History of Postage Stamp Collecting

postagestampsWith the creation of the postage stamp came the birth of the concept of postage stamp collecting. This occurred just shortly after the first postage stamps were introduced in the year 1840 by Great Britain. Plilately, the study of postage stamp collecting has been derived from phileo, the Greek word for “I love” and the word ateleia, which means “free of charges”.

As individuals first began to experience postage stamp collecting, these intriguing little pieces of paper were not perceived to be very valuable at all. The first time an advertisement was released to collectors, women were beginning to place ads looking for stamp collections so that they could paper their walls with the intriguing designs. With such a wide variety of different postage stamps being made available during the 1860s, children all over the world began postage stamp collecting right out of the mail that their parents received. These children then quickly grew to become adults, and during this growth they continued postage stamp collecting until it became a serious hobby for them.

The grandson of the Queen even began postage stamp collecting as he received help from servants that were responsible for handling the mail in Buckingham Palace. He was so fascinated by postage stamp collecting, in fact, that it became a passion for him in life. When he grew to become an adult, he has become one of the leading philatelists in the entire world, and he was also asked to join the Philatelic Society, which was in London. He became so passionate about this society that he eventually grew to become the president. He went on to become the King of England and even gave the society a new name, and so it became the Royal Philatelic Society in London. He assembled, through his years of postage stamp collecting, what would become one of the greatest collections of postage stamps in the entire world.

The hobby of postage stamp collecting became increasingly popular when commemorative stamps began to be released. The first stamps in the United States were issued in remembrance of the New World’s discovery by Christopher Columbus. Some of these commemorative stamps are still available today, and they happen to be extremely valuable as a result.

As postage stamp collecting became more popular, postage stamp values began to increase. With these increases in the value of stamps, the number of stamp collectors also grew. During the 1930s, for example, many collectors in America were stockpiling stamps that had been issued ten years prior in the 1920s, and these stamps quickly climbed in value. These particular stamps can even still be found in mint condition today.

Collectors are always seeking out souvenir sheets from countries all over the world as well as coins of stamps with hard to find plate numbers. Stamps that possess errors in printing also tend to be extremely popular as well. In beginning your own stamp collecting hobby, it is important to figure out what theme or what type of stamps you would like to collect, and then simply begin your collection however you like.

Photo Credits: Thomas Hawk

Originally posted 2009-12-16 03:25:09. Republished by Blog Post Promoter

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