Public Service Announcement.  Father's Day is Sunday 20th June.  If you have forgotten, don't worry here are some of our favourite philatelic things you can buy online. 

Top Ten things we discovered a collector can do at Virtual Stampex that they can’t do at a traditional fair or show.
 
Number One: Get up late or early and turn up to the show whenever you feel like it. Morning, noon or night. In fact, right through the night. 24/7 for 3 days. Log-in and out whenever it suits you. 

Number Two: Visit more than one booth at a time (a booth is a ‘stand’ at physical stampex) and even be in more than one place at any one time. 

Number Three: Attend any of the Talks presented in the Auditorium from anywhere in the world, and indeed from anywhere in your home or place of work.  

Number Four: Eat and drink at any of the Virtual Stampex outlets, areas and rooms without fear of, a) being judged or told off b) not having somewhere to sit and c) interruptions.

Number Five: Spend absolutely zero on travel costs. And even fit in a show visit whilst you’re on your break at work, or when you have finished your to do list at home. 

Number Six: Take every single available catalogue, pricelist, brochure, magazine, Souvenir and welcome pack and show guide without the need for, a) a carrier bag or b) humping it around with you and worse taking it back home on public transport. A Virtual Briefcase is provided. And it has to be said this is a lot more environmentally friendly. No filling up your recycling bin once you're done with them. Just delete them. 

Number Seven: Get your stamps or collection valued without dragging heavy bags or boxes around the show or back and forth from your residence.

Number Eight: Visit the collectors lounge anytime during the 72 hour philatelic extravaganza and participate in the discussions, chats, and get questions answered from experts and other collectors. You can even refer to any reference books or material you have on your shelf. Normally you have to make a note and check when you get home. 

Number Nine: If you missed the show during the three days doesn’t matter you can still visit for another 30 days. Even see the exhibition in the exhibit hall which would normally be taken down at the end of a physical show. 

Number Ten: Watch any of the Talks given in the Auditorium ‘On Demand’ for the duration of the 30 days, and pause and playback from the comfort of your homes. Even rewatch the ones you liked best. 
 
Let us know if you discovered any other useful things that were possible at Virtual Stampex which you can’t do at a traditional fair or show. 

By Devlan Kruck from Museum of Philately

​www.museumofphilately.com

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Exclusive products to launch during Virtual Stampex from Busch Collectibles. Include the Wolf Souvenir Banknote which will be coloured and perforated with the dates of the event. Price: 9 €. Only 200 copies!

They will also have a range of products marked with the « I was at Virtual Stampex » cancellation.   Order exclusively from their booth.  

As son of a stamp dealer, I’ve been in the philatelic world since my very young years.
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After high school, I studied German for five years and became a German teacher. But after some years, I needed to see other things. That’s how in the first days of 2017, being 26 years old, I created my own business and turned passion into business. ​

Guernsey Post’s philatelic bureau announces that it will vend Post & Go stamps with the new overprint ‘Virtual Spring Stampex 2021’, for the forthcoming edition of the expo. ​

CAPEX 22 International One Frame Stamp Championship Exhibition will be held in Toronto, Canada June 9-12, 2022.  ​

Sandi Robb founder of StampIT gives us an insight into the exciting youth programme. 

 Stephen T Taylor

When I started dealing in USA material full-time in January 2000, there was a philatelic auction in London which had a couple of USA “box lots” with short descriptions and low estimates (£200/£300 each)  One was full of “duck stamps” which I wasn’t very interested in and didn’t place a very high bid on but the other box was full of covers and folded letters, exactly what I needed for stock  – very disorganized with a few auction catalogues at the bottom of the box including Harmers New York 12 Jun 1990 “The Hessel Autograph collection of Presidents, Statesmen & Signers”.
I always carefully view large lots as there’s no telling what’s lurking inside and might have been missed by their describers.  This particular lot had numerous common covers worth £10 to £50 each but two caught my eye: one was franked “Free G. Washington” and the other “Free B Franklin”!  Both were ex-Hessel and listed in the auction catalogue that came with the lot.   Fortunately, no one else spotted these and I bought the box at their opening bid, a fraction of my top bid.
 As I didn’t yet have any clients who collected Free Franks, I consigned them to a US auction house where the pair sold for USD19,000 in May 2000.   
As David Phillips taught me when I lived in Miami in the 1990s, always read every letter and look carefully at every marking.
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