RIHS Postal History Primer - Types of Collections

Philatelic and Postal History Primer
Types of Collections - World-Wide (Country) Issues
Introduction//Stamp Types//Collection Types//Getting Started//Associations

Types of Collections - World-Wide (Country) Issues

Many new stamp collectors start out by initially collecting World-Wide issues. There are several reasons why this type of collection is such a popular way to collect. (1) They are easy to acquire and generally can be purchased very reasonably in large multiple stamp packets. (2) The majority of local dealers carry large stocks of world-wide stamps. (3) It's a great way to become familiar with the history of the stamps and their issuing countries.

There are so many stamps and stamp issuing countries today that it has become almost impossible, (and very expensive) to try and collect each issue of every country. A more practical method would be to collect a single topic or theme from each country.

The issues below illustrate some of the many countries and types of stamps that can be collected. From Left to right - top to bottom, they are: Australia, Bermuda, Brazil, Falkland Islands, German East Africa, and Japan.

A very popular thematic or topical collection that includes stamps from most of the countries of the world are the World Wildlife Federation (WWF) stamps. This would narrow the amount of stamps you would need to acquire significantly and still allow you to collect the different countries of the world. The stamp illustrated to the left is a WWF Stamp issued by Pitcairn Islands, (Note the Panda at bottom right). WWF Stamps will usually have the panda symbol somewhere on the stamp. Many collectors prefer these issues on First Day of Issue covers.

Introduction//Stamp Types//Collection Types//Getting Started//Associations