamps.org

The “Show Time” Calendar features a list of upcoming shows and APS events (shown in green). To obtain a listing, please submit a “Show Time” form, available online at www.stamps.org/ Show-Calendar or by mail from APS headquarters. Information must be received 60 days before desired publication time. The listings are free to World Series of Philately and other shows that are sponsored by an APS chapter or affiliate. Other shows/bourses may purchase listings for the month of the show/ bourse and the month prior only. The listing fee is $25 per show per issue. Shows designated *B* are bourse only. Grand award winners from *WSP* shows (shown in blue) are eligible for the annual APS World Series of Philately Champion of Champions competition. Visit www.stamps.org/ShowCalendar for a complete listing of shows and APS events.

Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning

Pennsylvania

January 5

Pennsylvania

January 12

Louisiana

February 26-27

2021 New Orleans Stamp Show Pontchartrain Center, 4545 Williams Blvd, Kenner. *B* Contact: Eric White Email: ericwhitegypsymoth@yahoo.com Website: ccsc.nola@org

Nebraska

Pennsylvania

February 28

LINPEX 2021 Lincoln Stamp Club, College View Adventist Church, 4801 Prescott Ave, Lincoln. Contact: Dale Niebuhr Email: dale.niebuhr@gmail.com Website: www.lincolnstampclub.org

Oregon

March

Virtual Willamette Valley Stamp Exhibition Greater Eugene Stamp Society and Salem Stamp Society. Contact: George Struble Email: gstruble@willamette.edu Website: www.salemstampsociety.org/WVExh1. html

March 1

APS Virtual Course: Philatelic Research: Best Practices and Best Resources, Part 1 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.org Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning

APS Virtual Course: Pressing Issues: An Introduction to Printing Types, Part 3 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.org Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning

APS Virtual Course: Philatelic Research: Best Practices and Best Resources, Part 2 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.or Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning

McKinley Club Stamp Show McKinley Stamp Club of Canton OH, St. George Serbian Orthodox Social Hall, 4667 Applegrove St. NW, North Canton. Contact: Dave Pool Email: lincolnway@sssnet.com Website: http://www.mksc.webs.com

Indiana

January 16-17

Indiana Stamp Show Ann Arbor Stamp Club, Northside Events & Social Club, 2100 E. 71st Street, Lawrence. *B* Contact: Rusty Shoaf Email: rusty.shoaf@rshoaf.com

Pennsylvania

January 19

APS Virtual Course: Philatelic Research: Best Practices and Best Resources, Part 3 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.org Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning

Florida

February 1

APS Virtual Course: Pressing Issues: An Introduction to Printing Types, Part 1 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.org Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning

Michigan

February 13-14

Ferndale Stamp Show Birmingham Stamp Club, Royal Oak Elks Lodge # 1523, 2410 E. Fourth Street, Royal Oak. *B* Contact: Fred Como Email: karate1dad@netscape.net

Pennsylvania

Missouri

March 19-21

St. Louis Stamp Expo, Area Clubs, St. Louis Renaissance Airport Hotel, 9801 Natural Bridge Rd., St. Louis. *WSP* Contact: Mike Peter Website: http://www.stlstampexpo.org

Washington

March 27-28

Apple Blossom Inland Empire Philatelic Society, Eagles, 16801 E. Sprague Ave., Spokane Valley. *B* Contact: J Wilson Palmer Email: ICKYBURG@COMCAST.NET Website: http://www.ieps-stamps.com

March 6-7

The Gold Standard in

March 8

APS Virtual Course: Getting the Most Out of the Scott Catalogue, Part 1 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.org Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning

Illinois

March 15

APS Virtual Course: Getting the Most Out of the Scott Catalogue, Part 2 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.org Website: stamps.org/learn/c3a-online-learning Website: http://www.mksc.webs.com

ERIC JACKSON the hobby’s premier dealer of revenue stamps since 1975

March 13-14

Rockford 2-3-4 Stamp Expo Rockford Stamp Club, Forest Hilla Lodge, 1601 West Lane Rd,

January 22-24

Virtual Sarasota National Stamp Exhibition Sarasota Philatelic Club, Philatelic and Literature Exhibits & Seminars *WSP* Contact: Liz Hisey Email: lizhisey@comcast.net Website: www.sarasotastampclub.com/ the-exhibition/general-info/

Pennsylvania

Ohio

Loves Park. Contact: Tim Wait Email: t.wait@comcast.net Website: http://www.rockfordstampclub.com

February 15

APS Virtual Course: Pressing Issues: An Introduction to Printing Types, Part 2 American Philatelic Society, Educational Offering. *APS* Email: education@stamps.org 90 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

ATTENTION: The APS Events Calendar (aps.buzz/ Calendar) remains fairly sparse as COVIDrelated restrictions continue, but is regularly updated with cancellations and postponed show dates. We encourage readers to stay updated on the status of future shows. This is an opportunity for stamp clubs to consider how they can gather safely for events and meetings by using video conferencing tools like Zoom or GoToMeeting. To see how the APS is meeting this challenge, visit stamps. org/news and check the “Video” tab for recent recordings of APS Stamp Chats and register to attend future Chats. We are happy to offer our expertise and the APS video conferencing platforms to help clubs connect. For more information, please reach out to APS Community-Grassroots Specialist Heidi Lauckhardt-Rhoades for more information at heidi@stamps.org.

Holloway & Co., New York, N.Y. 1862-83 1c black die essay on india, 89x40mm, VF • $600.00 (INV-034707) PA residents add 6% sales tax.

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Buying & Selling

Eric Jackson

P.O. Box 728 • Leesport PA 19533-0728 Phone: 610-926-6200 E-mail: eric@revenuer.com Online: www.ericjackson.com

Established 1914

2020 Jackson ad for December AP.indd 1

10/18/2020 5:25:23 PM

Books & Catalogs BY Gary Wayne Loew gary@stamps.org

Generally Speaking – All 33 columns, plus a few philatelic words from Keller by Lawrence Block. 286 pages, 6 x 9 inches, published by LB Productions, January 7, 2020. Available from amazon.com in print, audiobook and eBook formats. Philatelic columnists have long collected their writings in books and thus revealed their writings to broader audiences. Some of these writers wrote columns of lasting interest and the resulting books remain in demand. The most notable of these, perhaps, is Herman Herst, Jr., whose books The Best of Herst’s Outbursts and Nassau Street recount the philatelic scene of the mid-20th century. Although written in the moment, Herst’s collected columns represent a charming history of the period. Other authors write columns that are intended to serve as educational guides for collectors. Some retain their value retrospectively while other such columns are dated. But sometimes a philatelic columnist comes along and simply shares their individual collecting experiences as a month-to-month stream of personal vignettes. One such author is Lawrence Block, the internationally acclaimed mystery writer. Block is also the author of many nonfiction books on writing as well as a writer-in-residence at Newberry College in South Carolina. Lawrence Block collected stamps as a child, stopped, and resumed his collecting as an adult. Most of us can relate to that philatelic evolution. Block returned to collecting in the 1990s and, as the first decade of the new millennium drew to a close, found himself writing a monthly column for Linn’s Stamp News. I almost said a “stamp column,” but that is not quite right. Although he writes about stamps, Block’s writings are more about collecting. More specifically, about his collecting. There was no particular theme to the columns and that is reflected best by the column’s title, “Generally Speaking.” Block’s string of columns lasted for nearly three years, until he ran out of motivation to continue his musings. There were a total of 33 columns and in 2019 he assembled them into an eponymous book, the eponym being to the column’s name and not the author’s. Many of you will know Block best (or solely) as the author of the Keller series of novels. Keller is the assassinfor-hire who is also a dedicated stamp collector. I would hope that we don’t relate well to Keller via his vocation, but his avocation renders Keller as someone that we can understand. There are five novels and one novella in the “Keller’s Greatest Hits” (if you’ll excuse the expression) series: Hit Man, Hit List, Hit Parade, Hit & Run, Hit Me, and Keller’s

Fedora. Block thought it appropriate to include vignettes from each of the novels in “Generally Speaking.” Keller’s development as a stamp collector seems remarkably similar to Block’s own philatelic evolution. But while Block eventually stopped collecting and sold his many stamp albums, Keller has remained doggedly devoted to his collecting. At one point, Keller had considered retiring from his rather stressful career. But once he caught the collecting bug, he decided to continue his profession as a means to afford slaking his philatelic passions. If one were seeking to learn about philately, perhaps one would not think to turn first to “Generally Speaking.” That might be a mistake. Stamp collecting centers around gaining knowledge and then buying wisely. But every hobbyist understands the self-actualization and fulfillment that arises from time spent with the hobby. Reading Block’s 33 columns will reaffirm why we do what we do. Oh, and you might also pick up a few pointers about gaining knowledge and buying wisely. Of equal importance, you might learn how to avoid not buying wisely. The book begins with Keller walking into a stamp store JANUARY 2021 AMERICAN PHILATELIST 91

and deciding to become a collector. Block then moves on to his narratives about collecting. These columns are a delightful blend of strictly autobiographical philosophizing and tutorial sessions. Block collects worldwide ending with 1940. He strives to fill all the spaces in his albums, not spending foolishly (most of the time), upgrading to stamps in better condition, and coping with the challenges of “album bulge.” He shares with us his debates over which countries to concentrate on, when to collect major or minor varieties, mint vs. used, condition, gum, hinges vs. mounts,

and other philatelic nuances. Block speaks about his world travels with his wife and how they try – often with success – to visit local post offices and get a canceled stamp for their “littlest stamp album.” He uses the vehicle of an imaginary classroom to illustrate the historical relevance and semiotics of several countries. His “students” ask both penetrating and naïve questions; Block the professor always has sage answers. Perhaps many of you had the opportunity to read these columns as they originally appeared in Linn’s. I submit that it is worthwhile to reread the collected columns as an entity. In addition to understanding the mind of Keller, the philatelist/assassin, you will gain insight into the evolution of the real-world philatelist, Lawrence Block. You might also learn a bit about your own philatelic journey. You will definitely learn why Keller named his daughter Jenny. There are six Keller vignettes in Generally Speaking. By the time the book ended with the sixth vignette, I knew which actor I wanted to portray Keller in the hoped-for movie. I recommend that you buy the book and decide for yourself who that actor should be. You will also grow to understand more about being a stamp collector: the why and the how of the pleasure we experience. Generally Speaking is quite simply a delightful read.

Our Unique Newsletter

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79-E30o Spencer Patent Imperforate Singles 3c “Rainbow” plate essays, imperforate on wove paper. $150.00 each

116-E1j 10c Lincoln, Orange-red and Black die essays on green veined marbled white ivory card. This is the first time since about 1990 that these have been publicly offered. Originally sold by the Nassau Stamp Company as part of the Earl of Crawford collection. They then passed through the Juhring and then Lopez collections. The catalog is decades behind. (EP95-04) $3,000.00 each

63 – Great Central Fair Apr 12, 1864 Clear strike of CDS ties 1¢ blue (63), Straight edge at top and with part of adjoining stamp at bottom, on red Great Central Sanitary Fair illustrated cover to local Philadelphia street address, with original printed enclosure of a Resolution of the Executive Committee. One cent franking pays the printed matter rate. Illustrated in “The United States 1¢ Franklin 1861-1867” by Don Evans on page 290, fig. 14-60. With 1985 P.F. certificate. A gem! Ex-Morris (PH95-01) $2,750.00

P.O. Box 3876 • Oak Brook, IL 60522-3876

Phone: (847) 910-6048 Email: jim@jameslee.com

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James E. Lee’s Philately • Whole No. 95 • 1

The 96th edition of our full-color quarterly newsletter will be mailed on Friday, January 8th, 2021. Everyone can freely view the latest issue on our HOME PAGE! It always features special offers from our vast inventory.

JamesLee.com

92 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

63 – Strip of three – Philadelphia, Aug. 18. 1863

To Captain A. L. Case, Fleet Captain, “Flagship Minnesota”, Norfolk, Va. The USS Minnesota was a wooden steam frigate, flagship for the North Atlantic Blockading Squadron. Ex-Emerson, Grunin $700.00

P.O. Box 3876 • Oak Brook, IL 60522-3876 Call: (847) 910-6048 Email: jim@jameslee.com

New World Issues BY William Silvester

ARMENIA – Armenian Cultural Heritage

A wave of Armenians moved to Singapore from Malacca, Penang, Java, Madras and Calcutta in the 1820s and 1830s. In tribute to Armenian cultural heritage around the world, this stamp was issued on September 17, 2020, depicting the facade of the Saint Gregory the Illuminator Church in Singapore. Inscribed in English and Armenian, the stamp was issued in sheetlets of 10, printed by Cartor, France. The church is the oldest standing building in Singapore, built in 1835, and considered the most famous masterpiece of Irish architect George Coleman. The surrounding tropical gardens contains a small cemetery where prominent 19th and 20th century Singapore Armenians rest. The stamp is available online from: https://aps.buzz/ArmeniaJan21.

AUSTRIA – 125 Years of Swarovski

Czech-born Austrian glass cutter and jeweler, Daniel Swarovski, patented an electric cutting machine in 1892 to facilitate the production of lead crystal jewelry, which previously had been cut by hand. He emigrated to Austria in 1895 to partner with Armand Kosmann and Franz Weis to form A. Kosmann, D. Swarovski & Co. They built a crystal-cutting factory in Wattens, Tyrol, where they had access to local hydroelectricity for the energy-intensive grinding processes. Even today Swarovski crystals are known for their extraordinary radiance. Austria issued a €4.30 commemorative stamp on July 18, 2020, printed by offset with silver foil and available from: https://aps.buzz/AustriaJan21.

BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA – Butterflies

Croatian Post Ltd. Mostar issued four commemorative stamps in a sheet of eight on November 1, 2020, featuring butterflies native to the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Designed by Ernesto Markota, the 2,90 BAM stamps show diurnal butterflies, endangered due to the disappearance of their habitats as traditional livestock farming decreases. The insects include the common Yellow-banded skipper (Pyrgus sidae Esper); the Dalmatian argus (Proterebia afra dalmata) found near Buško Jezero lake; Freyer`s Purple Emperor (Apatura metis Freyer) from northern Bosnia near Srbac; and Assmann’s fritillary (Melitaea britomartis Assmann), first recorded near Vještić Gora. These stamps and accompanying material may be purchased online at www.epostshop.ba.

GERMANY – 50 Years of Tatort

Tatort (meaning “Crime Scene”) is a German television series that has been running continuously since 1970, making it the longest-running German TV drama. In each episode, different detectives in different cities attempt to solve a murder case. Issued by Deutschepost in panes of 10 on November 2, 2020, the image on the moisture activated €0.80 stamp is from the opening credits of the show over a test pattern. The stamp is the latest in the German TV Legends series and can be purchased online at: https://aps.buzz/GermanyJan21.

GIBRALTAR – 2020 Definitive Set

An increase in postal rates for Gibraltar on June 1, 2020, necessitated the issuing of a new definitive set. The set is color coded with the crest of Her Majesty’s Government of Gibraltar, the version adopted in 2014, as the main feature. The design combines the coat of arms of Her Majesty’s Government above that of Gibraltar, consisting of an escutcheon and a threetowered castle above a hanging golden key symbolizing Great Britain’s possession of The Rock since 1704. Designed by Stephen Perera, the set ranges from 12p to £4 and is available online from https://post.gi/shop/.

94 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

SOUTH KOREA – 100th Anniversary of the Death of Martyr Yu Gwansun

To mark the 100th anniversary of the death of Yu Gwansun (December 16, 1902 – September 28, 1920), known as Korea’s Joan of Arc, a single 380 won stamp was issued on September 28, 2020. Also known as Ryu Gwan-sun, the teenaged girl was a Korean independence activist and organizer of what would become known as the March 1st Movement against Imperial Japanese colonial rule of Korea. Though a peaceful demonstration, it led to her arrest, torture and death at the hands of the Japanese occupiers, resulting in her martyrdom for Korea’s fight for independence. The design on the stamp shows part of the shrine built in her honor at Byeongcheon-myeon, after Korea finally achieved independence in 1945. The stamp can be found online at http://www.koreapost.go.kr/.

MARSHALL ISLANDS – Race to the White House

The 2020 United States presidential election was still to be held when Marshall Islands issued a set of three sheetlets of four $2 stamps to commemorate the event on October 16, 2020. Staying as non-partisan as possible, the sheetlets gave equal time to all candidates, showing each an equal number of times with separate views of the White House prominent in the selvage. One sheet depicts the two Democrats, former Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. and U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris with two different photographs; a second sheet shows two views each of President Donald J. Trump and VP Michael R. Pence; the third sheetlet (shown here) features all four candidates with former VP Biden and Senator Harris on the left and President Trump and VP Pence on the right side of the sheetlet. Readers will note one faux pas: the party logo and names are placed under the opposing candidates. The stamps are available from the Marshall Islands exclusive philatelic agent at: https://www.igpc.com/thumbs.cfm

UNITED NATIONS – Women in Peacekeeping

SPAIN - Urban Architecture Atlético de Madrid stadium

Spain has begun a new series of stamps dedicated to urban architecture with the latest issue reviewing five stadiums that have served Madrid since 1903. Issued in panes of nine with a history of the stadiums and important dates in the top selvage, the design of the €2 stamp features an aerial view of the entire stadium with the red and white colors of Atlético de Madrid in the background. The stadium has an unusual design, constructed at different heights rather than horizontally giving it a wave-like appearance. The roof covers 96% of the 68,000 spectators, prioritizing safety, comfort, and space over large crowds. The stamp is available from https://aps. buzz/SpainJan21.

“Women in Peacekeeping: A Key to Peace” is the theme of a pane of 10 $1.20 (U.S.) stamps issued to pay tribute to United Nations uniformed and civilian personnel on the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, May 29, 2020. The five designs are used twice on the sheetlet and feature images of worldwide UN peacekeeping services. The tab showing the UN logo can be personalized. 2020 also marks the 20th anniversary of the UN Security Council Resolution on Women, Peace and Security. The sheetlet can be found online at https:// aps.buzz/UNJan21.

• • • • •

New worldwide stamps are presented for information and are not necessarily shown at the correct scale. The quality of images available at the time of release varies widely and we resize to achieve the best possible reproduction. JANUARY 2021 / AMERICAN PHILATELIST 95

Worldwide in a Nutshell BY BOB LAMB • AP Columnist

MADAGASCAR

(Malagasy Republic) Status: Presidential Republic Population: 26,955,737 (2020 est.) Area: 226,658 sq. miles Currency: 5 iraimbilanja = 1 ariary. (US$1 = 4000 ariary)

adagascar is an island about the size of Texas off the southeast coast of Africa. It was settled largely by migration from Indonesia. There were short-lived British and French coastal settlements before the island became a haunt for pirates in the late 17th century. Madagascar consisted of numerous unconnected settlements until the early 19th century, when Radama I, a reform-minded chief in Antananarivo, sought British help in modernizing his country. The British recognized him as “King of Madagascar.” Among his reforms was the establishment of a royal mail service. In 1840, the French established a naval base on the island of Nossi Be (Nosy Be) off Madagascar’s western coast. This was the main transit hub for mail until 1882 when a monthly steamer service was set up from Tamatave (Toamasina) to Réunion. The maritime office in Tamatave received mail from the French Consulate in Antananarivo. After 1859, this service used French stamps, and after 1864, French Colonies stamps. In 1883, when the ruler of northern Madagascar refused to accede to French protection, the French invaded. As a result, they acquired Diego Suarez where they built a naval base in 1885. France had previously established coastal enclaves in Nossi Be (1840) and Ste Marie de Madagascar island (1750). The three enclaves had post offices and briefly issued stamps. They were integrated into Madagascar in 1896. The French invasion disrupted regular mail operations. As a result, in May 1883 the British Consulate arranged for the French to transport their mail. For use by this service, the British Consul in 1884 began selling locally printed stamps inscribed British Consular Mail or BCM. These stamps were discontinued in 1888 when the national Post and Telegraph service was opened in Antananarivo. From January to September 1895, the British operated a local mail service from Antananarivo to Natal, via the port of Vantomanry. For this, they produced 13 stamps inscribed British Inland Mail Madagascar. In 1894, the Norwegian consulate authorized a postal service for its missionaries. Four stamps were produced locally, inscribed N.M.S. (for Norwegian Missionary Society). Their use was discontinued in 1896 when Madagascar was annexed by France. On June 29, 1891, six locally produced values - the first Malagasy stamps - were released. By 1894, twelve government post offices were operating country-wide. On February 28, 1897, Madagascar became a French colony. During World War II, French officials in Madagascar were loyal to the Vichy government. British and South African forces occupied the island in September 1942. After Gaullist forces arrived in January 1943, “Free French” overprints were placed on sale. France established an autonomous “Malagasy Republic” in 1958. On June 26, 1960 it became independent. In 1993, its name was changed to the Republic of Madagascar. Upon independence, Madagascar used the CFA Franc. In 1963, it adopted the Malagasy franc. In 2003, the ariary became the official currency. Since that time, its stamps show both currencies. The ariary is fixed at 5 Malagasy Francs (FMG). 96 AMERICAN PHILATELIST / JANUARY 2021

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PRM Enterprises, Inc. Randall T. Scribner 10700 Hickory Ridge Rd. Harrisburg, NC 28075 Phone: (704) 575-2795 scrib1@yahoo.com Coins also wanted

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