Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
Discussion - Member to Member Sales - Research Center
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Yes - and considered quite amateurish in today's philatelic world.
Many of the stamps in my giveaway had penciled writing on them....but not by me!
Mostly a thing of the past, but sadly, some still do it today.
This has been a big debate in previous threads here - those with a distaste for it and those who say 'if its mine, I'll do what I like with it.'
I can understand arguments for both sides.
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Yes, but it was worth $0.25 according to the catalogue, so worthwhile... 
More something to laugh at, unlike writing the catalogue number on the back of a MNH stamp (I've found tons of those).
I came across a big bunch of stamps recently that had even more than that written on them. Can't remember exactly, but I think there might have been an inscription for the number of the stamp and how many they had (e.g. 16/142), the date purchased, and some initials (which I think were the person the stamps were intended for). There was barely enough room on the stamp even at a 1pt font! I think I threw them all into my HSP donation box, but I'll try to find some and post a scan.
Cheers, Dave.
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I've seen worse
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If anyone should find a Union of South Africa 1913 £1 with writing on the back please don't throw it away. I would be happy to pay the postage and even pay its face value for your trouble.
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08:15:35am
As I've said before, writing on the back of stamps doesn't really bother me. I'm not sure about ink since it might come through over time. Can you imagine someone throwing out the "World's Most Valuable Stamp" because of the writing on the back. Sometimes if I have had a difficult time IDing a stamp I'll put a small light number on the back to help the next owner. If it lowers the value a bit, well, I'll live with it. I also don't get upset about hinge remnants, I'd rather that than a thin because of careless hinge removal. I guess we're all different!
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Well at least it is not in INK!
rrr...
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...is like a dog pissing on a fire hydrant.
-Paul
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"Can you imagine someone throwing out the "World's Most Valuable Stamp" because of the writing on the back."
I wouldn't throw that stamp away, but I would take my mechanical drafting eraser and take all that writing off, except for the ink, which won't come off.
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".is like a dog pissing on a fire hydrant"
And the acid in the urine will eat away at the paint and metal.
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05:06:14pm
I have a fairly extensive art collection and I very rarely check the backs of the paintings, maybe I should, but I just don't think of it as being that important to the enjoyment the art work gives me. Maybe that's why I think about stamps the way I do.
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To each their own. It's a hobby.
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A stamp collector marking the back of a stamp is as a dog pissing on a fire hydrant.
They are both marking their territory.
Some people might think that's a worthy example of "leaving a legacy".
I say, Get a Life.
If your life is exemplified by the pee stains you've left in the world, I say, Good Riddance.
-Paul
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06:35:00pm
Yes, I occasionally put a small number on the back of a stamp so I know what it is if it falls out of the album or stock book, especially if it took a long time to ID. Comparing me, or someone like me, to a "dog pissing on a fire hydrant" is demeaning and insulting. We all handle our hobby differently and we do not need this kind of damn foolishness!! If I wish to add small marks to the back of my stamps I will do so. If you don't wish to do so ... then don't! No need for insults, we all do things differently, and I say that's a good thing! What is it the French say? - Vive la difference!!
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What gets me is when a stamp has a plain selvage attached to it. Turn it over, and yep, the stamp has the catalog number in ink on it. The selvage is pristine clean.
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Beats the piss outta the plate blocks I received where the original owner felt compelled to write the Scott catalog number in ink on the front of the selvage! Postage!
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I can live with pencil markings on the backs of stamps; not so with writings in pen.
But the worst cases of stamp abuse are always hinge related.
Removing stamps from album pages without proper care, results in large thins and valuable stamps become a toast.
I wanted to make a video that can be used as some sort of a guideline, but maybe there is one out there already.
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08:03:01am
I don't mind pencil as long as it's not an essay. I'm not sure what kind of moron would use ink, my guess is that eventually it would show through the stamp. As I said, occasionally I will put the # of the stamp lightly on the back in case it falls out of the album and sometimes that happens if I use hinges. I'm not sure if I would buy a stamp if it was marked with ink.
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Please note though, certain combinations of pencils and stamp papers do not erase, and most pencil marks do not erase complete. I am someone who prefers clean backs & I try my best to erase any pencils marks and soak off hinges if I can. I am in agreement with anyone who says they can do what they want to their own stamps, but please don't assume pencils marks can be completely removed and please disclose when selling.
Thanks,
josh
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Sometimes pencil marks are totally erased, but the collector pushed down so hard on the pencil that the writing was embossed into the stamp - trash.
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"To each their own. It's a hobby."
Best comment yet!
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""To each their own. It's a hobby.""
i'm going to write that on the backs of all my stamps
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"To each their own. It's a hobby."
"i'm going to write that on the backs of all my stamps"
I'd love to see you write that on the back of the GB Queen Victoria 1858 halfpenny
or
The 1948 Germany Postal Tax Stamp!
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send them my way; i'll write to please
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I put hinges on to cover the pencil notations 
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I see pencil marks somewhat frequently on DWI issues with catalog numbers, sometimes with question marks with the numbers -- don't mind it unless its on a never-hinged stamp or if I can notice it from the front. I'm a but of a "condition nut" so this really should bug the daylights out of me! Kind of feel the same way about expertising marks.
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The comparison with the dog may be a little harsh, but I don't like writing on the back of a stamp, either. Even if someone puts a catalog number there, it may be wrong, and who says that I would use the same catalog? Michel, Y&T, Scott, Zumstein, etc. all use different systems, and they may not even agree on number 1. Then there is a certain reluctance (to put it mildly) to disregard the counsel of experienced people. Sometimes I wonder whether some people don't want the objects they collect to be in good condition. That'd be rather silly, wouldn't it? What's more, even experts can be wrong on occasion, hence the tendency to prefer photo attestations over expert marks that I have observed in other boards.
Martin
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This a lot of information to put on the back of this stamp.
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re: Writing on back of stamps
Yes - and considered quite amateurish in today's philatelic world.
Many of the stamps in my giveaway had penciled writing on them....but not by me!
Mostly a thing of the past, but sadly, some still do it today.
This has been a big debate in previous threads here - those with a distaste for it and those who say 'if its mine, I'll do what I like with it.'
I can understand arguments for both sides.
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10:55:50am
re: Writing on back of stamps
Yes, but it was worth $0.25 according to the catalogue, so worthwhile... More something to laugh at, unlike writing the catalogue number on the back of a MNH stamp (I've found tons of those).
I came across a big bunch of stamps recently that had even more than that written on them. Can't remember exactly, but I think there might have been an inscription for the number of the stamp and how many they had (e.g. 16/142), the date purchased, and some initials (which I think were the person the stamps were intended for). There was barely enough room on the stamp even at a 1pt font! I think I threw them all into my HSP donation box, but I'll try to find some and post a scan.
Cheers, Dave.
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re: Writing on back of stamps
If anyone should find a Union of South Africa 1913 £1 with writing on the back please don't throw it away. I would be happy to pay the postage and even pay its face value for your trouble.
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This is my diabetic cat OBI! I think, therefore I am - I think! Descartes, sort of!
31 Jan 2022
08:15:35am
re: Writing on back of stamps
As I've said before, writing on the back of stamps doesn't really bother me. I'm not sure about ink since it might come through over time. Can you imagine someone throwing out the "World's Most Valuable Stamp" because of the writing on the back. Sometimes if I have had a difficult time IDing a stamp I'll put a small light number on the back to help the next owner. If it lowers the value a bit, well, I'll live with it. I also don't get upset about hinge remnants, I'd rather that than a thin because of careless hinge removal. I guess we're all different!
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re: Writing on back of stamps
Well at least it is not in INK!
rrr...
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04:47:33pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
...is like a dog pissing on a fire hydrant.
-Paul
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04:59:47pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
"Can you imagine someone throwing out the "World's Most Valuable Stamp" because of the writing on the back."
I wouldn't throw that stamp away, but I would take my mechanical drafting eraser and take all that writing off, except for the ink, which won't come off.
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05:00:47pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
".is like a dog pissing on a fire hydrant"
And the acid in the urine will eat away at the paint and metal.
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This is my diabetic cat OBI! I think, therefore I am - I think! Descartes, sort of!
31 Jan 2022
05:06:14pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
I have a fairly extensive art collection and I very rarely check the backs of the paintings, maybe I should, but I just don't think of it as being that important to the enjoyment the art work gives me. Maybe that's why I think about stamps the way I do.
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05:07:03pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
To each their own. It's a hobby.
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06:17:30pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
A stamp collector marking the back of a stamp is as a dog pissing on a fire hydrant.
They are both marking their territory.
Some people might think that's a worthy example of "leaving a legacy".
I say, Get a Life.
If your life is exemplified by the pee stains you've left in the world, I say, Good Riddance.
-Paul
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This is my diabetic cat OBI! I think, therefore I am - I think! Descartes, sort of!
31 Jan 2022
06:35:00pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
Yes, I occasionally put a small number on the back of a stamp so I know what it is if it falls out of the album or stock book, especially if it took a long time to ID. Comparing me, or someone like me, to a "dog pissing on a fire hydrant" is demeaning and insulting. We all handle our hobby differently and we do not need this kind of damn foolishness!! If I wish to add small marks to the back of my stamps I will do so. If you don't wish to do so ... then don't! No need for insults, we all do things differently, and I say that's a good thing! What is it the French say? - Vive la difference!!
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08:04:04pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
What gets me is when a stamp has a plain selvage attached to it. Turn it over, and yep, the stamp has the catalog number in ink on it. The selvage is pristine clean.
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re: Writing on back of stamps
Beats the piss outta the plate blocks I received where the original owner felt compelled to write the Scott catalog number in ink on the front of the selvage! Postage!
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this post
re: Writing on back of stamps
I can live with pencil markings on the backs of stamps; not so with writings in pen.
But the worst cases of stamp abuse are always hinge related.
Removing stamps from album pages without proper care, results in large thins and valuable stamps become a toast.
I wanted to make a video that can be used as some sort of a guideline, but maybe there is one out there already.
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This is my diabetic cat OBI! I think, therefore I am - I think! Descartes, sort of!
01 Feb 2022
08:03:01am
re: Writing on back of stamps
I don't mind pencil as long as it's not an essay. I'm not sure what kind of moron would use ink, my guess is that eventually it would show through the stamp. As I said, occasionally I will put the # of the stamp lightly on the back in case it falls out of the album and sometimes that happens if I use hinges. I'm not sure if I would buy a stamp if it was marked with ink.
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re: Writing on back of stamps
Please note though, certain combinations of pencils and stamp papers do not erase, and most pencil marks do not erase complete. I am someone who prefers clean backs & I try my best to erase any pencils marks and soak off hinges if I can. I am in agreement with anyone who says they can do what they want to their own stamps, but please don't assume pencils marks can be completely removed and please disclose when selling.
Thanks,
josh
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08:49:03pm
re: Writing on back of stamps
Sometimes pencil marks are totally erased, but the collector pushed down so hard on the pencil that the writing was embossed into the stamp - trash.
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re: Writing on back of stamps
"To each their own. It's a hobby."
Best comment yet!
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re: Writing on back of stamps
""To each their own. It's a hobby.""
i'm going to write that on the backs of all my stamps
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12:14:21pm
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re: Writing on back of stamps
"To each their own. It's a hobby."
"i'm going to write that on the backs of all my stamps"
I'd love to see you write that on the back of the GB Queen Victoria 1858 halfpenny
or
The 1948 Germany Postal Tax Stamp!
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re: Writing on back of stamps
send them my way; i'll write to please
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re: Writing on back of stamps
I put hinges on to cover the pencil notations
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re: Writing on back of stamps
I see pencil marks somewhat frequently on DWI issues with catalog numbers, sometimes with question marks with the numbers -- don't mind it unless its on a never-hinged stamp or if I can notice it from the front. I'm a but of a "condition nut" so this really should bug the daylights out of me! Kind of feel the same way about expertising marks.
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re: Writing on back of stamps
The comparison with the dog may be a little harsh, but I don't like writing on the back of a stamp, either. Even if someone puts a catalog number there, it may be wrong, and who says that I would use the same catalog? Michel, Y&T, Scott, Zumstein, etc. all use different systems, and they may not even agree on number 1. Then there is a certain reluctance (to put it mildly) to disregard the counsel of experienced people. Sometimes I wonder whether some people don't want the objects they collect to be in good condition. That'd be rather silly, wouldn't it? What's more, even experts can be wrong on occasion, hence the tendency to prefer photo attestations over expert marks that I have observed in other boards.
Martin
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