Stamp collecting is the collecting of postage stamps and related objects. It is an area of philately, which is the study of stamps. It has been one of the world's most popular hobbies since the late nineteenth century with the rapid growth of the postal service, as a stream of new stamps was produced by countries that sought to advertise their distinctiveness through their stamps.
Philip Ferrari de La Renotière was a noted French-born stamp collector, assembling probably the most complete worldwide collection that ever existed, or is considered likely to exist. Among his extremely rare stamps were the unique Treskilling Yellow of Sweden and the 1856 one-cent "Black on Magenta" of British Guiana.
The Treskilling Yellow, or three schilling banco error of color, is a Swedish postage stamp of which only one example is known to exist. This stamp was cancelled at Nya Kopparberget, about 150 kilometres (93 mi) from Uppsala, on July 13, 1857. It was last sold in 2010. The auction house valued the stamp between £1.29 million and £1.73 million before the sale. The winning bid was kept confidential.
The Stanley Gibbons Group plc is a company quoted on the London Stock Exchange specialising in the retailing of collectable postage stamps and similar products. The group is incorporated in London. The company is a major stamp dealer and philatelic publisher. The company's philatelic subsidiary, Stanley Gibbons Limited, had a royal warrant of appointment from Queen Elizabeth II.
A privately run packet service for mail existed in British Guiana in 1796, and continued for a number of years. Postage stamps of Britain were used in those days at Georgetown (Demerara) and Berbice. The first adhesive stamps produced by British Guiana were issued in 1850.
The British Guiana 1c magenta is regarded by many philatelists as the world's most famous rare stamp. It was issued in limited numbers in British Guiana in 1856, and only one specimen is now known to exist. It is the only major postage stamp ever issued in the United Kingdom or British Commonwealth that is not represented in Britain's Royal Philatelic Collection.
The Mauritius "Post Office" stamps were issued by the British Colony Mauritius in September 1847, in two denominations: an orange-red one penny (1d) and a deep blue two pence (2d). Their name comes from the wording on the stamps reading "Post Office", which was soon changed in the next issue to "Post Paid". They are among the rarest postage stamps in the world.
The Rare 2d Coil was an experimental vertical coil stamp, denominated 2d, issued by the Irish Post Office in 1935 and is one of the scarcest, and most valuable, Irish stamps. It is often referred to by stamp collectors simply as "Scott 68b" or "SG 74b", being the Scott and Stanley Gibbons stamp catalogue numbers respectively.
Marc Armand Rousso is a French businessman, and the founder of Accoona.com, a business-to-business search engine, and X3D Technology. He is the father of Vanessa Rousso, professional poker player and Big Brother contestant. Armand Rousso provides professional evaluations and personalized assistance to clients from around the globe. He has over 15 years of international experience consulting. A frequent speaker and author, he has an MBA from Idaho University and is a fellow of the Institute of Business Consultants.
A philatelic auction, or stamp auction, is a sale of stamps, covers and other philatelic material usually run by stamp dealers or specialist collectibles auctioneers, such as David Feldman, Christie's and Sotheby's, where prospective purchasers place bids in an attempt to obtain the desired items.
David John Springbett, FRPSL (1938–2022) was a British philatelist and former insurance broker, who signed the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists in 2004.
William Russell Lane-Joynt, born in Limerick, was an Irish barrister, philatelist and Olympic shooter. He founded the Irish Philatelic Society in Dublin and assisted the Duke of Leinster to form his collection which was bequeathed to the Dublin Museum of Science and Art. Lane-Joynt was one of only two Irish philatelists to be honoured by signing the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists.
Maurice Jean Marie Burrus was an Alsatian tobacco magnate, politician and philatelist. Originally from Alsace but residing in Switzerland, he was a deputy in the French parliament during the 1930s. His stamp collection was considered one of the greatest ever assembled and included some of the world's rarest stamps.
Lieut. Colonel George S. F. Napier was a British Army officer of the 52nd Oxfordshire Light Infantry.
Alan Manfred Holyoake is a British businessman and philatelist who is a specialist in the stamps and postal history of Great Britain and a fellow of the Royal Philatelic Society London.
Angelo Lima, was a philatelist who was a specialist in the philately of the Portuguese area.
Hiroyuki Kanai was a Japanese businessman, writer and philatelist.
Tay Peng Hian FRPSL is a Singaporean businessman and philatelist who was appointed to the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists. He is a fellow of the Royal Philatelic Society London. Tay is a specialist in the philately of Burma and the Straits Settlements.
Adolf Passer FRPSL was an Austrian philatelist and authority on the stamps of Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Ottoman Empire and Turkey.
