Innehållsförteckning för July 2025 från Stamp Collector

JERSEY Archaeological discoveries Ancient artifacts have been unearthed in Jersey Post’s EUROPA issue for 2025 on the theme of Archaeological Discoveries, which was issued on 5 May. The set was illustrated by British artist Hannah George, who used a combination of watercolour, ink and digital processing to create the artwork. Despite Jersey’s geographical size, its location within the channel made it a key point for trade among various ancient cultures. This means it is filled with extraordinary archaeological finds, some of which are featured within the issue. The illustration on the 80p value includes various trade items including: the gold torques from the Catillon II coin hoard (Iron Age); a Roman statuette (Gallo-Roman); Grand-Pressigny flint tools (Neolithic); Viking era metalwork (Viking–early mediaeval); coloured pattern glass beads (Iron Age/Gallo-Roman); and a…

AUCTION RESULTS PRICES EXCLUDE BUYER’S PREMIUM UNLESS OTHERWISE STATED Dominican rarity At a worldwide stamps and postal history sale at Siegel on 20–22 May, the top-selling item was a Dominica 1886 ‘One Penny’ on 6d green surcharge (lot 3352). This was No. 6 of the setting, tied on small piece by part of a numeral cancel, with the piece also showing part of an oval ‘Registered’ handstamp. Two 6d sheets of 60 stamps were inadvertently surcharged ‘One Penny’ instead of ‘Half Penny’ (the 1s stamp was supposed to get the ‘One Penny’ surcharge). Most were destroyed, but the Treasurer of Dominica saved 12 stamps – two unused examples and 10 mailed on an envelope to a stamp dealer friend (where this example originated). It is believed that about 14 used…

Coaches have existed since the Middle Ages but, with no suspension and wooden shutters rather than windows because glass couldn’t survive Britain’s appalling roads, were rarely used. All that changed in 1553, when Queen Mary used a state coach for her coronation. The roads were so bad it took six horses to drag the vehicle through the cloying London mud. Queen Elizabeth continued the tradition, although her coachman, William Boonen, enjoyed a life of relative ease. The queen was said to have been so bruised after her journey that she swore she’d never travel by carriage again! Regardless of the practicalities, carriages quickly became de rigueur amongst the upper classes and with that came a demand for better carriages and better roads. So much so that by the end of…

Banz Abbey (Kloster Banz), now known as Banz Castle (Schloss Banz), is a former Benedictine monastery, and since 1978, it has been part of the town of Bad Staffelstein north of Bamberg, Bavaria, in southern Germany (Figure 1). The abbey was founded in about 1070 by Countess Alberada of Schweinfurt and her husband, Count Hermann of Habsburg-Kastl, on command of King Henry, and until the secularisation of 1803, it was the oldest monastery on the upper Main. In the late Middle Ages and until 1575, only members of the nobility were accepted as monks. GROWTH OF SCIENCE In the 18th century, the Benedictines experienced an incomparable period of prosperity, during which Banz Monastery was considered a centre of science. The beginning of 19th century was the time of industrial explosion…

King Francis I of France (1494–1547), was an almost exact contemporary of Henry VIII (1491–1547). Both men were ‘larger than life’, although François only married twice. Like Henry, Francis grew up not expecting to become king but did so when young. Henry’s elder brother died in 1502, and a complicated series of events put François on the throne aged 21. He seized the opportunity with enormous energy. He was already well educated and became a patron of the arts. French royal palaces had been rather dingy places in the 15th century: the new king filled them with beautiful artefacts. Not just French: among the creators he encouraged to come to Paris were the goldsmith Benvenuto Cellini and Leonardo da Vinci. The latter bought a picture called the Mona Lisa with…

Two items of news in this month’s edition highlight unusual stories of discovery. The first is the sale of the first part of the ‘Traveller Collection’ of coins. The owner of this collection – the Traveller – began purchasing gold coins after the Wall Street Crash in 1929. He and his wife then spent the next decade travelling extensively across Europe, North and South America, acquiring rare and historically significant coins and carefully documenting each purchase in a detailed archive. In the end, over 15,000 coins from all geographical areas were assembled by their owner. Prior to the outbreak of World War II, the couple had settled in Europe, but when the threat of Nazi invasion became imminent, the Traveller chose to stay rather than flee the country. He buried…

On 20 May, NAC in association with David Guest Numismatics held the sale of part 1 of the Dr Irving Schneider collection, which featured Anglo-Saxon and Norman coins. A key item from the sale was a silver penny from the Baronial issues that was struck c.1150–c.1153 in York for Eustace Fitzjohn (lot 3157). Eustace Fitzjohn was one of the most powerful northern barons of his day. Having submitted to Stephen in 1135, Eustace fought with the Scots against the king at the Battle of the Standard in 1138. Despite this defeat, he managed to flourish during the turmoil of the 1140s, increasing his lands and founding abbeys and priories before being reconciled with Stephen in 1153. He died in battle in Wales in 1157 fighting for Henry II. The obverse…

Years ago, the known rarity of coins was a combination of guesswork and experience. Researchers in the United States had done much work on a few specialised series such as Half Cents and Large Cents. The remainder of most numismatic series was largely unexplored for true rarity, especially as to condition rarity. Many, if not all, price guides 30 or 40 years ago listed prices for coins in grades that did not exist. The opposite was the case for many issues that we now know to be much more common than previously thought. Thirty years ago, a gem, common-date Morgan silver dollar was much more valuable than it is today. The basis for collecting rare coins has much to do with rarity and availability. When third-party grading started in the…

I spent two very enjoyable days at EuroPhilEx in May, immersing myself in all that philately has to offer. The show was held over five days, and being out of London, it enabled those unable to make the trip to the capital the opportunity to visit. As Thursday, 8 May was Society Day, I spent a lot of time going round and talking to the different societies on show. It was great to see the wide range of interests covered, ranging from those focused on a specific geographical region, such as the East Africa Study Circle and the Pitcairn and Norfolk Islands, to those who cover one particular aspect of the hobby, such as the Perfin Society and the Postal Stationary Society. What really shone through from all those I…

A few months after the accession of Queen Elizabeth II, the first definitives bearing her portrait (by Dorothy Wilding) began to appear. However, it took longer for new designs for the ‘high values’ (at the time 2s 6d, 5s, 10s and £1) to appear: 1 September 1955 for the 10s and £1, quickly followed by the 2s 6d and 5s on 23 September. The set is known as the ‘Castles’ because the designs feature Carrickfergus Castle (2s 6d in brown), Caernarvon Castle (5s in red), Edinburgh Castle (10s in blue) and Windsor Castle (£1 in black), set within a frame alongside the Dorothy Wilding portrait, designed by Lynton Lamb. By the time the stamps were issued, the watermark had changed from the initial Tudor Crown E2R to the St Edward’s…

BUY AND SELL ON DECAMPE, MORE THAN 80 MILLION COLLECTABLES ARE WAITING FOR YOU!…

TO ORDER YOURS SIMPLY CALL 01778 392020 OR SCAN BELOW Simply scan me! JUST £9.99 Get your print copy today https://ccofgb.uk/stamp-stories-print Simply scan me! JUST £5.99 Get your digital copy today https://ccofgb.uk/stamp-stories-digital T&Cs apply. Available while stocks last.…

New Guinea is the world’s second largest island, and it is located north of Australia. The island is home to an incredible number of different ethnic groups. The first European to visit New Guinea was a Portuguese explorer and colonial administrator called Jorge de Meneses (c.1498–1537). The discovery of New Guinea in 1527 was very much accidental due to bad weather and unfavourable winds. He called his discovery Ilhas dos Papuas or the Islands of the Papuans in English. However, Spanish seafarers decided to call the island Nueva Guinea, which is a reference to Guinea in West Africa. Following the discovery of New Guinea, the European colonial powers paid it very little interest, and it was only in 1828 that the Dutch decided to occupy the western part of the…

CINDERELLAS Plurinvest There are pictorial labels that look like real postage stamps, but further study reveals that in reality they are certificates of ownership, albeit of a very tiny part of a philatelic rarity or work of art, writes Christer Brunström. The stamp shown was issued by a company trading as Plurinvest but in all probability was owned by Bolaffi, a large, Italian stamp company. Over a period of some four years, Plurinvest released seven numbered stamps and a souvenir sheet. The first stamp was issued in 1979 and featured Albert Einstein. Stamp number two carried a denomination of £150 and shows a rare cover that had travelled to the moon in 1969. The stamp depicted here was also issued in 1979, and it is number three in the series.…

Jonathan Callaway is a Director of the International Bank Note Society Lawrence Chard Founder and Expert Numismatist, Speciality Sovereigns Jeff Garrett US coin dealer and board member of the Smithsonian Museum of American History Richard Kelleher Senior Curator, Medieval and Modern Money, Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge Rory Naismith Professor of Early Medieval English History, University of Cambridge Ema Šikić Archaeologist, art historian, coin specialist at Baldwin’s, London Gareth Williams Curator of Early Medieval Coins and Viking Collections at the British Museum…

BUY AND SELL ON DECAMPE, MORE THAN 80 MILLION COLLECTABLES ARE WAITING FOR YOU!…

The changing market value of silver metal over millennia, centuries and decades was sometimes compressed into sharp price swings within a few years, months and weeks. These periods also had serious effects and consequences in coin production. The events of the mid-1970s to 1980 with the biggest silver speculation may be recalled as a warning. This speculative bubble in the silver market was associated in particular with the American entrepreneur Nelson Bunker Hunt (1926–2014) and his younger brother William Herbert Hunt (1929–2024). In cooperation with wealthy speculators from the Middle East, they tried to dominate and manipulate the silver market from 1973 to early 1980. They acquired enormous quantities of silver and silver contracts on the commodity futures exchanges. Lured by the rising prices and intensive media coverage, more and…

The Industrial Revolution shifted Britain from a largely rural economy, where goods and services could still be bartered and traded, to an urban economy, which required a ready supply of money. While banks and businesses may have been happy to handle large denomination currency, ordinary workers needed small change for everyday transactions. And the Royal Mint quickly realised that they couldn’t keep up with demand – so they took themselves out of the equation entirely! In fact, they struck no copper coins at all between 1773 and 1821. Tokens – official and unofficial – were the stop-gap solution that would run and run and run. In Britain, the first officially sanctioned tokens were made between 1613–42 at the request of James I, who ordered farthing tokens to be made ‘exactly…

Jon Aitchison awarded Congress Medal 2025 The Association of British Philatelic Societies (ABPS) has announced that this year’s recipient of the prestigious Congress Medal is Jon Aitchison, FRPSL. Jon was the chair and principal organiser of EuroPhilEx Birmingham 2025 International Exhibition. He gained experience of organising an international exhibition when he was on the organising committee of EuroPhilEx London 2015. His work for international exhibitions has resulted in him being the UK commissioner at numerous exhibitions in different countries since 2015, often involving more than one a year. In addition, he oversees international commissioner appointments. In June, he is off to Liberec 2025 in the Czech Republic as commissioner. Within organised philately, Jon has served at a high level. As a council member of the Royal Philatelic Society London, he…

The journey that an envelope, cover or parcel took to get from point of departure to destination during times of conflict can vary tremendously. From a few extra days to a month or so, or even no arrival at all. Then it could be held until the war had ended or be returned to sender. Fortunately, the examples shown here with their background details were not unduly delayed and will have been correspondence that meant so much. The interest in stamps, which hopefully is why you’re reading this article, does not abate during times of war, as shown when in the midst of World War II, Jack Littlewood from Stapleford in Nottinghamshire wrote to a friend in Detroit, within the state of Michigan in the USA, about stamp matters. Postmarked…

In the history of the Roman Catholic faith, Jubilee or Holy Years are extraordinary historical events. They have been celebrated in Rome at long intervals since AD 1300. This year, 2025, is only the 27th Jubilee Year. Jubilee Years are special years of forgiveness and reconciliation that have repeatedly served as starting points for redefining religious focus. They provide impetus for examining the broad relationship between the centralised leadership of the popes and their subordinate ranks of cardinals, bishops, deans, pastors (‘shepherds’) and priests through to the faithful who are cared for by them. THE POWER OF FAITH The basic idea of a Holy Year (annus sanctus in Latin) was originally to grant pilgrims travelling to Rome forgiveness of their sins through the respective pope as a ‘Jubilee indulgence’. It…

ON SALE 11 JULY Philatelic Firsts A LITTLE OF EVERYTHING IN 1840 How to Collect Andorra WHERE TO START WITH THE STAMPS OF THIS TINY PYRENEAN COUNTRY Celebrated Sets THE LONG-RUNNING CHAMPIONS OF LIBERTY SERIES Collecting GB STAMPS SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED FOR THE REGIONS OF THE UNITED KINGDOM The Hoard Connection STORIES OF DISCOVERY Coins Through the Centuries THE 9TH CENTURY AD AND THE LONDON PENNIES OF KING ALFRED AVAILABLE IN ALL GOOD NEWSAGENTS OR DIRECT FROM https://ccgb.mymagazinesub.co.uk/…

There’s something undeniably futuristic about the idea: a slice of a six-figure banknote, tokenised and traded online, wrapped in a slick user interface. Kagin’s, the long-established American numismatic firm, is pioneering a model more commonly seen in the world of fine art or classic cars – fractional ownership. Their launch of digital shares in the iconic $100,000 gold certificate bearing President Woodrow Wilson’s portrait has stirred the waters in the collecting community. Innovative? Certainly. Controversial? Absolutely. A MODERN CONCEPT IN A HERITAGE MARKET Fractional ownership isn’t new. In real estate, sports cars or vintage wine, the idea of shared access to exclusive assets is already well-established. So why not apply the same logic to coins and banknotes? From Kagin’s perspective, it’s a natural evolution – a way to democratise access…