How to Grade the Condition of Stamps
Stamp collecting is a fun, educational hobby that always provides pleasure. And it can, at times, be lucrative. Serious stamp collecting requires a certain amount of knowledge. This knowledge will allow the collector to build a strong stamp collection, not overpay and know the value of the collection. A stamp collector should always determine the grade and condition of the stamps in his or her collection.
Stamp catalogs provide basic guidance on the grade and value of stamps, but all collectors should be aware of stamp varieties (almost always much more valuable than the most common version of a stamp) that in many cases can be detected only through a magnifying glass, watermark detector or perforation gauge. It is therefore critical that collectors examine their stamps with these stamp collecting tools. But that's not the only purpose of a close examination: some stamp faults that seriously detract from the value of stamps can only be seen this way.
Evaluation of condition and stamp grading involves centering, gum condition and cancellations. Centering describes how well the stamp design is located: ideal centering occurs when the design is smack in the middle of the stamp, mid-way between the stamp's perforations on all sides.
Superb stamps feature centering that is as close to perfection as is possible. The margins between the design and perforations are precisely the same in each direction, all the way around the stamp. The color of these stamps should be fresh and bright and of course no faults, even microscopic, should exist.
Extremely Fine stamps are close to perfection, with well-centered designs. The color of these stamps should be fresh and bright and of course no faults, even microscopic, should exist.
Very Fine stamps are slightly less well-centered but still balanced. This is the stamp grade used by many stamp catalogs, including those by Scott, for their stamp values. The color of these stamps should be fresh and bright and of course no faults, even microscopic, should exist.
Fine, Good and Poor stamps feature increasingly more off-center stamp designs. In poorly centered stamps the design there may be no margin on one or more sides, with the design entering into the perforations. No faults should exist in Fine stamps. Stamps may be graded "Good" or "Poor" because of centering, blurred or very heavy cancels, or the presence of a variety of faults.
Showing posts with label stamp catalogs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label stamp catalogs. Show all posts
Thursday, October 01, 2009
Thursday, May 07, 2009
Stamp Catalogs - Essential Stamp Collecting Tools
Other than stamp tongs, stamp catalogs are probably a stamp collector's most essential tool. Catalogs help collectors identify their stamps and also give information on their value. And most stamp catalogs list and describe the stamp varieties and stamp errors that some stamp collectors take such pleasure in looking for.
Many different stamp catalogs are published throughout the world. Some are general catalogs, published in a set of several volumes, that cover the stamps of the world. Other stamp catalogs address the stamps of a single country. Naturally those catalogs generally provide more detailed information about that country's stamps than do the general catalogs.
There are many similarities among the general, worldwide stamp catalogs, although they may use different numbering systems and some are printed in different languages. What separates one from another is the level of detail provided, along with smaller considerations such as paper quality, color vs. black & white images, the type of binding (spiral-bound catalogs that lay flat are nice!), etc.
Many American stamp collectors rely on Scott catalogs and the Scott Specialized Catalog of U.S. Stamps & Covers is considered by most Americans to be the gold standard for catalogs describing US stamps. But there are many other catalog publishers.
Stanley Gibbons is the widely recognized expert for publishing catalogs of British and British Commonwealth stamps, although their catalogs cover the stamps of the entire world. Yvert et Tellier, Michel, Minkus, and H.E. Harris are other notable catalog publishers. And some postal authorities, including the U.S.P.S., also print stamp catalogs that identify and describe the stamps they issue.
Other than stamp tongs, stamp catalogs are probably a stamp collector's most essential tool. Catalogs help collectors identify their stamps and also give information on their value. And most stamp catalogs list and describe the stamp varieties and stamp errors that some stamp collectors take such pleasure in looking for.
Many different stamp catalogs are published throughout the world. Some are general catalogs, published in a set of several volumes, that cover the stamps of the world. Other stamp catalogs address the stamps of a single country. Naturally those catalogs generally provide more detailed information about that country's stamps than do the general catalogs.
There are many similarities among the general, worldwide stamp catalogs, although they may use different numbering systems and some are printed in different languages. What separates one from another is the level of detail provided, along with smaller considerations such as paper quality, color vs. black & white images, the type of binding (spiral-bound catalogs that lay flat are nice!), etc.
Many American stamp collectors rely on Scott catalogs and the Scott Specialized Catalog of U.S. Stamps & Covers is considered by most Americans to be the gold standard for catalogs describing US stamps. But there are many other catalog publishers.
Stanley Gibbons is the widely recognized expert for publishing catalogs of British and British Commonwealth stamps, although their catalogs cover the stamps of the entire world. Yvert et Tellier, Michel, Minkus, and H.E. Harris are other notable catalog publishers. And some postal authorities, including the U.S.P.S., also print stamp catalogs that identify and describe the stamps they issue.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Not All Stamp Catalogs Are Created Equal
If you're at all serious about your stamp collection you'll need to use a stamp catalog, at least every once in a while. But there are so many of them out there, which one would be best?
Well, it all depends on what stamps you collect.
Scott's catalogs are the favorite catalogs in the US. Scott catalogs cover the entire world, but the US volume is specialized and includes many varieties of US stamps, making Scott the authority on US stamps.
Stanley Gibbons catalogs also cover the world, but they are particularly strong on Great Britain and British Commonwealth stamps.
Likewise, the Michel catalog is best for Germany stamps even though the entire world is included in its listings.
The Sakura or the Japanese Stamp Dealers Association catalogs do a nice job with Japan stamps, and Yvert et Tellier (often just called Yvert for short) is an excellent source of information about stamps from France, Andorra, Monaco and the French colonies. The Facit catalog is great for Scandinavian stamps.
The list of single-country country catalogs also includes Unitrade for Canada stamps, Sassone for Italy stamps, Zumstein for Switzerland stamps, etc.
Topical stamp catalogs also exist for several different themes of stamps.
If you're at all serious about your stamp collection you'll need to use a stamp catalog, at least every once in a while. But there are so many of them out there, which one would be best?
Well, it all depends on what stamps you collect.
Scott's catalogs are the favorite catalogs in the US. Scott catalogs cover the entire world, but the US volume is specialized and includes many varieties of US stamps, making Scott the authority on US stamps.
Stanley Gibbons catalogs also cover the world, but they are particularly strong on Great Britain and British Commonwealth stamps.
Likewise, the Michel catalog is best for Germany stamps even though the entire world is included in its listings.
The Sakura or the Japanese Stamp Dealers Association catalogs do a nice job with Japan stamps, and Yvert et Tellier (often just called Yvert for short) is an excellent source of information about stamps from France, Andorra, Monaco and the French colonies. The Facit catalog is great for Scandinavian stamps.
The list of single-country country catalogs also includes Unitrade for Canada stamps, Sassone for Italy stamps, Zumstein for Switzerland stamps, etc.
Topical stamp catalogs also exist for several different themes of stamps.
Saturday, March 07, 2009
Stamp Catalogues
Stamp collectors need to organize and identify the stamps they own, and stamp catalogues are an indispensable tool in stamp identification. Catalogues tell collectors what stamps have been printed, when they were printed, their retail value and how to identify them and distinguish them from similar stamps.
Four comprehensive worldwide stamp catalogues are currently published on an annual or less frequent regular basis. They are all multi-volume publications. Unfortunately, the information on any one can completely contradict the information on the others, and often does. All of these catalogues have been produced in many editions, and the correction and updating of information is common. Anyone using a stamp catalogue should use the most recent editions if possible.
The four world-wide catalogues are:
* Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue. Produced in English by the Stanley Gibbons Company of London, England. It tends to be the standard reference in most Commonwealth countries except Canada.
* Michel Katalog. Produced in German by the Michel Company of Munich.
* Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalog. Produced in English by the Scott Publishing Co. of Sidney, Ohio, USA. It tends to be the standard reference in North America.
* Yvert et Tellier catalogue de timbres-poste. Produced in French by Éditions Yvert & Tellier of Amiens, France.
Other world-wide stamp catalogues which are no longer in production include those by Minkus and Senf.
Stamp collectors need to organize and identify the stamps they own, and stamp catalogues are an indispensable tool in stamp identification. Catalogues tell collectors what stamps have been printed, when they were printed, their retail value and how to identify them and distinguish them from similar stamps.
Four comprehensive worldwide stamp catalogues are currently published on an annual or less frequent regular basis. They are all multi-volume publications. Unfortunately, the information on any one can completely contradict the information on the others, and often does. All of these catalogues have been produced in many editions, and the correction and updating of information is common. Anyone using a stamp catalogue should use the most recent editions if possible.
The four world-wide catalogues are:
* Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue. Produced in English by the Stanley Gibbons Company of London, England. It tends to be the standard reference in most Commonwealth countries except Canada.
* Michel Katalog. Produced in German by the Michel Company of Munich.
* Scott Standard Postage Stamp Catalog. Produced in English by the Scott Publishing Co. of Sidney, Ohio, USA. It tends to be the standard reference in North America.
* Yvert et Tellier catalogue de timbres-poste. Produced in French by Éditions Yvert & Tellier of Amiens, France.
Other world-wide stamp catalogues which are no longer in production include those by Minkus and Senf.
Sunday, February 01, 2009
Stamp Catalogs and Their Value
Hard to believe, but stamp catalogs can identify nearly every postage stamp that's ever been issued throughout the entire world. Not just recent stamps, but all the way back to the first stamp, issued in 1840 by Great Britain. There are so many stamps - probably around 500,000 or so - that Scott, a popular stamp catalog publisher and the accepted stamp catalog authority in the US, requires 6 very large volumes to list and describe all of the stamps. Each volume contains stamp listings for countries that are arranged in alphabetical order, by country name. Many other catalog publishers arrange their catalogs in the same way - alphabetically by country - but there are also specialized catalogs that identify only the stamps of one particular country, such as Japan or Great Britain. And still other catalogs list and identify stamps by topic or theme, which is obviously extremely helpful to topical stamp collectors.
Catalogs assign what is called a "catalog number" to each stamp, and those catalog numbers are then used by stamp collectors. For example, you may see something like Scott US no. 285. That particular stamp can be identified by Scott catalog users as the 1 cent Trans-Mississippi Exposition commemorative stamp. Or another example: Stanley Gibbons (SG) Great Britain no. 671-678 is the Battle of Britain stamp set issued by Great Britain. Other stamp catalogs, such as Michel, Yvert, the JSDA, etc. also use catalog numbers, although they're not interchangeable (they all use different numbering systems).
In addition to describing and listing stamps by their catalog number, stamp catalogs also provide estimates of values for the stamps. In general, the value listed for a specific item approximates what a stamp dealer would normally charge a customer who wanted to buy that stamp or stamp set.
Specialized catalogs provide more detailed information than standard catalogs. They list more known varieties and errors as well as providing additional information about stamp issues. The US Specialized Catalog also provides information about plate numbers on coil and booklet stamps.
Hard to believe, but stamp catalogs can identify nearly every postage stamp that's ever been issued throughout the entire world. Not just recent stamps, but all the way back to the first stamp, issued in 1840 by Great Britain. There are so many stamps - probably around 500,000 or so - that Scott, a popular stamp catalog publisher and the accepted stamp catalog authority in the US, requires 6 very large volumes to list and describe all of the stamps. Each volume contains stamp listings for countries that are arranged in alphabetical order, by country name. Many other catalog publishers arrange their catalogs in the same way - alphabetically by country - but there are also specialized catalogs that identify only the stamps of one particular country, such as Japan or Great Britain. And still other catalogs list and identify stamps by topic or theme, which is obviously extremely helpful to topical stamp collectors.
Catalogs assign what is called a "catalog number" to each stamp, and those catalog numbers are then used by stamp collectors. For example, you may see something like Scott US no. 285. That particular stamp can be identified by Scott catalog users as the 1 cent Trans-Mississippi Exposition commemorative stamp. Or another example: Stanley Gibbons (SG) Great Britain no. 671-678 is the Battle of Britain stamp set issued by Great Britain. Other stamp catalogs, such as Michel, Yvert, the JSDA, etc. also use catalog numbers, although they're not interchangeable (they all use different numbering systems).
In addition to describing and listing stamps by their catalog number, stamp catalogs also provide estimates of values for the stamps. In general, the value listed for a specific item approximates what a stamp dealer would normally charge a customer who wanted to buy that stamp or stamp set.
Specialized catalogs provide more detailed information than standard catalogs. They list more known varieties and errors as well as providing additional information about stamp issues. The US Specialized Catalog also provides information about plate numbers on coil and booklet stamps.
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