Tuesday, June 21, 2011

The Romance of the Postage Stamp



Most valuable stamp collection to go under the hammer expected to fetch £20 million

Sir Humphrey Cripps was one of life’s hoarders. When he died in 2000, his sons found an old shoebox in the back of his wardrobe containing thousands of train tickets – one for every rail journey he had ever made. Telegraph


Ah the romance of the postage stamp. I bought a collection once for a few pounds and the dealer told me one day I could spend thousands of pounds for one stamp. He was right! I have bought an entire collection for one stamp.

You can feel history! The history of the perforating machine alone reads like a novel. The beauty of a New Zealand Full Face Queen. A tiny Rembrandt and just a beautiful and valuable.

I am not in Sir Humphrey's class of collector but I can understand the pleasure he must have had.

My most precious item is a letter written from Dachau concentration camp. Yes the prisoners were allowed to send letters asking for food and  money. It is moving especially the bit where it says no that correspondence and requests for visits  will be entered into. 
It is just a letter with a stamp but what a letter!


No comments:

Post a Comment