When I look back at some of the local post stamps I’ve created over the last 10 years, it becomes very obvious that some of the early designs were very…primitive compared to newer issues. I think it’s safe to say my stamp design skills have improved a great deal, and I hope they continue to do so.
What my stamps still lack, however, is perforations.
Here in the USA, companies like Rosback, Franklin, and Latham produced machines in the late 1800s and early 1900s designed specifically for perforating postage stamps. Some perforators were tabletop models; others stand on the floor and look very much like small tables. Rosback is actually still in business, but no longer manufactures stamp perforators, sadly enough.
I would love to own my very own stamp perforator one day, so…if you have a stamp perforating machine for sale, I may be your man. Due to how heavy these things are, shipping would probably be prohibitively expensive, so the closer you are to the Southeast, the more likely things will work out. At any rate, send me a note with details about what you have and how much you want for it, and I’ll be sure to respond.
I’ve heard of collectors focusing on a lot of different types of stamps: postage, revenue, locals, and so forth. What I hadn’t heard of before last week, however, is Sunday school stamps.
According to Sunday School Stamp Albums, a website maintained by an English collector named Steve, cinderella stamps picturing scenes from Bible stories and other religious-themed subjects—and albums in which to store them—were produced beginning in the early 1900s. Instructors doled them out as a sort of reward for regular attendance.
The majority of the stamps Steve shows on his site originated in the United Kingdom. He also points out examples from Australia and the USA, however, so the idea obviously did make it across the pond.
These are interesting-looking items, so if you get a chance, visit Sunday School Stamp Albums. Be sure to let Steve know you read about his site here.
Stamp collectors may be more familiar than any other group with the word “sesquicentennial.” Meaning 150th anniversary, sesquicentennial is commonly associated with stamps issued during the 1950s.
This June, Philosateleian Post will issue a local post stamp commemorating the sesquicentennial of the passage of the Yosemite Grant Act, a piece of legislation that set aside Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove as protected areas. As you probably know, both pieces of land were later incorporated into Yosemite National Park.
Yosemite Grant Sesquicentennial
Last September, my wife and I had the opportunity to visit Yosemite during a trip to California. The entire area’s scenic beauty is incredible; if you’ve never been there, I can only advise that you go if you have the opportunity.
I based the vignette of Philosateleian Post’s new stamp on a photograph I took during our time at Yosemite, and went with a simple frame that I hope is suitably classy without detracting from the view itself.
If you would like a copy of my new stamp for your collection, see the press release for details. (Note that your request should include either $2 or a self-addressed stamped envelope, but not both.)
I don’t remember exactly why I started collecting stamps. Given how much I read as a child, I have a feeling that I probably read a book in which one of the main characters had a stamp collection.
Likewise, I’m not absolutely sure what got me interested in landscape stamps, but if I had to guess, I would say it was the First Boca stamp issued by Trinidad and Tobago.
First Boca
I just finished posting this to my landscape stamps exhibit. I think this stamp—if not this exact specimen, then another copy—probably came from an old album that my grandma gave to me a number of years ago. It had belonged to a great uncle who died long before I was born.
There’s something about this stamp that really appeals to me. Maybe it’s the blue and green color scheme, I’m not sure. At any rate, it has been a part of my collection for a long time, and I’m happy to finally have a scan of it online.
