My favourite stamp(s) changes like the wind. Today it is the set issued for the 1910 Great Britain Philatelic Congress held at Caxton Hall in London.
These were printed by Perkins Bacon and made available to the attending Congress delegates.
A classical design befitting the era and event with a QV head which I believe was only used on one other stamp, a Ceylon Revenue.
Beautiful colours too !!
On another day I could have chosen my Avatar..........
Londonbus1...
I really like this one, among a lot of others:
Here's a picture of one I took a few years ago while visiting the Falklands:
Like Londonbus1, my favorite is really my favorite of the moment. In listing stamps for sale, once in a while I come across one that I really like. It is usually engraved with what I would perceive as a "good" design and with colors that fit the topic.
My latest I just listed and sold a couple of days ago. The only thing that tarnished it for me was the light toning on the top margin.
I think that the designer and engraver both did an excellent job on this one. And I think the choice of colors was perfect for this topic (sea rescue services).
Oh, too many! But you asked...
Canada's 1942 "Munitions" stamps. The Canadian wartime journalist and forward artillery observer, George Blackburn wrote a trilogy about his experiences in an artillery unit that used the famous 25-Pounder field gun, shown on this stamp. Under British/Canadian rules, a foreword observer, even if he was an enlisted rather than an officer, could call down fire on targets of his choice, which in Europe often were German tanks. Blackburn noted that American artillery officers would call a staff meeting to determine if a target was worthy of blowing to kingdom come. f I recall correctly, as many as 24 25-Pounders could concentrate fire on a single target, which rarely survived. The engraved stamp is incredibly detailed:
This Hungarian stamp (Scott C-156) pictures a Russian MiG-15 jet fighter, which was flow extensively in the Korean War by Russian, North Korean, and Chinese pilots, and was the standard fighter in all communist bloc countries. The stamp is relatively common in mint and CTO copies, but postally used ones? Rare as hens teeth. This is the only one I've seen in my life; I bought the mint "Aviation Day" set on approval, soon after it were issued in 1954:
I know, he cozied up to Hitler, but Charles Lindbergh will always be one of my heroes. The basic stamp, picturing his purpose-built Ryan aircraft, the Spirit of St. Louis, was issued only a month or so after his world-changing solo trans-Atlantic flight in 1927
I can identify with this stamp, picturing a French paratrooper who has just floated down from the quiet sky into the deadly valley at Dien Bien Phu, where communist forces would overwhelm French defenders and end French colonialism in Southeast Asia. Just as the paratrooper shown on the stamp is looking over his shoulder with less than full confidence in his situation, for 37 days in South Vietnam in 1966, I looked over my own shoulder in hopes of avoiding any bullets with my name on them. Then on the 37th day, that bullet arrived, and I got to go home, almost but not quite missing my right leg!
Newfoundland was a British Colony, and Princess Elizabeth was only 6 years old when the portrait for this stamp was taken. She is now my queen, of course, which is something that as an American I could not possibly imagine. Then, in 1969, my wife and I moved to Canada and eventually became Canadian citizens.
I've always wondered what she was holding when the photograph was taken. I even wrote to the keeper of the Royal Philatelic Collection to ask; the assistant to the "keeper" responded, saying she didn't know, but would look into it. But that was years ago, and I'm still wondering.
I was privileged in 1994 to be selected as one of two official photographers to tag around with Queen Elizabeth during her visit to Prince George, BC to officially open the new University of Northern BC. This is my best photo from that day:
And then there is Princess Grace of Monaco, who greatly disappointed me when she married that Ranier guy. Didn't she know that I was waiting to grow up so I could marry her? I bought a mint set of her wedding stamps on approval, and a few years ago added the airmail set. Here is the high-value stamp of that set:
I love the goofy, unflyable, Disneyish airplane shown on this Iceland stamp. Then there's the interesting spin on solar geography:I never knew that the sun rose (or set) over the North Pole!
Do I have to quit now? Well, OK, if you let me show you this privately printed Christopher Columbus tribute label was authorized for three days of use, in 1930, by the Spanish postal department. If there's ever been a better example of the engraver's art, I don't know what it could be. (Word of warning: mint copies of this stamp are coated with a thick, sticky gum that nearly defies removal. That wouldn't be a problem, except that, on my copies, the gum had caused the stamps in the set to roll themselves up into stiff, narrow tubes which seemed impossible to unroll without damaging them. I solved the problem by first soaking them for a long time in hot water, then gradually unrolling them and "shaving" the gum off with a sharp paring knife held at almost a vertical angle to the stamps. Took forever, but now that flat as a proverbial filberts.)
Bob
Like Bob and others, I can't really name just one. Ask me again tomorrow. Or later this evening. But, I must agree with Bob regarding his listing of the privately produced Spanish triangle. I never collected Spain and knew nothing about these stamps and then stumbled upon the complete set in blocks of four with selvage at a dealer's table at a local show many years ago. They didn't belong in my collections, but it was love at first sight and I created a place for them. My favorite in the set was the blue one.
Oh, Keesindy, that's a nice block! I've never seen one before.
Bob
Here's yours as a block of four, Bob!
Tom
I would love to run into an Ireland "paste up strip". The only example I have is Canadian and quite rare - it is a paste up strip of four containing two each of MR7 and MR7a, Scott's gives it the number MR7v for a strip of two. It's one of my best pieces and I look at it often. How many of you have a favourite stamp or two that you look at often? Most of us long time collectors have a favourite treasure or two. That strip, and a NS #4 and #3a (bisect) tied to a piece of cover are mine, what stamps do you look at often? It's not the value, it's the fact that you have something rare, maybe almost unique.
re: What's your favorite stamp(s)?
My favourite stamp(s) changes like the wind. Today it is the set issued for the 1910 Great Britain Philatelic Congress held at Caxton Hall in London.
These were printed by Perkins Bacon and made available to the attending Congress delegates.
A classical design befitting the era and event with a QV head which I believe was only used on one other stamp, a Ceylon Revenue.
Beautiful colours too !!
On another day I could have chosen my Avatar..........
Londonbus1...
re: What's your favorite stamp(s)?
I really like this one, among a lot of others:
Here's a picture of one I took a few years ago while visiting the Falklands:
re: What's your favorite stamp(s)?
Like Londonbus1, my favorite is really my favorite of the moment. In listing stamps for sale, once in a while I come across one that I really like. It is usually engraved with what I would perceive as a "good" design and with colors that fit the topic.
My latest I just listed and sold a couple of days ago. The only thing that tarnished it for me was the light toning on the top margin.
I think that the designer and engraver both did an excellent job on this one. And I think the choice of colors was perfect for this topic (sea rescue services).
re: What's your favorite stamp(s)?
Oh, too many! But you asked...
Canada's 1942 "Munitions" stamps. The Canadian wartime journalist and forward artillery observer, George Blackburn wrote a trilogy about his experiences in an artillery unit that used the famous 25-Pounder field gun, shown on this stamp. Under British/Canadian rules, a foreword observer, even if he was an enlisted rather than an officer, could call down fire on targets of his choice, which in Europe often were German tanks. Blackburn noted that American artillery officers would call a staff meeting to determine if a target was worthy of blowing to kingdom come. f I recall correctly, as many as 24 25-Pounders could concentrate fire on a single target, which rarely survived. The engraved stamp is incredibly detailed:
This Hungarian stamp (Scott C-156) pictures a Russian MiG-15 jet fighter, which was flow extensively in the Korean War by Russian, North Korean, and Chinese pilots, and was the standard fighter in all communist bloc countries. The stamp is relatively common in mint and CTO copies, but postally used ones? Rare as hens teeth. This is the only one I've seen in my life; I bought the mint "Aviation Day" set on approval, soon after it were issued in 1954:
I know, he cozied up to Hitler, but Charles Lindbergh will always be one of my heroes. The basic stamp, picturing his purpose-built Ryan aircraft, the Spirit of St. Louis, was issued only a month or so after his world-changing solo trans-Atlantic flight in 1927
I can identify with this stamp, picturing a French paratrooper who has just floated down from the quiet sky into the deadly valley at Dien Bien Phu, where communist forces would overwhelm French defenders and end French colonialism in Southeast Asia. Just as the paratrooper shown on the stamp is looking over his shoulder with less than full confidence in his situation, for 37 days in South Vietnam in 1966, I looked over my own shoulder in hopes of avoiding any bullets with my name on them. Then on the 37th day, that bullet arrived, and I got to go home, almost but not quite missing my right leg!
Newfoundland was a British Colony, and Princess Elizabeth was only 6 years old when the portrait for this stamp was taken. She is now my queen, of course, which is something that as an American I could not possibly imagine. Then, in 1969, my wife and I moved to Canada and eventually became Canadian citizens.
I've always wondered what she was holding when the photograph was taken. I even wrote to the keeper of the Royal Philatelic Collection to ask; the assistant to the "keeper" responded, saying she didn't know, but would look into it. But that was years ago, and I'm still wondering.
I was privileged in 1994 to be selected as one of two official photographers to tag around with Queen Elizabeth during her visit to Prince George, BC to officially open the new University of Northern BC. This is my best photo from that day:
And then there is Princess Grace of Monaco, who greatly disappointed me when she married that Ranier guy. Didn't she know that I was waiting to grow up so I could marry her? I bought a mint set of her wedding stamps on approval, and a few years ago added the airmail set. Here is the high-value stamp of that set:
I love the goofy, unflyable, Disneyish airplane shown on this Iceland stamp. Then there's the interesting spin on solar geography:I never knew that the sun rose (or set) over the North Pole!
Do I have to quit now? Well, OK, if you let me show you this privately printed Christopher Columbus tribute label was authorized for three days of use, in 1930, by the Spanish postal department. If there's ever been a better example of the engraver's art, I don't know what it could be. (Word of warning: mint copies of this stamp are coated with a thick, sticky gum that nearly defies removal. That wouldn't be a problem, except that, on my copies, the gum had caused the stamps in the set to roll themselves up into stiff, narrow tubes which seemed impossible to unroll without damaging them. I solved the problem by first soaking them for a long time in hot water, then gradually unrolling them and "shaving" the gum off with a sharp paring knife held at almost a vertical angle to the stamps. Took forever, but now that flat as a proverbial filberts.)
Bob
re: What's your favorite stamp(s)?
Like Bob and others, I can't really name just one. Ask me again tomorrow. Or later this evening. But, I must agree with Bob regarding his listing of the privately produced Spanish triangle. I never collected Spain and knew nothing about these stamps and then stumbled upon the complete set in blocks of four with selvage at a dealer's table at a local show many years ago. They didn't belong in my collections, but it was love at first sight and I created a place for them. My favorite in the set was the blue one.
re: What's your favorite stamp(s)?
Oh, Keesindy, that's a nice block! I've never seen one before.
Bob
re: What's your favorite stamp(s)?
Here's yours as a block of four, Bob!
Tom