What do you love about stamp collecting? Join in everyone!

Here is a comment on another hobby I read that I liked: 





From 1934 (seen on another forum)

The Where? What? Who? When ? Why?

Every stamp, cover and postmark has a reason behind it , a tale to tell waiting to be discovered. Finding the answers via books and the internet and recording the story behind a piece of postal history is a never ending fascination.

I find it very peaceful and there is a sense of accomplishment that comes with discovery and learning the background behind the stamps and what the "their" world might have been like.

It's like holding a small speck of history in your hand (or tongs)

and I get a bit of other languages!

Indeed I just spent 4 happy hours with a letter and envelope from 1856 the Crimean war. 

1. transcribing the chatty friendly letter from a Royal Navy lieutenant on a ship “HMS Queen” in the Black Sea Fleet the writing neat but difficult in places
2. researching the ship and getting a picture of it
3. finding out something on the addressee Lt Theophilus (Tassy) M Kelsall and his current posting to the Baltic Fleet on HMS Cressy
4. researching the second ship and getting a picture of that one 
5. Explaining the Officers concession postal rate of 3d , paid with a 1d stamp but extra 2d DUE on delivery.
6. Putting it all together in a story on an album page ….essential details but not too much information overload.

I’ll post this on the Postal History thread later when the room upstairs cools down…..it is 28C in the shade and my office faces south west!

Endless reasons, history, science, design, therapy, stories, achievements, exploring the world, appreciating beauty, time travel. The list is infinite. If we look at things in a different way in todays commercial world, stamp collecting can be a financial investment. Lastly or not, the thrill of the chase maybe, looking for an elusive or unique item after years of research. Oh yea enjoyment of the king of hobbies.

Sighisoara, Romania.

You see a philatelic item like this, maybe you read more about the subject.
You might even travel to that country.
All because a stamp sparked your interest.

en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sighi%C8%99oara

Nice to see everyone has a different love for the hobby.

I'm with the "Every stamp whether mint, used or on a cover has a story to tell" brigade and for me it applies to mint stamps. See the next newsletter for one such story from me.

In particular I love the research aspect, the thrill of delving through documents that few people have seen before.

I recently had one of those wow moments. The Australia KGV 1d red is one of the most researched stamps in the world and whilst browsing through an invoice book recently at the RPSL, there it was, a copy of the original invoice for the engraving and preparing of the 4 plates, cost £140. Have never seen it before online, on a forum or in a book!

Mostly, it's the thrill of the hunt. Just finishing pages and having the collection grow before your eyes. Sure, there is something to be said for postal history and the stories, but for me, mostly, it has always been about the fight to find the material as I want it. Plus, it's very relaxing, a way to get away from the grind for a while.

ar·chae·ol·o·gist - a person who studies human history and prehistory through the excavation of sites and the analysis of artifacts and other physical remains.

Philologist - a person who studies history through through the excavation of stamp albums or collections and the analysis of the artifacts and physical remains.

After reading your posts I may have to rethink my answer. Yes, creating order out of a big jumbled pile of stamps is über satisfying, BUT I’ve never run around the house doing a happy dance  after organizing something like I do when I make a spiffy Find. So maybe the thrill of the hunt is the biggest, well, thrill?

Awwww it’s all good, eh? So much to love!

For me as an OCD patient, I have always been in the ritual of organising/arranging and re-organising/re-arranging things. Usually, performing this ritual is anxiety-driven. For instance, when I do a layout design, I would go back and forth to double check with a (digital or physical) ruler if the tiniest element is properly aligned, and usually that state of 'perfection' is hard to attain. But somehow I can more easily come to a state of satisfaction when sorting stamps, much like Terri (philatelia) described, creating order in amidst great chaos is utterly soothing.

Also, I am a very curious person who is always eager to learn new things. As a topical collector, I like searching for stamps related a particular field of my interest, learning about all the people in human history who have contributed to it. My collection of musician/composer stamps alone has allowed me to learn so much about minor figures (who are still important to a nation to feature on this nation's stamp program) that my professional musician friend doesn't even know.

A 3rd reason is that I as a visual artist really enjoy seeing the aesthetic appeal of a beautifully designed stamp.

Hunting for them, and touching something that was used during the Victorian era.

 I love everything about philately, except philately for investment and sales. Philately is the most powerful anti-stress, it is a combination of culture and cultures that can only improve the individual. I also enjoy cataloging stamps that are worthless, they relax me even more. In short, it is ''quality time'' that we dedicate to ourselves.