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General Philatelic/Gen. Discussion : intact gum on older stamps

 

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erudite
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22 Oct 2011
07:25:23pm
I'm curious as to what other people think of older stamps with intact gum.
I'm looking at a Newfoundland #56. It appears to be mint and has pretty intact gum. I suppose it raises a lot of questions.
When did people start collecting stamps? Was this stamp part of a collection or inadvertently bought in 1887 and never used, to be discovered later. If it is in fact used why is the gum intact and then why are we so preoccupied with intact gum?
Finally, I wonder at what point, under the lure of profit from older stamps with intact gum, did people begin to coat the backs of stamps with gum?
I also wondered about the nature of gum used over time. Trying to soak older stamps from paper can be almost impossible. The gum resembles cement! The type of gum used on stamps has obviously changed over the years. I'd be curious as to the type of gum used on these 19th Century stamps.
This a somewhat rambling set of thoughts on gum, forgeries and priorities.............
Chris
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erudite
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22 Oct 2011
07:28:16pm
re: intact gum on older stamps

Actually I just read that the first gum used on early Great Britain stamps was called 'cement' and was a mixture of potato starch, wheat starch and acacia gum.........Wikipedia
Chris

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Walden
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22 Oct 2011
07:45:23pm
re: intact gum on older stamps

Sheila Brennen has recently completed a dissertation (2010) at George Mason University on the history of American stamp collecting. Chapters of her dissertation are available online at:

http://chnm.gmu.edu/staff/sheila/lot49/

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rgnpcs
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22 Oct 2011
07:46:15pm
re: intact gum on older stamps

Anyone that has early US Columbians with smooth gum, they have been re gummed. The backs should be cracked, as I doubt that there are any OG examples still around.
Richaard

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cdj1122
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Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy..

22 Oct 2011
08:21:36pm
re: intact gum on older stamps

In Roland Hill's proposal to Parliament that became the birth certificate of postage stamps he described the small pieces of paper as having as "Glutinous Mixture" that would allow the stamps to be affixed to the envelope.

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".... You may think you understood what you thought I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you think you heard is not what I thought I meant. .... "
erudite
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22 Oct 2011
11:12:54pm
re: intact gum on older stamps

Sheila Brennan's dissertation looks fascinating......good to see someone approaching the history of stamp collecting from an academic perspective.....look forward to reading the chapters.
I found it interesting that stamp collecting began almost as soon as the first stamp was issued and quickly gained popularity. Those early Queen Victorian heads are extraordinary pieces of art.

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ScanStamps
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23 Oct 2011
10:31:52am
re: intact gum on older stamps

I love the idea that someone wrote their dissertation on the history of stamp collecting.

I feel pretty certain most stamp issuing authorities used gummed stamps, pretty much from the beginning. The gum was primitive (by our standards) as others have mentioned, sometimes horse hide glue or fish bone/scale glue. I'm guessing early stamps were probably difficult to affix, as it would take a while for wetness to dissolve the adhesive sufficiently for the stamp to actually stick to the paper... and THEN it would be almost impossible to remove, once it dried again.

For me, "old gum" more often is about the notion of "never hinged." Collectors used hinges or little flaps of paper-- or even a dab of glue-- to mount their stamps in albums until... when? the 1930's? 1940's? My expectation is that a pre-1900 stamp have lots-- or at least ONE-- hinge remnant of some kind, and "NH" is automatically suspect.

In some ways, it's one of the reasons I only collect postally used stamps and covers.

Cheers,
~Peter

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cdj1122
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Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy..

23 Oct 2011
02:45:40pm
re: intact gum on older stamps

"..."NH" is automatically suspect. ... "
You can post that in bold capitals over your stamp desk.

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".... You may think you understood what you thought I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you think you heard is not what I thought I meant. .... "
        

 

Author/Postings
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erudite

22 Oct 2011
07:25:23pm

I'm curious as to what other people think of older stamps with intact gum.
I'm looking at a Newfoundland #56. It appears to be mint and has pretty intact gum. I suppose it raises a lot of questions.
When did people start collecting stamps? Was this stamp part of a collection or inadvertently bought in 1887 and never used, to be discovered later. If it is in fact used why is the gum intact and then why are we so preoccupied with intact gum?
Finally, I wonder at what point, under the lure of profit from older stamps with intact gum, did people begin to coat the backs of stamps with gum?
I also wondered about the nature of gum used over time. Trying to soak older stamps from paper can be almost impossible. The gum resembles cement! The type of gum used on stamps has obviously changed over the years. I'd be curious as to the type of gum used on these 19th Century stamps.
This a somewhat rambling set of thoughts on gum, forgeries and priorities.............
Chris

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this post
Members Picture
erudite

22 Oct 2011
07:28:16pm

re: intact gum on older stamps

Actually I just read that the first gum used on early Great Britain stamps was called 'cement' and was a mixture of potato starch, wheat starch and acacia gum.........Wikipedia
Chris

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this post
Members Picture
Walden

22 Oct 2011
07:45:23pm

re: intact gum on older stamps

Sheila Brennen has recently completed a dissertation (2010) at George Mason University on the history of American stamp collecting. Chapters of her dissertation are available online at:

http://chnm.gmu.edu/staff/sheila/lot49/

Like
Login to Like
this post

www.banknotestamps.c ...
Members Picture
rgnpcs

22 Oct 2011
07:46:15pm

re: intact gum on older stamps

Anyone that has early US Columbians with smooth gum, they have been re gummed. The backs should be cracked, as I doubt that there are any OG examples still around.
Richaard

Like
Login to Like
this post

members.ebay.com/abo ...

Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy..
22 Oct 2011
08:21:36pm

re: intact gum on older stamps

In Roland Hill's proposal to Parliament that became the birth certificate of postage stamps he described the small pieces of paper as having as "Glutinous Mixture" that would allow the stamps to be affixed to the envelope.

Like
Login to Like
this post

".... You may think you understood what you thought I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you think you heard is not what I thought I meant. .... "
Members Picture
erudite

22 Oct 2011
11:12:54pm

re: intact gum on older stamps

Sheila Brennan's dissertation looks fascinating......good to see someone approaching the history of stamp collecting from an academic perspective.....look forward to reading the chapters.
I found it interesting that stamp collecting began almost as soon as the first stamp was issued and quickly gained popularity. Those early Queen Victorian heads are extraordinary pieces of art.

Like
Login to Like
this post
Members Picture
ScanStamps

23 Oct 2011
10:31:52am

re: intact gum on older stamps

I love the idea that someone wrote their dissertation on the history of stamp collecting.

I feel pretty certain most stamp issuing authorities used gummed stamps, pretty much from the beginning. The gum was primitive (by our standards) as others have mentioned, sometimes horse hide glue or fish bone/scale glue. I'm guessing early stamps were probably difficult to affix, as it would take a while for wetness to dissolve the adhesive sufficiently for the stamp to actually stick to the paper... and THEN it would be almost impossible to remove, once it dried again.

For me, "old gum" more often is about the notion of "never hinged." Collectors used hinges or little flaps of paper-- or even a dab of glue-- to mount their stamps in albums until... when? the 1930's? 1940's? My expectation is that a pre-1900 stamp have lots-- or at least ONE-- hinge remnant of some kind, and "NH" is automatically suspect.

In some ways, it's one of the reasons I only collect postally used stamps and covers.

Cheers,
~Peter

Like
Login to Like
this post

scanstamps.blogspot. ...

Silence in the face of adversity is the father of complicity and collusion, the first cousins of conspiracy..
23 Oct 2011
02:45:40pm

re: intact gum on older stamps

"..."NH" is automatically suspect. ... "
You can post that in bold capitals over your stamp desk.

Like
Login to Like
this post

".... You may think you understood what you thought I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you think you heard is not what I thought I meant. .... "
        

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