Old Stamps
Old stamps or otherwise knows as vintage postage stamps may be known as the stamps that are not in circulation at present and can longer be used to send letters or mails through the post.
Many stamp collectors or otherwise known as philatelists, specialize in vintage stamps, also knows as classic stamps, but by some accounts, a vintage stamp is simply any potage that is not in present circulation and therefore, it couldn’t be used to send a mail. Old stamps are particularly defined by their age. These include misprints, cancelled or un-cancelled, national or international, commemorative, and air post selections.
Vintage and old stamps are picked more by many because they are interesting and intriguing as well as easy to find. People can always purchase entire sets or arbitrary groupings of old stamps for a low price. Collectors may put them in different orders and find out what they might find the most enchanting without knowing anything about its official value, date, or issuing nation.
The value of old postage stamps varies tremendously depending on its rarity. The uncommon the stamp is, the more value it will give. There are a lot of other factors to be considered as well – the condition, postmark, date stamped, etc. It is not only the age of the stamp that determines its current value.
Here are a few facts about old stamps.
In 1516, in England, the first official royal mail office was opened. The costs for the postage were paid by the receiver.
In 1835, over 300 years later, Sir Rowland Hill suggested that letters up to the weight of a half English ounce should be kept on for a regular fee of one Penny. The sender pays for the fee while the receiver no longer pays for the postage fee.
The first 2 stamps that were issued on June 5th, 1840 was (1) Penny Black and (2) Pence Blue.
The 2nd country to issue stamps was Brazil in 1843. It was called the Ox Eyes. The Swiss Cantones Zurich and Genève issued stamps in the same year. Some postmasters in the USA issued stamps starting 1845. The first official issue followed 1847. The first German stamp was issued 11/1/1849 in Bavaria. The World Post Society UPU was founded 1875.
So when collecting old postage stamps, always be mindful to identify the country of origin, the face price and note the general condition. Place your old postage stamps carefully into your stamp album and work on getting an accurate valuation.
