The Great St Helena Rip-Off

Beware Cancelled Remainders!

I scanned through over 2,500 St Helena items on Delcampe today, and one of my pet peeves re-surfaced. I made mention of this on my Facebook page, so my apologies for repeating myself!

These stamps from St Helena (1896 SG51 and SG52) have catalogue values of £30 and £60 respectively

However, the cancellations make them virtually worthless. The diamond grill in violet is a remainder cancellation done in 1904, and the stamps were cancelled solely for sale to collectors. This cancel was never postally used.

There are dozens of stamps with these cancellations for sale. Catalogue prices are being quoted, and hefty prices being asked. Do NOT pay high prices on Ebay, Delcampe or anywhere else for any stamp from St Helena with this cancellation!

Self Adhesive Stamps

You Can't Soak Them, So Try This!

Personally, as a collector of classic issues, I dislike self-adhesives. I don't collect them at all, and any I receive go into the spares bin.

The adhesive is so strong that soaking in the traditional manner just doesn't work.

Here's a handy video that will show you a way to add these stamps to your collection. I haven't tried it, but I would suggest it would work.

Good luck!

The Internet and Philately - Part 3

Using Non-Philatelic Websites to Bring Your Collection to Life

Like most collectors, I have a huge bookmark folder, full of philatelic information sites, auction sites, forums and so on. I also have a bookmark folder that contains non-philatelic websites that I use to add flesh to the bare bones of my collection.

I hope you find some of these useful.

As a collector of British Empire, my favourite site for historical context is The British Empire, Where The Sun Never Sets. The site covers the period from 1497, when Newfoundland was claimed, to 1997 when Hong Kong was handed back to China. It's not an academic site, but a site that brings social context to the Empire.

In a similar vein, the British Pathé site lets you step back into history, with 90,000 historic clips online.

Specialised Catalogues

Some New Additions to the Shelf

The quest for specialised catalogues never ends if you want to delve into the minutiae of your collection. In an earlier blog I mentioned some of the fascinating books I had in my library,

A few new additions have made it to the bookshelf since that blog.

Firstly, the Philatelic Handbook of the Gilbert & Ellice Islands by D.H. Vernon. Issued in the 1970's this is an official reprint by the Pacific Islands Study Circle and can be ordered from their excellent website.

British Field Post Office Postmarks of the Boer War

How Many Are There?

The British Field Post Office postmarks of the Boer War are a fascinating area of study, and they pop up quite frequently in mixed lots and GB collections.

I'm yet to discover which book is "the" reference for these. I also have no grasp on just how many Field PO's were used during the conflict (the highest number I've seen to date is 38), or where they were based. The information I have for these pictures came from the previous owner. UPDATE - changes made to the listings thanks to Alex Green (see comments)

I'm posting these here for reference purposes and, hopefully, comments and information.

Number 1 - Rustenberg- on GB 1d lilac SGZ1