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Post by jkjblue on Jan 20, 2021 18:55:16 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Feb 7, 2021 17:38:27 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/02/colombian-states-bolivar.htmlUntil the revolution of 1885, the States (including Bolivar) making up the United States of Colombia were sovereign states. After 1886, they then became Departments with governors appointed, but retained some of their rights, including issuing stamps up to 1904. For Bolivar, stamps were issued between 1863-1904. This is, of course, a bit in the philatelic backwaters of WW collecting, but Bolivar stamps are often quite CV inexpensive, and offer interesting identification challenges (Design, Paper). Interested? Check out the blog link!  |
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Post by jkjblue on Feb 11, 2021 17:13:02 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Feb 24, 2021 2:53:27 GMT
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Post by smauggie on Feb 24, 2021 3:20:31 GMT
If Panama had failed to achieve independence, then I think the stamps of Panama issued by Colombia would also be considered in this group. By 1880, Panama was permitted to become a "Free State".  |
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Post by jkjblue on Mar 12, 2021 17:02:06 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/03/costa-rica-closer-look.htmlI published a blog post back in 2011 about Costa Rica that was long on information, but short on stamp illustration. Well, this post will rectify that. ;-) Costa Rica is somewhat more straightforward for WW collectors than some other Central/South American countries. For one, the majority of stamps issued between 1863-1910 were engraved (not by Costa Rica - obviously it was contracted out). That cuts down on the "shenanigans" (Forgeries) that can occur with local printing methods such as lithography. However, any surcharges/overprints on issues (1881-82, 1911, 1903 Officials) are ripe for counterfeits. The other occurrence is, in 1914, the government sold a large portion of formerly issued stamps (1901-1911 regular issues, 1903 postage due, 1901-03 Officials) as discount Remainders, marked by a thin parallel bar cancellations. These sell for much less than normal CV. OK, let's take a look at issues of Costa Rica between 1863-1921..... |
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Post by jkjblue on Mar 29, 2021 21:40:57 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/03/crete-genuine-forgery-signs-for-british.htmlBack in my first year -2011- of the blog, I published the Crete blog post with a pic of the 1899 20pa rose, part of the British Administration four stamp issue of 1898-1899. A little more than a year later, in the comments section, Michael Adkins of Dead Country Stamps pointed out that I was illustrating a forged specimen. This was my reply... Hi Michael
Thanks for the nice words, and glad I can be helpful.
Your Dead Countries web site is absolutely excellent.
As far as the 1899 "Scott 5" 20pa rose, yes indeed it is a forgery. In fact, I have the complete forgery set (Scott 2-5). ;-)
When I put this blog post together, I did not have have the information to call the 20pa rose a forgery- although I was suspicious. Now I do.
According to Varro Tyler's Focus on Forgeries (Edition 2000), the small circle with dot above the numerals is incomplete at the bottom, and hence a forgery. As the set is perf 11 1/2,- like the originals-, it was supposedly made by the original printers, Gundman & Stangel of Athens Greece. But the stamps then were not reprinted on the original stone, so they are not reprints- but forgeries.
Tyler also says some of the forgery stock was sold to Francois Fournier, who gave them an 11 perforation. Another forgery from the Gunman & Stangel supply was sold and perforated 11 1/4.
I've made an update note on the Crete blog post, so to not lead people astray.
That is one thing I appreciate about your Dead Countries web site and virtual albums is the meticulousness and accuracy.
Now if I can do likewise. ;-)
Jim
Even today, despite alas! no new posts for the past 3 years, Michaels' site is a treasure trove of information. Check it out! Well, it is time for me to do a bit of an update on Crete, and I thought - why not- show the genuine/forgery differences for this lithographic issue. So, let's begin... |
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Post by jkjblue on May 10, 2021 14:48:55 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Jun 6, 2021 16:12:24 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/06/cuba-alfonso-xii-1882-88-issues.htmlIssued under Spanish Dominion, the typographed "Alfonso XII" stamps of Cuba 1882-1888 do not have a year date in their (Scott A17) design, as do the earlier 1880 & 1881 "Alfonso XII" issue stamps. But they have something more - "retouches" of their design found with certain stamp denominations. These "retouches" are somewhat confusing, and I thought a blog post dedicated to a close look at them would be helpful for collectors of classical era Cuba. It doesn't help that the black & white (small) fuzzy illustrations for the differences in the Scott catalogue has only been recently upgraded (my 2020 Classic 1840-1940 Scott has it) to small (but better!) color illustrations. I should mention that the Spanish Dominion "Alfonso XII" issues of the Philippines and Puerto Rico have similar "retouches", and so I will briefly cover those stamp examples as well. |
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Post by jkjblue on Jun 23, 2021 22:09:06 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/06/cuba-1899-1905-issues-original-re.htmlBits and pieces of memory flood back when I look again at the original 1899 and re-engraved 1905 stamp issues of Cuba: There I was as a 12 year old in the living room of our old house, trying to make sense of the differences these stamps exhibited. I think I mostly succeeded, but not entirely, as I never would have had the 1905 5c blue "Ocean Liner", with the re-engraved secret mark - too expensive for my boyhood budget (Today CV $8). So, with a tinge of nostalgia, and the realization, even now, that these issues can be confused, I thought a proper look at the differences would be in order. |
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Post by jkjblue on Jul 10, 2021 19:24:43 GMT
 1919 Scott 43 10cor olive green "Sailor Raising Italian Flag at Fiume" This Forgery: Only found on 10 corona denomination for Issue bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/07/fiume-1919-closer-look-at-forgeries.htmlSo how will I approach the topic of forgeries for Fiume, when as Scott says " Collectors should be aware that collections sold "as is" should be assumed to consist of mostly forged stamps. Education plus working with knowledgeable dealers is mandatory in this collecting area. More valuable stamps should be expertized." I will approach this topic by showing some of the more common forgeries which are detectable without too much difficulty. That is for the "Education" part of the Scott quote above. And I will warn the reader when forgery detection becomes too subtle, and when experts should be called in. !! I will divide the topic into two posts: This one will look at the 1919 issues (and a little of the 1920 issues). The next post will examine the 1920 issues and beyond. Let's begin.. |
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Post by jkjblue on Jul 26, 2021 17:53:33 GMT
 1920 Scott 98 5 l brown "Gabrielle d"Annunzio" Forgery: "O" in "Postale" left leaning oval bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/07/fiume-1920-24-closer-look-at-forgeries.htmlThis is the second of two posts discussing Fiume forgeries for the 1840-1940 classic era WW collector, as most of us would like to know if our stamp is real or fake. !! The post for Fiume-1919, as well as the introduction to the Fiume forgery topic, is in the post link just above this post. This will cover select issues of Fiume 1920-24. For the 1920-24 period, Fiume stamps were in high demand back in the day. To satisfy the packet trade, forgeries were produced, often in considerable quantities. Interested? Check out the link! |
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JeffS
Member 
Posts: 2,842
What I collect: Oranges Philately, US Slogan Cancels, Cape of Good Hope Triangulars, and Texas poster stamps and cinderellas
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Post by JeffS on Jul 26, 2021 20:31:19 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Aug 29, 2021 16:30:46 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/08/dominican-republic-1902-issue-center.htmlI think many of us collectors harbor the not so secret wish that we might discover a great rarity someday: better still if it is a spectacular "center inverted", such as the upside down "Jenny" (Scott C3a CV $850,000 never hinged). Well, what if I told you, although a great rarity is probably not in the cards, obtaining inverted specimens from the classical stamp period is not out of the question? At a local Stamp Club meeting back in 2011, I was offered a complete set of "inverteds" from the engraved bi-color Dominican Republic 1902 Scott "400th anniversary of Santo Domingo" issue. How could I pass it up? |
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Post by jkjblue on Sept 16, 2021 15:50:32 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Oct 3, 2021 16:11:36 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Oct 21, 2021 22:02:05 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2021/10/dutch-indies-1864-1908-closer-look.htmlThe first stamp issue for the Dutch Indies was an unwatermarked engraved close-up portrait "King William III" imperforated 10c lake stamp that was released April 1, 1864. The half-facing portrait was one that is not found on Netherlands stamps proper, so increases the interest. I wonder how much he enjoyed being king? He looks reluctant here, doesn't he? A perforated version (Perf 12.5 X 12) was released in 1868, and is shown here above. Interested? Click the link. |
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Post by jkjblue on Nov 6, 2021 0:18:20 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Nov 22, 2021 22:39:15 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Dec 10, 2021 18:06:04 GMT
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stanley64
Member
Posts: 1,979
What I collect: Canada, USA, Netherlands, Portugal & Colonies, Antarctic Territories and anything that catches my eye...
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Post by stanley64 on Dec 11, 2021 10:30:51 GMT
Indeed Jim(@ jkjblue ), I had a look at the entire series you have posted to you blog and they are a beautiful set. Almost as good as a Rembrandt (without the cows); thanks for the showing...
Happy collecting! |
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Post by jkjblue on Dec 27, 2021 17:38:29 GMT
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Post by biglavalamp on Dec 27, 2021 19:49:49 GMT
jkjblue 1908 Ecuador Issue for the opening of the Guayaquil-Quito Railway ....now that is what I call a fine looking stamp
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gatodiablo
Member
Posts: 456 
What I collect: Places I've been, and places I want to go.
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Post by gatodiablo on Dec 27, 2021 23:14:31 GMT
I love railroad history, so looked to see if there was a book on the G-Q RW. Yep, there is: Railroad in the Sky: The Guayaquil & Quito Railway in Ecuador 1897-1925 by Elizabeth Harman and Katharine Robinson Brainard Brainard. Regrettably, it appears to be out of print and the cheapest used copy is $50US. I'd get it if it the price were half that.  |
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vikingeck
Member
Posts: 3,551
What I collect: Samoa, Tobacco theme, Mail in Wartime, anything odd and unusual!
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Post by vikingeck on Dec 28, 2021 14:03:52 GMT
Indeed worth a closer look . I first found these funny square stamps in a collection I was asked to sell/ breakup in 1975. There were 2 each of the 4s and 4 RBS, over the next 20 years I built up a 5 frame (80 sheet) exhibit which got several vermeil or large vermeil awards at exhibitions. Sadly never quite reaching gold . as the material I needed was out of my budget, the collection stuck for a number of years and I sold it in 2012. But a fascinating issue over the years 1851-64 . Initially not too expensive then the scarce items become tempting and sometimes unreachable. |
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Post by jkjblue on Jan 11, 2022 19:59:56 GMT
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hdm1950
Member
Posts: 1,887
What I collect: I collect world wide up to 1965 with several specialty albums added due to volume of material I have acquired. At this point I am focused on Canada and British America. I am always on the lookout for stamps and covers with postmarks from communities in Queens County, Nova Scotia. I do list various goods including stamps occasionally on eBay as hdm50
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Post by hdm1950 on Jan 11, 2022 20:46:18 GMT
Enjoyed reading this. As a 9 year old boy and living about an hour from Lunenburg I still remember going to the launching of the replica Bounty in August of 1960. The replica of course was built for the Mutiny on the Bounty movie.
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Post by jkjblue on Jan 29, 2022 15:26:05 GMT
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Post by jkjblue on Feb 14, 2022 19:04:02 GMT
 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2022/02/egypt-1867-sphinx-and-pyramid-issue.htmlDid you know that the 1867 Egypt issue with the first iconic image of the "Sphinx and Pyramid" actually comes in four types for each denomination? Alas, the general catalogues do not give further clues, other than Michel states: "4 types each, which differ in the position of the pyramid in the middle oval and the shape of the Arabic letters". I decided to check into this. Unfortunately, there was no ready information about the four types with an internet search that I could find. In the meantime, I did put together this post linked above - which now serves as an introduction to the 1867 issue and types. Well, I really went down the rabbit hole, and finally found definitive information about the four types. The result is even more interesting then I expected. If these were U.S. or European stamps, they would be given four major numbers for each denomination - there are significant differences with each type.So, I now have the four types stamps for the 5 Paras and 20 Paras denominations after an extensive search. I will at least post the four types information about these denominations in the next several months. If I obtain all four types for other denominations, I will also post those in the future. All the best! Jim Jackson bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com |
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Post by jkjblue on Mar 3, 2022 19:54:12 GMT
 1867 Scott 8 5 Para orange "Sphinx and Pyramid"
Type 1 bigblue1840-1940.blogspot.com/2022/03/the-four-unique-types-of-1867-egypt-5.htmlMost World Wide stamp collectors are only dimly aware (if at all) that the second issue of Egypt (1867 "Sphynx and Pyramid" - six denominations) actually comes as four major variations (Types) for each denomination. You can hardly blame the collector, as all the major catalogues (Scott, Stanley Gibbons, Michel) also ignore the four extensive engraving changes for each stamp value found for Egypt's Second Issue. (True, they do mention in passing, using a small font, that there are "four" types.) And the reality is, one cannot find information about the four types without diving deep into the Egyptian philatelic literature! Well, Big Blue to the rescue! First off, is a comprehensive post about the Egypt Second Issue 1867 5 Para orange Types! |
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