US Stamp Values Continuing to Go Up


According to Sacramento Bee newspaper reporter Peter Rexford, "even as the stock market roller coaster continues and gold fluctuates, the value of collectible postage stamps continues to steadily rise."

The 2009 Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps and Covers lists more than 12,000 value changes over last year's edition, and according to Mr. Rexford, virtually all the changes showed higher values for US stamps.

"For instance, in 2007, the value of a particular 1 cent stamp of 1851 featuring Ben Franklin was an impressive $55,000. This year, the value for that same stamp is $80,000. Even more astonishing is a 5 cent stamp printed in 1858. The value for it last year was $35,000. Today, the price for that same stamp has more than doubled. It, too, is now worth $80,000."

The Scott Specialized Catalogue is available at many public libraries. If you'd prefer to invest $69.99 to buy it, it can be purchased directly from the publisher. Some stamp dealers also have copies available for sale. Mr. Rexford says "it's not cheap, but it could be money well spent if you have been meaning to look through an old stamp collection but just never got around to it."

We completely agree. It's hard to build a stamp collection without ready access to a definitive stamp catalog.

Canada Stamp Varieties

If you collect Canadian stamps, you probably know that many of Canada's definitive stamps - and even some of its commemorative stamps - have varieties. Differences in dies, perforations, type of gum, type of paper and other variances can result in different varieties of the same face-similar stamp. Some of these differences are intentional (by the printer or caused by using more than one printer), others are not.

The Scott catalog (the most common stamp catalog used in the United States) identifies a few of these varieties. But the Scott catalog that contains Canadian stamps doesn't pretend to be a specialized catalog, and other catalogs do a much better job with Canadian stamp varieties. These more specialized catalogs include Unitrade and Darnell, just to name a couple.

Looking for stamp varieties can be painstaking and time-consuming, but it is one way to expand a stamp collection inexpensively. And it's incredibly rewarding to find a variety that you've been looking for. One of the most effective ways to look for possible stamp varieties - and also probably the most inexpensive method - is to buy bulk stamp mixtures, either on paper or off paper.