These match the style of Macey's patriotic covers
Roy
I think I found a match for you, Vince.
Here's an ebay listing for some items by "Jacques Minkus" of New York:
Jacques Minkus Patriotic Stationary
Yup, THAT Minkus!
There's a wikipedia page...
...and it describes Minkus' association with Gimbel's department store, in New York.
-Paul
Here is what arrived today:-
Not of any great value
BUT here is what it arrived in:-
Nice to know Border Force are earning Their pennies.
A little post card for my Finland collection arrived today. Less than a week from Europe to Florida!
Hey Vince! Here's one of my favorites.. I had it out for scanning today to share with Jeep people. I even broke my "no large envelopes" rule for this one!
I live near Vancouver and checked the Clark County website and the address is for a duplex built in 1942 and it's still there.
"I live near Vancouver and checked the Clark County website and the address is for a duplex built in 1942 and it's still there."
This one just arrived yesterday. It's MNH and I just thought it would be nice in my album!
BF,
That would certainly look nice in MY album, too!
Excellent purchase.
I just ordered this one for my DC-3 collection. It's not a DC-3 of course but it adds to the story of the DC-3 being part of the early email attempts, in Canada this time. There's an interesting story about the company.
Found this on the internet:
Yukon Airways & Exploration Co.
In early 1927 a Dawson -based RCMP corporal named Any Cruickshank left the police force and joined an American prospector named Clyde Wann, to pursue a dream - to establish the first commercial air service in the Yukon.
By spring they had formed the Yukon airways and Exploration Company, and placed an order for a Ryan B-1 Brougham airplane, arriving in Mayo on October 26, 1927 with Andy Cruickshank at the controls, the "Queen of the Yukon" was wrecked in a landing accident at Whitehorse.
For the next 15 months, until a second Ryan could be purchased, a three-place open-cockpit bi-plane was used to serve the growing demand for air service.
On August 17, 1929 the Company took delivery of their new Ryan, the "Queen of the Yukon II" crashed on take-off at Mayo, killing the pilot. Less than four weeks later the faithful old bi-plane had an engine failure and was wrecked in the forced landing near Carmacks. The Yukon's first commercial air service was out of business permanently.
My friend just sent me a joke which fits the above rather well.
Two hunters got a pilot to fly them to Canada to hunt moose.
They bagged six.
As they started loading the plane for the return trip, the pilot said the plane could only take four moose.
The two lads objected strongly. "Last year we shot six, and the pilot let us put them all on board,and he had the same plane as yours" they said.
Reluctantly, the pilot gave in and all six were loaded, however even with full power, the little plane couldn't handle the load and went down.
A few moments after, climbing out of the wreckage, John asked Ralph, "Any idea where we are?"
"I think we're pretty close to where we crashed last year." says Ralph.
In my almost complete Yemen collection prior to the Wallpaper stamps of the late 1960s and early 1970s, it is truly one step at a time. The most elusive missing stamps are probably the #1 to #3 set.
The stamps are rare, expensive and so often counterfeited that one has to be extra cautious. We even have dealers selling replicas, to fill the slots of frustrated collectors.
I finally added a good copy (to my eyes) of #3. Still need the #1, and with luck I will not have to wait another 3 years! I am missing two fairly common stamps Scott #49 and #70, but I am reluctant to buy a full set, typically sold, as I am missing just one stamp. I am missing a few of the 1945-1949 hand overprints on the 1930-1940 issues, but these are another stories...again one at a time if I ever see them!
Very happy with the #3 just acquired!
Copy attached.
rrr...
As a early Yemen collector, this is what you have to contend with:
Dealer selling as: YEMEN , 1926, 5B BLACK LARGE SHEET OF 20 ESTIMATE VALUE 7000$ , COPY $25.00
I like their estimated value...LOL
Anyone with a pair of scissors can now be the proud owner of 20 stamps (catalog value 20x$60-$70=1,200-$1,400) There are quite a few of those selling on ebay, full sheets and stamps!
This counterfeit sheet (copy as they call it) is now loose in anyone's unscrupulous hands. Would you think that the stamp dealer selling it as a copy would go through the trouble of marking the stamps, like any reputable dealer should?
Example of reputable seller:
I am so furious at what we let them get away with. There is no excuse.
rrr...
Ever since lockdown started we have been visiting my mother in law every Thursday to make sure she is OK, pay her bills, see she has enough food etc etc.
This morning she asked if these stamps were still valid and she had found them in a drawer and she produced a 12 x Ist Class Booklet:-
Straightaway I said yes and she handed it to me and I opened up the book to discover this:-
12 x Security Machins with codes M12L and MTIL current Stoneham Value £34.00 ($47.00)
I told her that they were rarer than the normal booklets and it would be a fine addition to my collection. She said that I could have them and I promised I would give her another booklet to replace them.
There is no post office in her village and while I am there I always go to the local supermarket for the odd item while my wife has some time alone with her mum
Today I bought a few items and asked for 3 x 6 x 1st Class Booklets (One was for my own use). They were the last three booklets they had. I paid for my shopping and went back and gave my mother in law the two books I had promised. The two books contained the Red 1st Class Stamps the third book was this:-
I've always said "Its better to be lucky than good"
" ... I've always said "Its better to be lucky than good"..."
But can you play a fiddle while standing on a rooftop ?
A not unreasonably centered, genuinely used Italy C7, the high value of this set.
Charlie asked:-
"But can you play a fiddle while standing on a rooftop ?"
Zero Mostel in any performance you can find on you tube...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owQBRv-0k7g
and most interesting about how the song came along...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxUL3EByx3w
Incidentally there are many other superb versions of this classic!
rrr
When one gets older one forgets certain things until something triggers a memory.
Thanks Charlie for pulling the trigger.
OK, you nuts, let's put this one back ON TOPIC!
Here's one for which I've been saving a space for about 10 years. Just arrived today, from the UK, 16 days in transit:
Sc #5, the key value in the first (skilling) series. A little weak in the lower left corner, but a nice GOTHEBORG CDS, October 24, 1858. And, I got it for way less than 10% of current catalog value! I've only had the opportunity to bid on a few of these in the last several years.
Love it!
-Paul
Well, it took awhile, but I finally snagged this gem, a MNH French Indochina stamp, overprinted by the communist Viet Minh following Ho Chi Minh's takeover in North Vietnam in 1945.
Scott lists the stamp as North Viet Nam IL14a. The original "Initial-Letter Tablets"* in the upper corners, originally printed with "R" and "F" for Republique francaise (French Republic), are overprinted with "V" and "N" for "Viet-Nam". The remainder of the overprint, VIET-NAM DAN CHU CONG-HOA / BUU CHINH translate into English as "VIETNAM-DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM" and "POSTAL". The long top line of the overprint is 20 mm long; the top line of North Vietnam IL14 is 18 mm long.
The original stamp, Scott 165A, was issued by French Indochina during the 10 years between 1931 and 1941.
I've been searching for this stamp ever since 2015, when Stamporama member Eli Moallem sent me his custom-designed album pages for both Viet Cong and Viet Minh stamps. In all those years, I've seen only one other copy of this stamp for sale. It was on piece, but in deplorable condition at a ridiculous price. The stamp I bought wasn't cheap — US $40 including postage. Scott's value is US $80. I have long since given up the thought that I would never spend more than 10% or 15% of catalogue value for a stamp, simply because I'm not going to live long enough to find the stamps I want at bargain basement prices. The stamp has a very slight gum bend that isn't visible from the front of the stamp. I found it on the Delcample website.
In the six years between the 1945 Viet Minh takeover of North Vietnam in 1945 and the issuance of the first Republic of North Vietnam stamps in 1951, the communists overprinted 63 French Indochina stamps. "Planting Rice" is the key issue, if the meaning of "key issue" is based on catalogue value. (Does "key issue" have a standard meaning? I can't find it any philatelic glossaries.)
Bob
* I used the term "Initial-Letter Tablets"" to define the square areas at the top corners of the stamp where the "R" and "F" for Republique francaise" are shown, but I'm not at all sure if that's a correct term. Again, philatelic glossaries were no help.
This letter came today with what has to be the biggest stamp I own.
"Here are some new items for my WW2 era collection that came in the mail this week. Ten different letter sheets with different propaganda slogans printed on the top. The sheets are 6x8". The small printing under the image is © J.M., N.Y. 1943. I wonder if there are matching envelopes and adhesive stamps to match this set"
Just recieved this pane on the Weekend. I don´t really colect these but I couldn´t resist.
1916 - 1918, WW I, occupied Belgium.
Very nice.It is Mi#23II?
Yes it is 23IIA, overprinted on 94I.
Had fun with an APS circuit book this morning.. I signed up for a new circuit they've created, "Worldwide Classics". I really don't collect this area but I couldn't resist; they're just too gorgeous. The book had some really beautiful Italian Colonies as well. I spent some time admiring these and doing a little reading about them and then they'll go into a desk drawer to be rediscovered one day. That's what I call a good morning!
Colonialism certainly certainly resulted in some great stamps. As far as I'm concerned, anything issued after the 1960s scarcely merits a glance.
Among my several collecting interests is the Second World War. Two of the five exhibits I've done concerned wartime topics. One concerned the economy of wartime Great Britain (propaganda cancels, reused covers (some with interesting contents and covers to and from warships, some with interesting enclosures, and stamps issued in different colours because of shortages of ink. The second was about the Battle of the Atlantic, including similar material. The most recent addition is this cover:
It was posted in 1944 by an American naval lieutenant who was in Murmansk. It represents one of several convoys delivering war materiél to the Soviet Union to help in their battle against Nazi Germany. For the last dozen years or so I've endlessly searched for "convoy covers," and found a few, but this is the only one I've ever seen representing the Arctic convoys to Russia, which were incredibly dangerous due to sub-zero temperatures which coated ships in ice, and the nearly constant threat of German aircraft and submarines.
I've read that the Russians went out of their way to treat the crews of American ships well. How times changed! By the time I joined the American Navy in 1962, I was convinced that as far as Russia was concerned, the only good American was a dead American. I was posted to the U.S. Naval hospital in Yokosuka, Japan for two years, and on two occasions in Tokyo I had the opportunity to talk with two Russians, a musician with the State Symphony Orchestra of the Soviet Union, and the wife of a Russian diplomat stationed in Tokyo. You know, I didn't feel even slightly threatened by either a of them (although the musician, especially, was concerned that his KGB "handlers" might see him talking with me and my friend).
Bob
Another recent addition:
In 1949, my family relocated from Savona, a small town in New York State, to Arenas Valley, New Mexico, a tiny, unincorporated village six miles east of Silver City, where my dad became editor of the Silver City Enterprise.
In 1957, my paternal grandfather retired from his job as a machinist at the Kennecott Copper Corp. smelter in nearby Hurley, and moved into our house in Arenas Valley, and my family moved into Silver City. Ever since then, I've thought of Silver City as my home town.
Several years ago, I acquired a "linen"-surface postcard based on an aerial photograph of Silver City. The view is to the west; the postcard had to have been printed between 1938 and 1949. That because the construction of my high school was approved in 1937, but it can't have been a "quick build". It was such a solid structure, three storeys of concrete with brick facing, that plans in the 1960s to turn it into an apartment building had to be abandoned because it literally could not be "renovated" in an economically viable way, and it was demolished.
The linen-surface postcard includes, through omission, another clue to when it was produced. Silver City is the home of what was, in 1949, New Mexico Western College (today it's called Western New Mexico University). When I still lived in Silver City, the biggest building in town was the college's huge Field House gymnasium, where I proved that I would never be a good basketball player. Construction of the Field House was completed in 1949, but it is not shown on the postcards, either the original black-and-white RPPC or the linen-surface one. Ergo, the Field House didn't exist when the original photo was taken.
If you collect postcards, you'll be aware that in the 1930-1950s, colour postcards were hand-coloured versions of black-and-white photos. Printing of those postcards was less than perfect; colours are often poorly registered and rarely reflected reality. In the case of this particular postcard, it shows a Silver City that has probably never existed. Bright green is not a typical Silver City colour. The climate is warm and dry, warmer and drier now than ever in its nearly-200-year history. The typical colour of the city is mostly brown, except for a few weeks during monsoons in early summer, monsoons which are increasingly rare for that area. But it was the only postcard I'd seen showing an aerial view of Silver City.
I've seen many copies of this postcard for sale. I expect that anyone could buy one on any day of this year and perhaps many future years. But I was surprised recently to see the same aerial view on another postcard, not a linen-surface postcard but on an RPPC — a Real Photo Post Card. The RPPC seems to be badly faded, which is typical of photos that aren't "fixed" properly in the darkroom. I expect that the original photo was much clearer. Here's an image showing both postcards:
Here's an annotated version of the colour postcard:
Bob
You do just excellent work, Bob!! It's inspiring! Thank you.
Thank you, Philatarium. Nice words to read.
In looking over my post about the Silver City postcard, I realized I'd left out another clue to the age of the card, so I added this short paragraph:
"The linen-surface postcard includes, through omission, another clue to when it was produced. Silver City is the home of what was, in 1949, New Mexico Western College (today it's called Western New Mexico University). When I still lived in Silver City, the biggest building in town was the college's huge Field House gymnasium, where I proved that I would never be a good basketball player. Construction of the Field House was completed in 1949, but it is not shown on the postcards, either the original black-and-white RPPC or the linen-surface one. Ergo, the Field House didn't exist when the original photo was taken."
Bob,
Great posts. I drove right past the exit for Silver City on I-10 and had remembered reading about it from your posts. I appreciate the work you've done in chronicling this part of American history. Our world seems to be getting so much smaller and with the commercialization of everything, these small towns seem to be losing a great deal of the character.
Interesting history Bob!
Why did they abandon a high school that was 20 something years old?
The school building was turning over to the Silver Consolidated School District in 1963, when Western New Mexico College became New Mexico Western University. The school board decided to sell it because it would have been too difficult and expensive to expand it for a growing student population. It was purchased by a Silver City businessman, Neil Parrish (one of my sister's classmates), who hoped to turn it into an apartment building. When it proved virtually impossible to repurpose the classrooms — that building was "bomb proof" (my phrase, not Neil's) — it was demolished.
Here's a photo of the school, apparently taken while demolition was in progress:
Believe it or not, this is one of the few photographs of the school I have ever seen. Even though I was deeply into photography in my senior year (I was chief sports photographer and photographer for the all of the photos in the annual except for portraits), I myself never took any photos of the school, at least none that survived.
It appears that the university acquired the land again and built a dormitory on the site:
Susan and I have not visited Silver City since the late 1990s, when my Mom was still alive.
Bob
Here is an item I picked up at The APRL sales room. It is a mounted collection of various stamps and production methods used to make them. It is six pages and starts with "Chapter III. I wish I could see the first two chapters.
There are a few interesting examples on this page. The stamps printed on Bank Note paper and the stamp printed on a map. I have seen sheets printed on maps but not on Bank Note paper.
The most interesting on this page is the paste up stamps using scotch tape. I never heard of that example
This page is the back of one of the pages in this set. It shows where the mounts used has discolored the page. The mounts use pressure sensitive glue that has deteriorated. Some mounts show signs of being remounted with some type of glue. All the pages are discolored on the top. I will be remounting these this weekend on Vario stock sheets.
It's nice being so close to the APS & APRL. Less than a mile. I have been visiting the sales room after I finish up with my volunteer work. Next week I'll check out the sales circuits.
Golden Valley Stamp and Coin (local to me) conducts a regular online auction and I have picked up many nice stamps from them. This is part of my most recent wins. I also picked up Norway #5 and a beautiful set of the Washington Bicentennials. I am not a big collector of #1's but I now have them for US, Great Britain, Germany, and Norway!
I have a very nice copy of US #1, it's #2 I'd like to get!!!
I have a dealer that allows me to buy more expensive items on layaway and I’ve been paying on a US #2 for several months now. I paid it off on Friday and should receive my stamp by the end of the week!
Jack, Good for you ! phil
Response to (BenFranklin1902, 01 Feb 2021, 07:21:18pm): "Hey Vince! Here's one of my favorites.. I had it out for scanning today to share with Jeep people. I even broke my "no large envelopes" rule for this one!"
https://www.folklib.net/fdc/1940s/porto-server.shtml
Searching found 19 of these Porto-Server patriotic covers made by the Tarrson Company of Chicago, every design that is listed by Sherman. Nine were serviced as FDC's, but only for two issues, #907 (6) and #908 (3). I bought five unused covers and they are all 8-3/4 x 3-7/8", just a bit smaller than a standard #10 envelope. Also found were seven different unused stationery letter sheets, two of which I just received. so they are not on my page yet. Minkus stationery had the same designs as were on his cachets. None of the seven 7-1/8 x 10-3/8" Porto-Server letters I have seen match any of the 19 cachets.
Doug Henkle, AFDCS LM#137
I feel the same way about long covers...but there are always exceptions ..i have a couple of the type you displayed but they have not been through the mails. Have to love the MPs, if the guy could not do anything else you could put an MP armband on him.
There are times when I will bid on eBay for a cheap mixture of Thai stamps in the hope of finding something, maybe a postmark, that's unusual. Rarely you will find the seller has thrown in some other Asian stamps that they didn't have a home for. This recent mixture had three such stamps, none of which I had seen before. One is a 1949 Japanese stamp from the southern island spa town of Beppu. The other two are 1903 Imperial issues from Korea not long before Japan took control in the early Twentieth Century.
Time to start a new 'Recent Acquisitions Thread.
Here are some new items for my WW2 era collection that came in the mail this week. Ten different letter sheets with different propaganda slogans printed on the top. The sheets are 6x8". The small printing under the image is © J.M., N.Y. 1943. I wonder if there are matching envelopes and adhesive stamps to match this set.
Here is a full size sheet.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
These match the style of Macey's patriotic covers
Roy
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
I think I found a match for you, Vince.
Here's an ebay listing for some items by "Jacques Minkus" of New York:
Jacques Minkus Patriotic Stationary
Yup, THAT Minkus!
There's a wikipedia page...
...and it describes Minkus' association with Gimbel's department store, in New York.
-Paul
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Here is what arrived today:-
Not of any great value
BUT here is what it arrived in:-
Nice to know Border Force are earning Their pennies.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
A little post card for my Finland collection arrived today. Less than a week from Europe to Florida!
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Hey Vince! Here's one of my favorites.. I had it out for scanning today to share with Jeep people. I even broke my "no large envelopes" rule for this one!
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
I live near Vancouver and checked the Clark County website and the address is for a duplex built in 1942 and it's still there.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
"I live near Vancouver and checked the Clark County website and the address is for a duplex built in 1942 and it's still there."
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
This one just arrived yesterday. It's MNH and I just thought it would be nice in my album!
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
BF,
That would certainly look nice in MY album, too!
Excellent purchase.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
I just ordered this one for my DC-3 collection. It's not a DC-3 of course but it adds to the story of the DC-3 being part of the early email attempts, in Canada this time. There's an interesting story about the company.
Found this on the internet:
Yukon Airways & Exploration Co.
In early 1927 a Dawson -based RCMP corporal named Any Cruickshank left the police force and joined an American prospector named Clyde Wann, to pursue a dream - to establish the first commercial air service in the Yukon.
By spring they had formed the Yukon airways and Exploration Company, and placed an order for a Ryan B-1 Brougham airplane, arriving in Mayo on October 26, 1927 with Andy Cruickshank at the controls, the "Queen of the Yukon" was wrecked in a landing accident at Whitehorse.
For the next 15 months, until a second Ryan could be purchased, a three-place open-cockpit bi-plane was used to serve the growing demand for air service.
On August 17, 1929 the Company took delivery of their new Ryan, the "Queen of the Yukon II" crashed on take-off at Mayo, killing the pilot. Less than four weeks later the faithful old bi-plane had an engine failure and was wrecked in the forced landing near Carmacks. The Yukon's first commercial air service was out of business permanently.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
My friend just sent me a joke which fits the above rather well.
Two hunters got a pilot to fly them to Canada to hunt moose.
They bagged six.
As they started loading the plane for the return trip, the pilot said the plane could only take four moose.
The two lads objected strongly. "Last year we shot six, and the pilot let us put them all on board,and he had the same plane as yours" they said.
Reluctantly, the pilot gave in and all six were loaded, however even with full power, the little plane couldn't handle the load and went down.
A few moments after, climbing out of the wreckage, John asked Ralph, "Any idea where we are?"
"I think we're pretty close to where we crashed last year." says Ralph.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
In my almost complete Yemen collection prior to the Wallpaper stamps of the late 1960s and early 1970s, it is truly one step at a time. The most elusive missing stamps are probably the #1 to #3 set.
The stamps are rare, expensive and so often counterfeited that one has to be extra cautious. We even have dealers selling replicas, to fill the slots of frustrated collectors.
I finally added a good copy (to my eyes) of #3. Still need the #1, and with luck I will not have to wait another 3 years! I am missing two fairly common stamps Scott #49 and #70, but I am reluctant to buy a full set, typically sold, as I am missing just one stamp. I am missing a few of the 1945-1949 hand overprints on the 1930-1940 issues, but these are another stories...again one at a time if I ever see them!
Very happy with the #3 just acquired!
Copy attached.
rrr...
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
As a early Yemen collector, this is what you have to contend with:
Dealer selling as: YEMEN , 1926, 5B BLACK LARGE SHEET OF 20 ESTIMATE VALUE 7000$ , COPY $25.00
I like their estimated value...LOL
Anyone with a pair of scissors can now be the proud owner of 20 stamps (catalog value 20x$60-$70=1,200-$1,400) There are quite a few of those selling on ebay, full sheets and stamps!
This counterfeit sheet (copy as they call it) is now loose in anyone's unscrupulous hands. Would you think that the stamp dealer selling it as a copy would go through the trouble of marking the stamps, like any reputable dealer should?
Example of reputable seller:
I am so furious at what we let them get away with. There is no excuse.
rrr...
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Ever since lockdown started we have been visiting my mother in law every Thursday to make sure she is OK, pay her bills, see she has enough food etc etc.
This morning she asked if these stamps were still valid and she had found them in a drawer and she produced a 12 x Ist Class Booklet:-
Straightaway I said yes and she handed it to me and I opened up the book to discover this:-
12 x Security Machins with codes M12L and MTIL current Stoneham Value £34.00 ($47.00)
I told her that they were rarer than the normal booklets and it would be a fine addition to my collection. She said that I could have them and I promised I would give her another booklet to replace them.
There is no post office in her village and while I am there I always go to the local supermarket for the odd item while my wife has some time alone with her mum
Today I bought a few items and asked for 3 x 6 x 1st Class Booklets (One was for my own use). They were the last three booklets they had. I paid for my shopping and went back and gave my mother in law the two books I had promised. The two books contained the Red 1st Class Stamps the third book was this:-
I've always said "Its better to be lucky than good"
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
" ... I've always said "Its better to be lucky than good"..."
But can you play a fiddle while standing on a rooftop ?
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
A not unreasonably centered, genuinely used Italy C7, the high value of this set.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Charlie asked:-
"But can you play a fiddle while standing on a rooftop ?"
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Zero Mostel in any performance you can find on you tube...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=owQBRv-0k7g
and most interesting about how the song came along...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NxUL3EByx3w
Incidentally there are many other superb versions of this classic!
rrr
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
When one gets older one forgets certain things until something triggers a memory.
Thanks Charlie for pulling the trigger.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
OK, you nuts, let's put this one back ON TOPIC!
Here's one for which I've been saving a space for about 10 years. Just arrived today, from the UK, 16 days in transit:
Sc #5, the key value in the first (skilling) series. A little weak in the lower left corner, but a nice GOTHEBORG CDS, October 24, 1858. And, I got it for way less than 10% of current catalog value! I've only had the opportunity to bid on a few of these in the last several years.
Love it!
-Paul
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Well, it took awhile, but I finally snagged this gem, a MNH French Indochina stamp, overprinted by the communist Viet Minh following Ho Chi Minh's takeover in North Vietnam in 1945.
Scott lists the stamp as North Viet Nam IL14a. The original "Initial-Letter Tablets"* in the upper corners, originally printed with "R" and "F" for Republique francaise (French Republic), are overprinted with "V" and "N" for "Viet-Nam". The remainder of the overprint, VIET-NAM DAN CHU CONG-HOA / BUU CHINH translate into English as "VIETNAM-DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF VIETNAM" and "POSTAL". The long top line of the overprint is 20 mm long; the top line of North Vietnam IL14 is 18 mm long.
The original stamp, Scott 165A, was issued by French Indochina during the 10 years between 1931 and 1941.
I've been searching for this stamp ever since 2015, when Stamporama member Eli Moallem sent me his custom-designed album pages for both Viet Cong and Viet Minh stamps. In all those years, I've seen only one other copy of this stamp for sale. It was on piece, but in deplorable condition at a ridiculous price. The stamp I bought wasn't cheap — US $40 including postage. Scott's value is US $80. I have long since given up the thought that I would never spend more than 10% or 15% of catalogue value for a stamp, simply because I'm not going to live long enough to find the stamps I want at bargain basement prices. The stamp has a very slight gum bend that isn't visible from the front of the stamp. I found it on the Delcample website.
In the six years between the 1945 Viet Minh takeover of North Vietnam in 1945 and the issuance of the first Republic of North Vietnam stamps in 1951, the communists overprinted 63 French Indochina stamps. "Planting Rice" is the key issue, if the meaning of "key issue" is based on catalogue value. (Does "key issue" have a standard meaning? I can't find it any philatelic glossaries.)
Bob
* I used the term "Initial-Letter Tablets"" to define the square areas at the top corners of the stamp where the "R" and "F" for Republique francaise" are shown, but I'm not at all sure if that's a correct term. Again, philatelic glossaries were no help.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
This letter came today with what has to be the biggest stamp I own.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
"Here are some new items for my WW2 era collection that came in the mail this week. Ten different letter sheets with different propaganda slogans printed on the top. The sheets are 6x8". The small printing under the image is © J.M., N.Y. 1943. I wonder if there are matching envelopes and adhesive stamps to match this set"
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Just recieved this pane on the Weekend. I don´t really colect these but I couldn´t resist.
1916 - 1918, WW I, occupied Belgium.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Yes it is 23IIA, overprinted on 94I.
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Had fun with an APS circuit book this morning.. I signed up for a new circuit they've created, "Worldwide Classics". I really don't collect this area but I couldn't resist; they're just too gorgeous. The book had some really beautiful Italian Colonies as well. I spent some time admiring these and doing a little reading about them and then they'll go into a desk drawer to be rediscovered one day. That's what I call a good morning!
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Colonialism certainly certainly resulted in some great stamps. As far as I'm concerned, anything issued after the 1960s scarcely merits a glance.
Among my several collecting interests is the Second World War. Two of the five exhibits I've done concerned wartime topics. One concerned the economy of wartime Great Britain (propaganda cancels, reused covers (some with interesting contents and covers to and from warships, some with interesting enclosures, and stamps issued in different colours because of shortages of ink. The second was about the Battle of the Atlantic, including similar material. The most recent addition is this cover:
It was posted in 1944 by an American naval lieutenant who was in Murmansk. It represents one of several convoys delivering war materiél to the Soviet Union to help in their battle against Nazi Germany. For the last dozen years or so I've endlessly searched for "convoy covers," and found a few, but this is the only one I've ever seen representing the Arctic convoys to Russia, which were incredibly dangerous due to sub-zero temperatures which coated ships in ice, and the nearly constant threat of German aircraft and submarines.
I've read that the Russians went out of their way to treat the crews of American ships well. How times changed! By the time I joined the American Navy in 1962, I was convinced that as far as Russia was concerned, the only good American was a dead American. I was posted to the U.S. Naval hospital in Yokosuka, Japan for two years, and on two occasions in Tokyo I had the opportunity to talk with two Russians, a musician with the State Symphony Orchestra of the Soviet Union, and the wife of a Russian diplomat stationed in Tokyo. You know, I didn't feel even slightly threatened by either a of them (although the musician, especially, was concerned that his KGB "handlers" might see him talking with me and my friend).
Bob
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Another recent addition:
In 1949, my family relocated from Savona, a small town in New York State, to Arenas Valley, New Mexico, a tiny, unincorporated village six miles east of Silver City, where my dad became editor of the Silver City Enterprise.
In 1957, my paternal grandfather retired from his job as a machinist at the Kennecott Copper Corp. smelter in nearby Hurley, and moved into our house in Arenas Valley, and my family moved into Silver City. Ever since then, I've thought of Silver City as my home town.
Several years ago, I acquired a "linen"-surface postcard based on an aerial photograph of Silver City. The view is to the west; the postcard had to have been printed between 1938 and 1949. That because the construction of my high school was approved in 1937, but it can't have been a "quick build". It was such a solid structure, three storeys of concrete with brick facing, that plans in the 1960s to turn it into an apartment building had to be abandoned because it literally could not be "renovated" in an economically viable way, and it was demolished.
The linen-surface postcard includes, through omission, another clue to when it was produced. Silver City is the home of what was, in 1949, New Mexico Western College (today it's called Western New Mexico University). When I still lived in Silver City, the biggest building in town was the college's huge Field House gymnasium, where I proved that I would never be a good basketball player. Construction of the Field House was completed in 1949, but it is not shown on the postcards, either the original black-and-white RPPC or the linen-surface one. Ergo, the Field House didn't exist when the original photo was taken.
If you collect postcards, you'll be aware that in the 1930-1950s, colour postcards were hand-coloured versions of black-and-white photos. Printing of those postcards was less than perfect; colours are often poorly registered and rarely reflected reality. In the case of this particular postcard, it shows a Silver City that has probably never existed. Bright green is not a typical Silver City colour. The climate is warm and dry, warmer and drier now than ever in its nearly-200-year history. The typical colour of the city is mostly brown, except for a few weeks during monsoons in early summer, monsoons which are increasingly rare for that area. But it was the only postcard I'd seen showing an aerial view of Silver City.
I've seen many copies of this postcard for sale. I expect that anyone could buy one on any day of this year and perhaps many future years. But I was surprised recently to see the same aerial view on another postcard, not a linen-surface postcard but on an RPPC — a Real Photo Post Card. The RPPC seems to be badly faded, which is typical of photos that aren't "fixed" properly in the darkroom. I expect that the original photo was much clearer. Here's an image showing both postcards:
Here's an annotated version of the colour postcard:
Bob
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You do just excellent work, Bob!! It's inspiring! Thank you.
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Thank you, Philatarium. Nice words to read.
In looking over my post about the Silver City postcard, I realized I'd left out another clue to the age of the card, so I added this short paragraph:
"The linen-surface postcard includes, through omission, another clue to when it was produced. Silver City is the home of what was, in 1949, New Mexico Western College (today it's called Western New Mexico University). When I still lived in Silver City, the biggest building in town was the college's huge Field House gymnasium, where I proved that I would never be a good basketball player. Construction of the Field House was completed in 1949, but it is not shown on the postcards, either the original black-and-white RPPC or the linen-surface one. Ergo, the Field House didn't exist when the original photo was taken."
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Bob,
Great posts. I drove right past the exit for Silver City on I-10 and had remembered reading about it from your posts. I appreciate the work you've done in chronicling this part of American history. Our world seems to be getting so much smaller and with the commercialization of everything, these small towns seem to be losing a great deal of the character.
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Interesting history Bob!
Why did they abandon a high school that was 20 something years old?
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The school building was turning over to the Silver Consolidated School District in 1963, when Western New Mexico College became New Mexico Western University. The school board decided to sell it because it would have been too difficult and expensive to expand it for a growing student population. It was purchased by a Silver City businessman, Neil Parrish (one of my sister's classmates), who hoped to turn it into an apartment building. When it proved virtually impossible to repurpose the classrooms — that building was "bomb proof" (my phrase, not Neil's) — it was demolished.
Here's a photo of the school, apparently taken while demolition was in progress:
Believe it or not, this is one of the few photographs of the school I have ever seen. Even though I was deeply into photography in my senior year (I was chief sports photographer and photographer for the all of the photos in the annual except for portraits), I myself never took any photos of the school, at least none that survived.
It appears that the university acquired the land again and built a dormitory on the site:
Susan and I have not visited Silver City since the late 1990s, when my Mom was still alive.
Bob
re: Recent Acquisitions 18
Here is an item I picked up at The APRL sales room. It is a mounted collection of various stamps and production methods used to make them. It is six pages and starts with "Chapter III. I wish I could see the first two chapters.
There are a few interesting examples on this page. The stamps printed on Bank Note paper and the stamp printed on a map. I have seen sheets printed on maps but not on Bank Note paper.
The most interesting on this page is the paste up stamps using scotch tape. I never heard of that example
This page is the back of one of the pages in this set. It shows where the mounts used has discolored the page. The mounts use pressure sensitive glue that has deteriorated. Some mounts show signs of being remounted with some type of glue. All the pages are discolored on the top. I will be remounting these this weekend on Vario stock sheets.
It's nice being so close to the APS & APRL. Less than a mile. I have been visiting the sales room after I finish up with my volunteer work. Next week I'll check out the sales circuits.
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Golden Valley Stamp and Coin (local to me) conducts a regular online auction and I have picked up many nice stamps from them. This is part of my most recent wins. I also picked up Norway #5 and a beautiful set of the Washington Bicentennials. I am not a big collector of #1's but I now have them for US, Great Britain, Germany, and Norway!
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I have a very nice copy of US #1, it's #2 I'd like to get!!!
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I have a dealer that allows me to buy more expensive items on layaway and I’ve been paying on a US #2 for several months now. I paid it off on Friday and should receive my stamp by the end of the week!
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Jack, Good for you ! phil
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Response to (BenFranklin1902, 01 Feb 2021, 07:21:18pm): "Hey Vince! Here's one of my favorites.. I had it out for scanning today to share with Jeep people. I even broke my "no large envelopes" rule for this one!"
https://www.folklib.net/fdc/1940s/porto-server.shtml
Searching found 19 of these Porto-Server patriotic covers made by the Tarrson Company of Chicago, every design that is listed by Sherman. Nine were serviced as FDC's, but only for two issues, #907 (6) and #908 (3). I bought five unused covers and they are all 8-3/4 x 3-7/8", just a bit smaller than a standard #10 envelope. Also found were seven different unused stationery letter sheets, two of which I just received. so they are not on my page yet. Minkus stationery had the same designs as were on his cachets. None of the seven 7-1/8 x 10-3/8" Porto-Server letters I have seen match any of the 19 cachets.
Doug Henkle, AFDCS LM#137
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I feel the same way about long covers...but there are always exceptions ..i have a couple of the type you displayed but they have not been through the mails. Have to love the MPs, if the guy could not do anything else you could put an MP armband on him.
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There are times when I will bid on eBay for a cheap mixture of Thai stamps in the hope of finding something, maybe a postmark, that's unusual. Rarely you will find the seller has thrown in some other Asian stamps that they didn't have a home for. This recent mixture had three such stamps, none of which I had seen before. One is a 1949 Japanese stamp from the southern island spa town of Beppu. The other two are 1903 Imperial issues from Korea not long before Japan took control in the early Twentieth Century.