Month: December 2017

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End of year housekeeping.

Well, I have been at this for three months now. I have learned a lot about Albanian communism and architects murdered by their chauffer’s . Exactly the type of fun knowledge one gains as they dig deeper into the hobby. While I have not set the internet on fire yet, I have found some regular readers. Many thanks for taking the time. People say that no one reads anything on line but rather only watch videos. At least among stamp collectors, some of us are willing to read about what we love.

By sticking to only stamps from my personal collection, many of the stamps I have written about could be described as kiloware. Which some stamp dealers despise as there is no money in them. I think that showing even inexpensive stamps have an interesting story to tell, I can attract more people to the hobby. No new collector is going to start with 4 figure stamps. Many like myself have collected for 40 years and as far as I know have nothing that valuable.

I have a request of my readers. Recommend my site to your stamp collecting friends. Also notice the hopefully discrete ads Google places. They have been chosen by them to appeal to you and don’t be afraid to click on one. I have been hoping for a five percent click through rate and so far have been short of that.

The stamp pictures on the site are slowly getting better and maybe eventually so will my proofreading. There are many more stories to learn from stamp collecting in 2018. Thanks for being here from the beginning!

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Students take a field trip to the farm in China

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. We have an interesting story to tell of agricultural reform that just isn’t going too well.

The stamp today is from mainland China. It was made during a brief period of reform between the great leap forward of the late 1950s and the cultural revolution of the late 1960s The stamp is really quite exquisite. The colors are dramatic and poetically it makes what would seem to be a good point. How China can raise food production so that the recent famine would be the last. By mobilizing.

The stamp is issue A191, an 8f stamp issued by the Peoples Republic of China on September 26th, 1964. The stamp shows students on a study break during their agricultural service. The stamp is part of a 4 stamp issue that celebrates youth helping in agriculture. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth $1.00 used. The cancellation seems done to order and the catalog mentions that cancelations from postal use reduce the value in half. This is the opposite of what I would expect. The value though is really as a window to what was occurring then. As such, the more mint the better.

While I am not sure how much  actual work in the fields was being accomplished. It does seem a useful thing to send students into the field. One thing China possesses is numbers, and the leader Mao believed much could be accomplished via massed mobilizations to solve problems.

The collectivization of agriculture had not gone well. Collectives had been formed at the expense of family farms. The state became the buyer of the collective’s product, but at a low price. The state would then pass on the product to the cities at a much higher price. The money that was thus raised was to be used to fund the building of factories in the cities. The Soviet leader Khrushchev had projected that the USSR’s industrial and agricultural output would exceed the USA in 15 years and Mao was inspired to make a similar projection of surpassing the UK in 15 years. To do this required quick industrialization. Agricultural workers were even encouraged to work backyard smelters at night to boost output. This only ended up making cheap pig iron that had little economic value.

The work demands on the countryside became ever harder to fulfill with less and less food staying in rural areas. An early 60s famine was the result and sending government workers and students to help in the collectives was something that could be done to show a government response. At the same time Mao was allowed to go into the background somewhat as new leaders set to work on reforming the economy. Mao would not be sidelined for long. He used the cultural revolution that started in 1966 to push aside and discredit the reformers. He began promoting himself as godlike and encouraged the youth to blame the problems on the elders. Teachers and parents became the target of the Cultural Revolution. Mao himself by this point was himself far from youthful and when he passed away some of the reformers that were still alive were allowed to come back into power. This included Deng Xiaoping, who had fallen from power and spent much of the Cultural Revolution working in a tractor plant as a line worker.

A note to fellow stamp collectors. If you get a chance check out the widely high values that attach to many Chinese stamps of this time. China must feel the same forces of changing ways to send messages as everywhere else. They must have realized however what great windows into time and place the old stamps are. The interest has obviously wildly boosted values. This could happen for other countries stamps as well. Even if there are not new issues. This type of interest is what I am trying to generate by bouncing around the world through different periods and finding stories to tell.

Well it is time to open up the discussion in the below comment section. China in the 60s went through a time of scoffing at experts and the priviledged  because in their belief in mass action. It seems the west is headed for that as well. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

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Camel to Mercedes, to 2 Land Rovers, then back to camel

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, refrain from an adult beverage and put the rug on the camel in preparation for a ride. We have an interesting story to tell of the man on todays stamp coming to grips with a gift from the heavens.

The stamp today is from Dubai. Before the discovery of oil, or the development of port/airport facilities that today Dubai is known for. What it does feature is the Sheik who will lead through the coming change. Dubai only made stamps for 10 years before the formation of the United Arab Emirates. As such, the stamps provide a link to the world before the oil.

Todays stamp is issue A1, a two Naye Paise stamp issued by the Emirate of Dubai on June 15th, 1963. The stamp features Sheik Rashid bin Said al Maktum and a cuttlefish. It was part of the 17 stamp first issue of Dubai. At the time Dubai used the Indian Rupee as it’s currency. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 30 cents in its mint condition. The stamp to look out for in this issue is the 10 rupee issue that is just a portrait of the Sheik and is worth $60. That interesting window of Dubai post independence and pre oil should lead to higher values over time as memories of the time fade and well off locals want to connect with their past. I am surprised it has not happened already.

A major industry pre oil in Dubai was pearl diving. However this activity became less lucrative over time as the price declined due to economic factors and the innovation in Japan of cultured pearls. The Sheik, in power since 1958 had sought ways to turn Dubai into a major port. There were rivals with this goal with nearby Abu Dhabi in partnership with Bahrain and Dubai in concert with Qatar. The sheik even sent a daughter to marry the Emir of Qatar. A dredging of a canal was achieved to improve the port and starting in 1969 revenue began to pour in from the discovery of oil. All of this went on while Britain and Indian influence in the area declined by choice.

The Sheik took the long view on the oil discovery. He famously stated. My father rode a camel, I drive a Mercedes, my son drives a Land Rover. His son will drive a Land Rover, but his son will ride a camel. The sheik got to work to see that this did not happen. The United Arab Emirates was formed with a team of previous rivals to make up for the vacuum left by the departing British and Indians. The Sheik was in charge and came up with a new currency. The port/airport facilities were expanded to the point that Dubai began to be compared to Hong Kong as a world trade center. This well occupies the people and many guest workers but it remains to be seen of the end of oil revenue will leave debts or wealth left over. The Sheik died in 1990. His son succeeded him but his son did not as they seem to go with the Middle Eastern and Cuban practice of passing leadership to little brothers instead of sons.

The cuttlefish on the stamp is not actually a fish but a mollusk in the same family as the octopus. It is considered one of the smartest sea creatures as it can signal other cuttlefish and predators by changing its colors. The creature is a common food source in Asian and Mediterranean cuisine, who also make use of the animals ink sacs,

Well I am ready for my camel ride so I will open the conversation in the below comment section. I wonder of all the facilities built in Dubai have stomped out the roaming nature of the people. Trading was always a part of what they did but not the sum total of it. Perhaps now they just use their airlines to satisfy the wonderlust. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

 

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Canada supports the war, except Quebec, and Churchill just ignores

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. We have an interesting story to tell of a colony gradually pulling away from England and how that complicates a war effort.

The stamp today is Canadian, from the war years of World War II. What is most noticeable is how American it seems. In the early war years, which is when this stamp is from there was an image  of America as an arsenal of democracy with much production but not yet much overseas service. This is definitely apace with this stamp issue and what was happening in Canada.

Todays stamp is issue A100, a four cent stamp issued in 1942 by Canada. The depiction is of a grain elevator. The 14 stamp issue in various denominations showed various aspects of Canadian industrial and agricultural  production in support of allied nations war effort. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 60 cents used. The stamp to look out for in this issue is the $1.00 blue stamp displaying a Canadian made destroyer. It is worth $65 for a mint one.

The Canadian war effort in World War II was hampered on many fronts. The French decended residents of Quebec were extremely opposed to conscription into the army. The Premier of Quebec extracted a promise from the liberal government that there would be no conscription for overseas troops. This lead to a few existing army units going to Britain where they were only to be used if Germany invaded. There were also new units of so called zombie soldiers that were not allowed to deploy outside Canada so took little part in the war.

This was controversial on ethnic lines. The army was a vast majority of soldiers of English decent. They volunteered in great numbers and were anxious to take a more active role. On the other hand the French were almost completely unrepresented. The Liberal government of the time was worried about Canadian standing in the world if it turned out that for the most part Canada sat out.  Churchill largely ignored Canada already because they were unwilling to go where Britain wanted and he thought them poorly trained and led. The Liberal Party also thought that it would hurt there reelection chances to have sat out the war. So an election was held to allow conscription and more overseas deployment. The measure passed and rules changed but again with no support in French Quebec. It was widely believed in Quebec that the Canadian central government had agreed to post war take many displaced Jews into Catholic Quebec. This was untrue. Pierre Trudeau, the future Prime Minister was  a young campaigner against the change and indeed himself did not serve overseas. Canadians did eventually take part in D-Day  and the liberation of France and Italy.

The sacrifices of Dominions and Colonies of Great Britain in the World Wars did much to loosen the ties with the old home country. This was even true in places like Canada and Australia where so many of the people were of English decent. The time when a country could maintain control of large armies of foriegnors was at an end.

Well my drink is empty and so it is time to open up the conversation in the below comment section. Were Canadian efforts in World War II, not enough, too much, or not enough? I am of English decent, but born in Quebec, and have never quite understood how Quebecois could sit out the liberation of France. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

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The radicals are revolting in the park, so we better start a bank.

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take the first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Today we have a quandary. What does a new leader do when radicals rebel, forcing out the President, and you the Vice President find yourself elevated. Starting a bank I bet occurred  to almost none of you, but it was the right move.

The stamp today is from 1941 Argentina. It includes on the stamp a long ago President, something rare in Latin America. But the left-right divide is always there and it is understandable that the circa 1941 right wingers in charge of Argentina would find the creativity of 50 year before right wingers inspiring. It also gives an excuse to show of one of the new grand edifices of Buenos Aires on a stamp. Combining a historical figure and new impressive architecture on a stamp makes this stamp a winner.

The stamp today is issue A174, a five centavo stamp issued by Argentina on  October 26th, 1941. It was a single stamp issue commemorating the 50th anniversary of  the Bank of the Nation. Carlos Pellegrini, the founder of the bank and the then President also appears. The stamp was a single issue. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 25 cents. As with many stamps I yammer about here, I find this stamp undervalued.

The run up to the founding of the Bank of the Nation in Argentina was an interesting time. A President named Rocca had in cahoots with wealth landowners concocted a scheme that brought in much foreign investment in Argentina. Local operations were able to issue bonds in London that were being marketed as backed by the gold supply of the Argentine government. This created an investment boom that funded railroads and public works but over time the inflows just covered debt service. There of course was not enough gold to actually back all the debt and when the government paid the debt in newly printed currency it initiated a financial panic in 1890 London. Barings Bank had sold most of the defaulted Argentine bonds and they had to be bailed out by a consortium of other London banks. Though such a thing has happened many times since, this was a first.

The default had terrible effects in Argentina. The economy contracted more than 10 percent in one year and Argentina was cut of from further foreign investment. An inept successor to Rocca and long simmering resentment lead to radicals taking to the streets in the hopes the army would also want the government gone. This “Revolution in the Park”was indeed put down by the army but the President did resign.

Carlos Pellegrini, the vice president found himself elevated. With the old debt defaulted, it was a great time to start a local bank that could fund only worthy projects. This house cleaning lead to 25 more years of right wing rule and Pellegrini the nickname “storm sailor”. Mr. Pellegrini  also showed how smart he was by not overstaying his welcome and leaving office at the end of his term. The bank he founded is still today the largest bank in Argentina with over 25 % of the local market.

The stamp also shows the edifice of the new bank headquarters building that was built in two stages between 1940 and 1957. It was twice the size of the previous headquarters of the bank. The building was the work of prominent local architect Alejandro Bustillo and done in the French neoclassical style. Mr. Bustillo also designed estacias and hotels including the biggest hotel casino in the world in Mar del Plata. His record was eventually beaten when Donald Trumps’ Taj Mahal Casino opened in Atlantic City in 1990. I am afraid both casinos were too big as they both have had much financial trouble.

Well, my drink is empty so it is time to open up the discussion in the below comment section. I doubt the people revolting in the park were satisfied with President Pellegrini. They eventually took power in 1916 though and not everyone was thrilled with them either. It is probably better to go left when there is money around, even if the opportunity comes when there isn’t. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

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Merry Christmas

Today I wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. The stamp today is issue A765 a depiction of the angel Gabriel from a van Eck painting. It is only worth 25 cents because a lot of people were still sending Christmas cards and letters in 1968. I sent mine this year I hope you did as well. If someone has an imperforate pair of this stamp it is worth $225. A version with the color yellow omitted is worth $50. After enjoying the holiday, come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

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We have our country back, lets get back to normal

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. Today we will explore an attractive, unmistakably French stamp that shows beauty persevering  despite two world wars trying to destroy it.

The stamp today is from France in the early post World War II years. In those years there was a lot of impressionist style views of natural beauty and landmarks. While somewhat held back by the limits of printing, these were great stamps. There was probably some motive to attract tourist. I think a lot of it comes down to an appreciation that the wars are over and so much of an appreciation by the French of how much survives.

Today’s stamp is issue A189, a 40 franc stamp issued by France in 1949. The stamp displays a view of the Meuse River valley in the area of the Ardennes forest. It was part of a three stamp issue in various denominations displaying French landmarks. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 30 cents used. A mint version of the stamp is worth $15.00. Given that, one hopes that the original buyer of my stamp at the post office was also a philatelist and kept a few mint copies back to collect.

It is interesting that even post war, French stamps were so heavily influences by the impressionist movement in art. That movement, which developed new painting techniques to better capture the beauty of the colors and lighting in nature, was founded in France in the 19th century. In the early twentieth century, especially after World War I, a new movement called expressionism was more the fashion. This movement was most prominent in Germany and Scandinavia. It was an attempt to capture humans angst as part of the dehumanizing effects of war industrialization and the decline of religious practice. While some pieces from that movement were interesting, I am glad France continued to offer what they did best.

The Ardennes region of France was near the border with southern Belgium and Luxemburg. The Meuse River flows through the western Ardennes forest. The time between1870 and 1945 saw repeated wars between Germany and France. Napoleon III surrendered to the Prussian at the small area city of Sedan. World War I again saw the Ardennes as the site of the German attack on France. 1940 saw another attack by Germany on France through the Ardennes with a breakthrough of the French line again at Sedan. This was not the end of it for the Ardennes as the last large scale offensive by Germany  in December 1944 sought to divide the British and American armies by attacking through the Ardennes. This time the goal was not France but the Belgian port of Antwerp in the hopes that then a separate peace with the west could be achieved. The effort failed and the “bulge” in the line was thrown back. The 75 year era of repeated wars has been followed by now nearly 75 years of peace and relative prosperity. Thus this hopeful stamp proved out.

Well my drink is empty and so it is time to open the conversation in the below comment section. What is your favorite example of the impressionist art movement on a stamp. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

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If India is to be independent, it needs to handle it’s own humanitarian relief

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. We have an interesting story to tell of creating local institutions that allow a new nation to be truly independent.

The stamp today if from India but frankly I do not find the design inspiring. Which to me is disappointing, because the story the stamp tells is quite the opposite. The printing and paper are sub par but to me the picture on the stamp is the big problem. The picture looks to be a white Christian nun looking after a sick native Indian. Mother Theresa of course is proof that just such a situation happened in India, and Mother Theresa has been honoured by an Indian stamp. But this stamp honors the local branch of the red cross organization. The Indians themselves saw the need for the red cross in India, saw that the efforts of the British Red Cross in India, though laudable, were inadequate to the need. So they set out their own division and way back in 1920, long before independence was actually achieved. Many new nations were forming in the post world war two period, but few had the institutions in place to be truly independent. India was one, and that was a credit to the British for allowing the institutions to develop  but mainly to the Indian people for themselves rising to the challenge.

The stamp today is issue A303, a 20 paise stamp issued by India on November 5th, 1970. It was a single stamp issue celebrating the 50th anniversary  of the founding of the Indian branch of the Red Cross Society. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 65 cents in it’s cancelled state.

The Red Cross was founded after conditions for wounded on the battlefield were intolerably bad. This was around 1860 and the weapons of war had gotten more deadly and it was time that more was done for the wounded, no matter the side. Nations agreed that the Red Cross workers were all to be considered non combatants. Local societies of the Red Cross were founded in many countries and their role expanded to include relief in natural disasters as well as war.

1920 was a time when India was facing many returned World War I veterans. The British Indian army was a major asset of Great Britain was used extensively in the first world wide war. Serving war veterans is still an important role for the Indian Red Cross. A free home for disabled veterans in maintained to this day in Bangalore.

The main role today of the Red Cross in India, as in the USA is disaster relief and they pride themselves in arriving quickly after a natural disaster. While the organization is not evangelical and makes a point of helping all or no faiths, it is easy to see how help after a disaster is a great way to display God’s love.

In action today in India, the Indian Red Cross makes a point how mature the country is. It is a lot more about raising awareness of health issues and filling in gaps such as HIV. Very similar to the USA and very unlike a failed state red cross presence where outsiders come in to help and have no need to explain needs.

Well my drink is empty and I notice that the 100 anniversary of the Indian Red Cross Society is coming up in 2020. I hope the Indian postal authority remembers and does  a great stamp to honour 100 years of good works. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

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Old keys and a vault on a stamp, bet the government is deregulating the banks

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. We have an interesting if somewhat familiar story to tell.

Todays stamp is Australian. I have been at this for over two months now so perhaps am overdo for a visit to Australia. This stamp bears somewhat of a resemblance to the USA Savings and Loan stamp from a few days ago. That is understandable. The two stamps are really sharing a purpose. They were issued at a time when bank deregulation was in the air. Change is always risky. So in a fairly young country to remind how long the institutions have been around along with symbols of security like a bank vault makes sense. What it also implies is that the people in charge of making the changes to the banking system know what they are doing.

This is where these stamps fail. Stamp issues are with us forever, mostly thanks to those of us in this hobby. People will still be talking about this stamp and the USA Savings and Loan stamp 100 years from now. With history people can better judge the actions the bankers and regulators and decide whether they acted wisely. Or not. Perhaps I am reading to much into it. Maybe will people will look at the stamps as artifacts of the styles of lock, perhaps not even realizing they are from earlier periods than the stamp.

The stamp today is issue A163, a four cent stamp issued by Australia on April 5th 1967. It celebrates the 150th anniversary of the opening of the Bank of New South Wales, the first bank in Australia. It was a single stamp issue. According to the Scott catalog, it is worth 25 cents used.

Banking started fairly late in Australia with a mixture of local banks and merchant banks formed in London in order to do business in Australia. The situation seemed to be similar to rural areas of the USA at the same time with a real lack of currency circulating in the early 19th century. Banks formed in Australia along two lines, Savings banks that took deposits from individuals and made mostly home mortgages and merchant banks that did not interact with the public.

In the 1950s and 1960s there was a move away from this with restrictions relaxed on how savings banks operated, They could now operate in the money market and set there own deposit rates. As in the USA, this indirectly lead to a runup in home values that greatly helped homeowners but made it more difficult for the next generations to stay where they are from, have a house and raise a family. I believe it is an untold story how much savings bank deregulation lead to the current situation where so many of our young adult offspring are renting unmarried in our bigger cities. I am certain that none of this was intended by the bankers and regulators of the day. They were just thinking about work arounds for the higher interest rates of that days market.

Well my drink is empty, so I will open up the conversation in the below comment section. Come again tomorrow for another story that can be learned from stamp collecting.

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85 years after crossing the channel, another place at a big crossing honors it

Welcome readers to todays offering from The Philatelist. So slip on your smoking jacket, fill your pipe, take your first sip of your adult beverage, and sit back in your most comfortable chair. We will remember a daring crossing of the English Channel, and ponder what it meant to a city state at a different crossing point.

The stamp today is 90s African from the city state of Djibouti. While the stamps from this period are vey attractive and well printed. They also strain credibility, The countries had farmed out their stamp issues and the issues became commemorative issues that appeal to some specialized stamp collectors but have nothing to do with the country of alleged origin. This to me is a big problem. I approach stamp collecting has a way to learn about far away places and different historic periods. I try to approach a stamp by trying to figure out what the stamp issuer was trying to get across with the stamp. So on a communist stamp I might be talking up the glories of the five year plan or on a mythical Donald Trump stamp, I might be telling how he hopes to make America great again. I am putting myself in their place. That is not possible on a stamp like this. Djibouti has gotten better about this. They have declared many recent commemoratives fakes and the few stamps issued in the last decade relate to things happening in the country. Progress!

Today’s stamp is issue C204, a forty franc airmail stamp issued by Djibouti on June 8th, 1994. It was part of a three stamp issue that celebrated the 85th anniversary of the first crossing of the English Channel in 1909 by Frenchman Louis Bleriot. According to the Scott catalog, the stamp is worth 40 cents used.

Louis Bleriot made a fortune in France by inventing the first useable truck headlight. Later in life he developed a passion for aviation and used his wealth to build gliders and then powered airplanes. His was the first monoplane, which means a single wing on each side of the plane. In 1909 an English newspaper had a 1000 pound contest on who could fly first across the channel in a powered airplane. 3 French aviation pioneers set up shop in Calais to try to win the prize. Bleriot flew at first light to be first. He had missed out earlier on the first cross country flight by one day. A French Destroyer ship would lead the way to Dover and fish you out when you crash. This did not work though as the plane was slightly faster than the ship and so was on its own to find its way. Winds were higher than Bleriot thought so he came over England off track and had to search until he found someone waving the French flag and directing him where to land. He won the prize.

Mr. Bleriot lived long enough to greet Charles Lindbergh when his plane made it across the Atlantic first in 1934. That plane was also a monoplane.

Well my drink is empty and so it is time to open up the conversation in the below comment section. I did end up learning much about early flight thanks to this stamp. Proving there is always a story to be learned from stamp collecting. Come again tomorrow.