Stamp collecting has been a past time for many people for a long time. Sometimes also known as philately, it is also very educational and interesting when you begin this hobby. There is quite a bit that can be learned from stamp collecting especially when getting stamps from other countries. Looking for older stamps that are no longer in print and can only be found through other collectors can tell you a lot about history and the places they came from. Stamp collectors can be found everywhere with fascinating stamps, some worth quite a bit of money.

If you decide you want to start stamp collecting there are a few materials you will need to begin your collection. They are:

• a stamp album to hold all your stamps and protect them. You want to make sure they are well protected so they do not get ruined and are not affected by the elements.
• mounting tape called hinges. The tape is used so it does affect or ruin the stamps. Keeping them in pristine condition.
• small tongs to move stamps about.
• tweezers for small corrections in placement that may need to be made. Also, used with older stamps so as not ruin them.
• a magnifying glass to identify older stamps and the details to look for.

You can actually start your collection today even. Many post offices have stamps specifically made for stamp collecting or if there is a stamp on an envelope you want, just remove as much envelope as possible and then soak the small square in warm water to remove the stamp. Allow to set out to dry on absorbent paper to remove all moisture from the stamp. Once the stamp is completely dry, place a heavy book on top of he stamp to make sure the stamp stays flat. Then place with tweezers or tongs into a stamp book using a hinge to attache it. That is it, you are done.

There are many collectors that specifically collect commemorative stamps and rare finds that only come out and can be found occasionally. There is also the option of collecting stamps by picture and design. Many time stamps collected for specific reasons can enter contests and there are special events for this type of collecting. There is even an annual contest for American school children to draw the best duck and have it printed and featured on a stamp.

Stamp collecting is a past time for many people both in America and other countries. It can be fun and interesting way to learn about history and other countries. If you are looking to start a hobby stamp collecting might be one to check into that is easy to start and does not cost a lot to begin.

Their goal is just to build a collection of stamps according to whatever they chose as their theme. Philatelists, on the other hand, are not necessarily collectors. They could be but their main goal is to study rare stamps and gain knowledge about them without any expectation of owning one. All serious collectors however, could benefit from a general knowledge of philately. This could assist a collector in determining the true value of a stamp and avoid paying too much for a basically worthless one.

The study of stamps came about when people started observing that some of the same types of stamps were on different papers, had varying watermarks, color hues, perforations, and many other little differences. This brought up questions on how and why they were different. Consequently some of these individuals began researching postal records to determine the origin of these stamps and find out why there were variations on supposedly identical stamps. Additionally, over the years people have found ways to produce forgeries of these stamps. Some of them are excellent copies and only someone experienced in studying stamps would be able to tell the difference.

Basically philately is divided into two groups. There is technical philately, which examines the technical end of the stamps and topical philately, which specifically studies the designs on the stamps.

Technical philately involves being intricately familiar with the design process of the stamp. Understanding the type of paper normally used for a particular stamp such as whether it’s a woven or laid and if it includes watermarks. Knowing the printing methods that are used, this includes engraving, typography and such. Searching for stamps that have been reprinted over an existing design. Study of these technicalities goes as far as to investigate the type of separation and gum used on the stamps. Technical philately is widely used to determine forgeries in stamps.

Topical philately is strictly the study of a stamp’s topical design. Sometimes famous pictures are edited before their use in a stamp and topical philately includes learning about the story behind the editing. Some stamps have the wrong pictures on them. Learning about certain images and why those images came to be used on stamps. With the wide variety of subjects that have been used on stamps over the years, topical philately can provide an endless number of topics to be studied.

Philately is an extremely detail oriented field of study; one has to have a good eye for some of the tiniest detail that can be found on stamps. Even someone who is just a casual collector would benefit from just some of the basic knowledge about philately. This information would help a collector understand better about the various stamps and reasons behind their values. It may also help someone avoid making costly mistakes in the buying or selling of pieces in their collections. Some may hold value that a collector isn’t aware of while others may be literally worthless.

There is a difference between stamp collectors and those who extensively study stamps, which is called philately. Most people enjoy collecting stamps as a form of recreation. They don’t spend time worrying about minute details. Those who indulge in philately are typically those who tend to invest large amounts of money in the buying of stamps. They make it a point to understand the finer points of a stamp and the rarity or desirability of a particular stamp. Rare stamps are rising increasingly in value and for some this can be quite an investment.

Stamps are an extremely portable item unlike the bigger items such as paintings or sculptures. They’re tiny and much easier to display in an attractive album that can be displayed or locked in a safe depending on the value of the stamps one owns. Many people arrange stamps in varying ways, some by country while others like to place them according to their sizes. Still others will arrange them by topic.

There have been an incredible number of stamps that have been created over the decades. For one to have a complete comprehensive collection they would have to have literally thousands of albums to hold them all. Typically your average collector will limit their collection to a specific topic or types of stamps. Some collect only stamps from a specific country while others will look for those stamps from a certain time frame. Whatever the range that collectors are limiting themselves to, one can be certain that there will always be some very interesting pieces in the collection.

With the sheer number of stamp collectors there are today, there are now thousands of clubs and organizations for these collectors to exchange information about their passion. The Internet has also opened up huge opportunities for one to search for a particular stamp or investigate a certain type of stamp that they may be looking for.

Just about any postal system all over the world has had some rare stamps. They can be postal errors or simply a very limited number that had been printed. One of the rarest stamps around is the 1-cent Z grill stamp. There are only two of these stamps known to exist. One is on display in a library in New York, under lock and key. The other one is available to collectors.

Stamp collecting began roughly in the 1800’s. In the beginning it was considered mainly a child’s hobby. It wasn’t until the late 1800’s that these children, now adults began to study existing stamps and read up on plate flaws and general production information. In the early 1900’s there was a sharp increase in the number of stamp collectors when people found that there was value and profit in certain stamps. This encouraged people to begin looking for specific stamps.

With the onslaught of Internet communication, emails and text messaging, it may be that stamps will grow even more in value as they become more and more scarce.

Stamps are classified into four separate types. They are Stamp Types, Purpose, Formats and Condition.

Stamp Types generally means the difference between a definitive stamp and a commemorative stamp. A definitive stamp most always showed a portrait of some famous person at present time or in history, although recently these have expanded to include the U.S. flag or the White House. Typically these stamps are relatively small and ordinary looking. They can be purchased at different denominations to pay for the different types of postal mail. These usually get printed in large numbers and remain in effect until the postal rates changes. Commemorative stamps are larger than the definitive’s and are printed in much smaller numbers. They’re usually sold for the standard first class postage rate. The pictures usually show images of historical events. Once these stamps run out, they usually are not printed again. In recent years there has been another stamp type called the Special. A good example of these stamps would be the Christmas stamps that are printed out for the holidays. These are larger, decorative stamps that are sold at the standard postal rate for a certain time period until the supply runs out.

Purpose shows what the stamp is for. Most stamps are classified as regular stamps because they are used on your every day basic mail. However, immediately after the postage stamp was distributed came along other stamps showing different purposes. Some show postage due for the mail that had insufficient monies applied to the postage. Other stamps were created to show classified mail, airmail and a variety of other special services.

Stamps are issued in a variety of ways. Format is another classification term used to show how these stamps were originally issued. Whether it was as a sheet, booklet, coil or panes.

Condition of a stamp is very important to many collectors. Mint condition is one that has never been used and is still in the same condition as when it was issued. If one has been in a collection held in an album with a hinge then it is considered an unused one. The reason for the difference is that the one that was in an album has had its “gum” disturbed. One that has been sent through the postal system and been stamped is considered used.

Other classification types are whether they are perforated, what kind of printing is used and whether a watermark was used.

By understanding the different classifications, one can begin their collection based on certain criteria. Many collectors have a certain theme to their collections. There have been billions of stamps that have been issued over the years that it would be literally impossible to have a complete collection. Many people choose a certain topical theme or perhaps stamps from a certain country only. Whatever you decide to create your theme around, it’ll be interesting and fun for you to study.

Over the years a certain few stamps have emerged as the most sought after objects by stamp collectors. They are…

The “Treskilling” Yellow. This is considered one of the most valuable stamps in the world. This was one of the first stamps distributed by Sweden back in 1855. They created a set of five stamps that ranged from 3 to 24 skillings banco. Each one was printed with a different color. Somehow the 3 skilling stamp got imprinted with the yellow-orange color, which is reserved for the 8 skilling stamp. Speculation is that a plate may have gotten damaged and the wrong plate was substituted for it. The end result is that this error was never caught and shortly after distributing these stamps, Sweden changed their currency and printed out new stamps depicting the new currency. A collector found a 3 skilling stamp with the orange-yellow color and realized that he had a find. After a number of years went by with many collectors searching specifically for this particular stamp, it was realized that this one found in the attic might have been the only surviving stamp of its kind. At this point the value of this stamp rose dramatically. Each consecutive time this Treskilling Yellow stamp has been sold, it has set records on the amount of money exchanged for it.

The Penny Black. This stamp holds the title of being the first official postal stamp to be used. It was issued by Great Britain in 1840. There’s suggestion that adhesive stamps have been used as far back as Greece as a system for postal delivery but the Penny Black was the first official one designed for a prepaid postal system. It’s was only used for a short period of time and printed from 11 different plates. It was switched over to the Penny Red when it was discovered that it was difficult to see a red cancellation stamp over a black. Some found that the red stamp was relatively easy to remove from the stamp also. So it was switched. The Penny Black is not a rare stamp. There were millions printed and put into circulation during that year. Additionally at that time many would write letters fold them and put the stamp directly onto the letter itself for mailing rather than use envelopes. As a result of this many of the stamps are still preserved along with the letters. The only reason this stamp is one of the most desired piece to own among collectors is due to its position of being the first official stamp. Because of this, one can expect to pay a good amount for owning one.

The Basel Dove. The world’s first stamp to be printed using three different colors. This stamp was printed by a canton of Basel. They didn’t have an official postal system until a few years later. Each canton was deemed responsible for their own mail service and Basel was among the first to issue prepaid stamps.

The Inverted Jenny. This stamp may very well be the most prized find for philatelists. Due to an increase in postage rates, the post office decided to rush out a new stamp especially for this price increase. This was a stamp that shows a Curtiss Jenny, which is the name of a biplane used to transport the mail. There was such haste in the designing and printing of these stamps that several mistakes occurred. Not only was there a rush in getting the design and printing done. The particular design also required two colors meaning that the sheets needed to be passed through the printing press twice. This caused the error probability rate to be extremely high in the printing of these. As it were, there were inverted errors where the plane ended up on the stamp upside down twice during the years of using this particular design. Most of these were caught and destroyed but it’s believed that at least one sheet containing 100 stamps got out into the mainstream. Postal authorities worked diligently to find these stamps but stamp collectors, upon hearing of the mistake, knew that these could potentially have value and were smart enough to hang on to them over the years. Today many stamp collectors spend much of their time looking for these Inverted Jenny’s. These stamps have been known to sell for as much as $525,000 USD.

The British Guiana 1 cent magenta. This is the rarest postage stamp in the world. Only three were ever made in British Guiana aka Guyana. The history of these stamps is quite interesting. Apparently a shipment of stamps never arrived by ship so the local postmaster authorized a couple of newspaper publishers to print out three stamps. The postmaster gave very specific instructions about the design but the printer decided to put his own little twist on it. As a result the postmaster was displeased with the result. He ordered that each of these three stamps that went out were to be signed by the postal clerks as a preventive method against forgery. Today only one of these stamps is known to exist. This stamp is heavily soiled, postmarked and even cut but one can still see the signature as ordered, by the postmaster, on the stamp.

The Benjamin Franklin Z-Grill. This one is holds the distinction of being the rarest AND most valuable stamp. This stamp was created with an embossed waffle in the “Z-Grill” design with the hopes that this would absorb the canceling ink that the postal system uses on the stamps. This was done in hopes of discouraging those who wanted to cheat the post office however, it was soon found to be impractical and discontinued. Today there are only two of these stamps in existence that’s known of.

These stamps are holding some distinction of having some unique history or being the first, rarest or most valuable among all the stamps in history therefore making them extremely sought after by collectors all over the world.

With so many stamp collectors around, it’s no wonder some find forging stamps to be a profitable business. Some stamps are in high demand and if a successful forger were to be able to reproduce it in such a way that it couldn’t be detectable, then he’s in for a cash windfall. Many of your philatelists work at studying forgeries and fakes to prevent this from happening.

One method of forging stamps is to forge the entire piece. The forger will study a certain stamp extensively and then create a new plate with the same engraving. Since creating an identical piece isn’t realistically possible, a philatelist will be able to spot a forgery by studying the stamps in great detail.
Some stamps are overprinted with another stamped design. These are called “Overprints”. Forgers have attempted to take certain stamps and try to recreate the overprint with their own stamps but this too can be detected fairly easily. Sometimes the overprint would be placed only on certain stamps and if a forger were to attempt to overprint another, this would immediately show up as not being part of the overprint series. Overprints can also be done differently. Some are typographed while others are lithographed. Knowing and recognizing the difference between typographing and lithographing will help a philatelist to know the difference.

In some stamps the difference between one worth a lot of money and another that’s common is based on the perforation. Due to a mistake in the original creation of the stamp, some came out with different perforations. In this case a forger will attempt to “fake” the stamp. One does this by attempting to cut some perforations off or add more by cutting into the stamp. A truly observant philatelist will know exactly how many perfs a stamp should have and whether or not they meet up correctly in the corners.

Regumming a stamp is another method of faking a stamp to increase its value. Many collectors believe that a stamp that has never been wet on the gum is more valuable. So fakers will regum a stamp. There are ways to check the authenticity of a stamp’s gum. The color will be different if it’s been regummed. Another way to check is to see whether the gum flows into the perforations. Stamps are gummed before being cut so the gum should be cut neatly along with the stamp and never flow over the lines.
Another method of faking is to repair an otherwise valuable stamp. Putting newer modern methods on a stamp for the purpose of passing it off as a mint condition rare stamp is considered altering the stamp and is not acceptable.

Some stamps had misprints where a certain color is different or missing altogether. In this case a faker will apply chemicals to remove certain otherwise missing colors from the common stamps to pass it off as the rare misprinted variety.

There are so many ways for forgers and fakers to work at deceiving collectors. This is why it’s such a good thing for everyone to have some basic knowledge of philately. This knowledge can protect some of these individuals from being cheated out of large sums of money.

The first stamp was issued in Britain back in the early 1800’s. Sir Rowland Hill was the man who first came up with the idea of using postage stamps to prepay for postal mail. It was called the Penny Black, a picture of Queen Victoria. One had to use scissors to cut each individual square from the sheet. The next country to follow suit in using stamps to pay for postage was Brazil.

United States began issuing stamps at certain post offices in 1845 but it wasn’t until two years later before the first official stamp was issued. It wasn’t long after this that stamp collecting began. At first it was a hobby taken up by children. Adults never showed that much interest in it. However, when these children grew older they carried this passion for stamp collection into their adult years. In the late 1800’s people began really studying the postage stamps. They would publish results of their studies on these stamps after researching everything from production findings to possible printing flaws by certain plates. Establishments began to open up specifically geared towards the number of stamp collectors that were growing daily. This is when stamp collecting truly took off and is still going strong today.

Collectors found that if they were able to come across an older stamp that it would be worth much more than its face value due to the rarity of finding unused stamps in mint condition. As a result of this, they began saving stamps throughout the 1930’s in hopes of having a valuable mint stamp years later. This idea backfired because too many people had the same idea and as a result one can still find a surplus of unused, mint condition stamps from this era even today. Typically the rare stamps found today that are worth a substantial amount would be those souvenir sheets from other countries, certain plate number coils or printing mistakes.

In the beginning stamp collectors would collect stamps from every country because there really hadn’t been so many stamps issued at that time. Now there are literally millions of stamps that have been issued over time and from every country in the world. Those early collectors would sometimes affix their stamps to wallpaper as a way of displaying their collection. Of course it was hard to maintain them in mint condition that way. As stamp collecting evolved over the years, people began to look for ways to store these stamps in order to preserve them for a long period of time.

Some of the biggest most varied collections of stamps can be found in royal families, the most notable one being the British royalty. They have one of the most extensive collections of rarities especially those from Great Britain. There was a man named Philipp la Renotiere of Ferrary who was known as the one with the most extensive private stamp collection. He was wealthy and was able to hire dealers to work only for him in obtaining certain rare stamps. He was able to grow quite a sizeable collection before his death in 1917. Today those stamps have been auctioned off and there is no longer any one collection of such rare, unique stamps.
Stamp collecting can be quite an interesting topic especially if one takes the time to research the history behind some of these stamps.

While Philately includes the study of both technical and topical aspects of stamps, it can extend to much more than that. Some concentrate their studies on the history of the postal system and still others may study only “Cinderella” stamps, which are basically stickers that look like stamps but aren’t. Some examples of Cinderella stamps would be the Easter Seal stamps or Christmas stamps.

The Philatelists who study the postal system extensively will typically concentrate their focus on the mail system. All the processes that mail goes through to get to its destination are included in this study.
The history of the mail system will include all the different forms of conveyance used over the years to move mail. For a period of time the Pony Express was considered the quickest way to move mail. Some collectors look for covers that actually moved with the Pony Express mail and if one is found, it’s generally considered pretty valuable. Other forms of transportation over the years are trains, planes and of course trucks. Philatelists will also study post offices, authorities who work for the postal system and postmarks found on letters and packages.

There are thousands of books, papers and reports written on the subject of philately. These books explain every finding and information on the subject of stamps or the postal system. One can find books detailing the history of the postal system and its transportation methods. There are books that list every single stamp that has been officially issued by the post offices over the years. They’ll explain every stamp in detail, telling one what to look for and what to watch for by the way of forgeries.

Philately is basically a lot of reading but one also needs to study actual stamps. For this, there have been special tools created just for handling these stamps. Tools from stamp tongs to protect the integrity of the stamp from skin oils to a perforation gauge to distinguish perforation sizes are used. Being that stamps are so small and the details even tinier still, there is a super strong magnifier created just for studying stamps. For the study of watermarks or the gum on a stamp, there is a fluid especially made to “wet” this without destroying the integrity of the ink or gum. Some have gone even further to use colored light filters to try and avoid touching these objects in any way. Fluoroscopes are used to determine whether a stamp is authentic or not. The use of ultraviolet lights is extremely helpful in examining stamps for any possible flaws or even previous repairs.

Many people who start off collecting stamps as merely a hobby usually find themselves getting more and more interested in the philately side of stamps. The more they read and study on stamps and the history of the postal system, the more it pulls them in. The history of the postal system dates back many, many years and there are millions of stamps available for study. There are so many different areas in this field that one can study, it would be hard to limit one to just a small field. The more one learns about this, the more fascinating it becomes.

Now that you’ve decided what type of stamps you want to collect, here are some tips on the best way to keep these stamps in good condition. You may end up with one that is worth a lot of money someday and you’ll want it to be in the best possible condition.

• When looking for a stamp album, look for one that has blank, acid-free pages. Don’t go for anything that has flimsy pages for these will not be sturdy enough to house your stamps safely. Make sure you have stamp hinges or mounts that are designed for housing stamps. Using glue or tape will damage your stamps.

• Do not try to tear or peel a stamp off of an envelope. Cut them carefully from the envelope without touching the perforated edges, this damages the stamp. Once the stamp has been cut off, float it in a small bowl filled with cool water. This dissolves the glue to a point where the paper from the envelope will come off easily. (Be careful with those stamps that have been heavily inked with cancellation stamps or strange looking ink that could potentially damage other stamps.) Rinse the remaining glue with fresh water and spread out to dry. If necessary place them in a book after drying to straighten them out. Always handle them with tongs.

• Think about your collection theme and sort the stamps according to your theme. Whether it’s by a topical or country theme or stamp types, it’s good to have some kind of order to them. Remove any damaged stamps as the value is most likely not that great. The only time you want to hang on to something that’s damaged would be if you had something that was extremely rare or valuable. If you have duplicates then display the best one you have of the set and use the other for trading with other stamp collectors. Sorting is an ongoing process as you pick up more and more stamps.

• Another extremely important thing to think about is having tongs. Seems like such a simple thing, doesn’t it. People think they can handle just as well with their fingers but they don’t think about how much oil we have on our skin. These oils transfer to the stamps and can damage them in the long run. Tongs are the best way to handle stamps. One may need to practice handling tongs before attempting to pick up stamps with them as some of them, if not handled correctly, could tear or poke holes through the stamps.

Once you’ve made the decision to collect stamps and you’ve gotten all the essential tools for collecting, you’ll probably find getting more and more curious about the history behind some of these stamps. There are thousands of books, literature and papers written on the subject. Many of them explain how and why some of these stamps became so valuable or interesting over the years. Most stamp collectors become so for a lifetime. There are so many different types of stamp collections that one could collect for years and never find themselves getting bored.