My Stamp Collection
I didn’t remember that I had a stamp collection until I was at my parent’s house the other day. When I was young, my parents had a stamp collection book for each of my brothers and I. Apparently we were part of a stamp club. We each have a book full of stamps from other countries. The sad thing is many of them are stained from the acidic tape that we used to affix them in the book. As I flipped through these stamps a few caught my attention.
The above stamp made me take a second look and also gave me a laugh. I can’t imagine ever seeing a stamp this graphic in the United States. Apparently some Kenyan stamps were used as PSAs in the 70s as opposed to our art and tribute based stamps.
Below are a few other stamps that I found interesting. The one that says Bhutan looks like the photo is bitmapped, but the stamp is actually lenticular. I think it is a stamp anyway. The oldest of these stamps is an Internal Revenue Bank Check stamp that doesn’t seem to be worth as much as I thought it would be. The letterpress enthusiast in me really appreciated the “Freedom of the Press” stamp.
Hopefully these stamps will make you laugh and inspire you as well.
February 22nd, 2005 at 2:15 pm
I had a stamp collection, too (along with a rock collection, and baseball cards). I remember soaking the envelopes in water until the glue released from the paper. I had the little hinges that you licked to attatch the stamps to the books, so I think that must have been somewhat archival. Maybe. I am pretty sure that my collection is mostly worthless aside from the sentimental part. They are inspiring, though, and I keep them around. When I collected them I was annoyed by the black lines from the postmark. Now I think they are just as interesting as the stamp itself. That US Air Mail stamp sure is a strong image…
February 23rd, 2005 at 11:47 am
Hey, I had a stamp collection, too! Grades 5 through 7. I remember mail-ordering stamps for my collection, and printing a binder cover for my new album from Print Shop on an Apple IIIgs (the model was something like that). I used Zapf Chancery (possibly all caps!) in magenta, with a cyan-colored waterfall frame background. I glued it to blue construction paper. Hopefully I used acid-free tape on the stamps, but probably not–uh-oh. I still like looking at old stamps, and buying a variety of commemorative stamps at the Post Office next door to work. I think it special when you use just the right stamp for the right person.
March 1st, 2005 at 9:44 pm
Adrian, The US Air Mail stamp reminds me of some of Leaster Beall’s posters for the Rural Electrification Administration.
You can see one of these posters in his “Full Portfolio” on CA’s website.