The British KGV Downey Head Issue

The 'Downey Head' issues of King George V offer many hours of analysis for collectors.

After a consultation with the President of the Royal Academy, invitations were sent out to different designers to enter a competition to design a new stamp honouring King George V. Artists from De La Rue, Perkins/Bacon, Waterlow and The Royal Mint submitted essays, but it was the joint effort of Mr.Bertram Mackennal and Mr. G.W. Eve that ended up winning final approval. This design was based on a photograph of King George V taken by W.&D. Downey, the court photographers, and was unique because of the 3/4 profile used.
 

The Other Diamond Jubilee (1897)

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The Diamond Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II, marking 60 years of her reign, has produced many unforgettable moments and wonderful images.

However, for philatelists, there is another Diamond Jubilee that might be more interesting - in 1897.

Bavaria - Bayern

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Bavaria, or Bayern, was a hereditary constitutional monarchy, forming part of the German Empire, with a population well in excess of six million, the majority of whom were Roman Catholics.

Bavaria was the first of the German States to adopt adhesive postage stamps, its pioneer labels appearing in November 1849, giving Bavaria the distinction of being one of the first adhesive postage stamp issuing countries in the world.

British North America (Canada, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, etc.)

Edited excerpt from The stamp collector : a guide to the world's postage stamps (1920) by Stanley Johnson.

A favourite group and one we can recommend from every point of view is afforded by the issues
of British North America. The items coming under this head are usually fine specimens of the printer's art; they are sufficiently numerous to sustain interest; many of them are rare enough to introduce the sporting element when searching for copies, and as an investment they are generally unsurpassed.

Bulgaria



1879 5c stamp
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Bulgaria released its first stamps on 1st May 1879, featuring a crowned lion, Bulgaria’s national symbol. The same design in slightly differing varieties was then used for most of the country’s 19th century stamps. 

Bulgaria’s premier issue was printed in St. Petersburg, Russia. The 10-centime and 1-franc values had the lowest printings of only 100,000 copies each. Half a million 25-centime stamps were printed. This was the rate for ordinary letters and obviously the most needed value. The design of the stamps shows strong similarities with contemporary Russian stamps.

Sudan

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The first stamps of the Sudan were created by overprinting Egyptian stamps in 1897 for use at the Camp Post Office at Wadi Haifa, and at points south thereof, the overprint reading "SOUDAN" and repeated in Arabic characters.

Egypt

At the termination of the suzerainty of Turkey over Egypt, it was placed under British 'protection'. 

China

China's troubles during the Boxer rebellion were reflected in the stamp album by the "C.E.F." stamps of India and by the use of the stamps of several of the Powers co-operating in the defence of the Legations.

Japan

The rapid rise of Japan to power at the turn of the century is marked by many stamps of a military nature - but often with a uniquely Japanese twist.
Japan's successful war against China (1894-95) was commemorated by an issue of four stamps in 1896. These are of two denominations, each of which is in two varieties, a style that was later repeated by the Republic of China. The Japanese stamps in question portray two heroes of the war; the denominations were 2 sen and 5 sen, but that there should be no suggestion of any inequality in their admiration for the two heroes, the Japanese postal authorities had two stamps of each denomination prepared so that each warrior figured on a 2 sen and also a 5 sen stamp. Thus neither could be regarded as being valued higher than the other, and neither could be said to be given greater prominence.

Turkey

Tughra issue (1863) with red control band

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On January 1, 1863, Turkey issued its first adhesive postage stamps. It was the second independent country in Asia to issue adhesive stamps, preceded only by Russia in 1858.


Turkey's stamps came less than two years after its neighbor and former territory, Greece (independent 1832), issued its first stamps.

Montenegro (Cherno Gore)

Tsar Nicholas of Montenegro figures in a number of 'warrior King' portraits, at various stages in his career on the stamps issued in 1910 for his Jubilee.

Austrian Offices Overseas

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, having post offices abroad was often considered one of the hallmarks of a great power. Austria established its post offices in Turkey (Levant) and in Crete.

Bosnia-Herzegovina

The military occupation of Bosnia-Herzegovina by Austria under the treaty of Berlin, 1878, was followed thirty years later by the coup of October 5, 1908, by which the Emperor-King proclaimed his sovereignty over the two provinces.

Serbia

Revolutionary disturbances led to changes of the stamps of Serbia. Michael Obrenovich III., who figures on the issue of 1866, was assassinated on June 10th, 1868, by the friends of the abdicated prince, Alexander Karageorgevich.

South Africa (Transvaal, Natal, Orange River)

The wars between the British Empire and the South African Boers produced many interesting postal oddities.

Denmark



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The first postage stamps were introduced on 1 April 1851, a four (Fire) rigsbankskilling stamp printed in brown, a square design with a crown, sword, and sceptre in the centre.


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This was followed on 1 May by a 2rbs value in blue using the denomination as the design.

Both stamps were typographed, watermarked (with a crown), and imperforate, and distinctive for having a yellow-brown burelage printed on top of the design. The 2rbs prepaid the local postage rate in Kobenhavn, while the 4rbs was the national rate.

The design and first printings were made by M. W. Ferslew, but he died and the subsequent printing was by H. H. Thiele, whose firm printed Denmark's stamps for the next 80 years.

Four rbs stamps were introduced on 1st May 1851 for use in the Duchy of Slesvig.

Companhia de Moçambique

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The Companhia de Moçambique was formed in 1888. It administered by concession the central part of Portuguese East Africa (Mozambique) from 1891 until 1941, when its 50 years charter terminated(prolonged from 25 years in 1897).

Labuan

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Labuan is an island off the northwest coast of Borneo. In 1840 the British used the previously uninhabited island as a base for operations against piracy and later as a station for the submarine cable between Singapore and Hong Kong. The Sultan of Brunei ceded Labuan to Britain in 1846, and the island became a Crown Colony in 1848. It was made a part of North Borneo in January 1890, then in October 1906 joined to the Straits Settlements.

Penny Black

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The first modern postage stamp was the famous British Penny Black. The penny black, along with the two pence blue stamp, was issued May 6, 1840 (although there is an instance of postal use before this date).

The use of stamps became such an important innovation for England that, within 20 years, most countries had adopted the use of stamps (for example: Brazil in 1843, the United States in 1847, France in 1849, Spain in 1850).

Moldovia, Wallachia and Romania

Alexander John Suza
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Romania's early stamps developed from those of Moldova and Wallachia, which united to form the core of the new Romania.

In 1877, Romania declared independence from the Ottoman Empire and, following a Russian-Romanian-Turkish war, its independence was recognized by the Treaty of Berlin, 1878, making it the first independent national state in the eastern half of Europe. Following the war Romania acquired Dobruja, but it was forced to cede southern Bessarabia to Russia.

Portugal

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In the mid 19th Century, Portugal has an extensive overseas empire, although its power in Europe was fading.

The early issues from 1853 had the monarch's head, white and featureless, embossed on a coloured background.

Spain

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The first stamps of Spain were issued on 1 January 1850 and depicted Queen Isabella II. Two designs were used: the 6c stamp of 1850, also known as the Spanish penny black', shows a profile of the queen facing left; and the other denominations use a similar profile facing right. Her features graced most Spanish stamps until her abdication in 1868.

To avoid defacing the features of Isabella, an unusual postmark was devised which was intended to frame her portrait, the "Arana" (Spider), which became mandatory on January 24, 1850 and leaves a large open space in the center.

Syria

An independent Arab Kingdom of Syria was established in 1920, under Faisal I of the Hashemite family, who later became the the King of Iraq, but his rule over Syria lasted only a few months. After a conflict between Arab forces and French troops, the League of Nations put Syria under a French mandate, which lasted until the Second World War.

Ottoman Empire



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When adhesive postage stamps first came into being in the 1840s, the Middle East, with the exception of Persia, was part of the Ottoman Empire, and they did not begin issuing their own postage stamps until the 1860s.

The first stamp of the Ottoman Empire, present day Turkey, is shown in the image. 

German Colonies

The German Empire developed overseas colonies from about 1884 until 1919, when they were confiscated by the Treaty of Versailles at the end of World War I.

German States

Prior to German Unification, stamps were issued by a number of individual Germanic Kingdoms, Duchies and Free Cities.

Bavaria was the first state to issue postage stamps in 1849, followed soon by Baden, Bergedorf, Braunschweig, Bremen, Hamburg, Hannover, Heligoland, Lübek, Mecklenburg-Schwerin, Mecklenburg-Strelitz, Oldenburg, Prussia, Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, and Württemberg.

The House of Thurn and Taxis, while not a state, transported mail, and in 1852, they also began issuing their own postage stamps.

United States

US classic stamps 'officially' begin with the first US government issue on July 1, 1847, but as early as 1843, there were privately made adhesive stamps in use in the United States. 

Switzerland

The classic stamps of Switzerland stamps are some of the most beautiful ever issued. The stamps depict the centuries of historical events, the famous people, and the stunning scenery of this Alpine country. 

Austria, Austria-Hungarian Empire

Austria is known by German speaking people as "Österreich", which originally meant "East of the Reich or Empire". The Empire in this case, was the "Holy Roman Empire".

The House of Habsburg seized Austria in 1282 and ruled, without a break until 1918. During this reign, the Austrian Empire extended over Czecho-Slovakia, Hungary, part of Russia, Poland, Rumania, Yugoslavia and a smaller part of Italy.

The Austrian Empire period consists of two parts:

• the original Empire, which lasted from 1804 to 1867, and was founded by the Habsburg monarch, Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, who became Francis I of Austria, as a state comprising his personal lands, within and outside of the former Holy Roman Empire
• The Empire of Austria-Hungary, which lasted from 1867 to 1918, and was a monarchical union with the Kingdom of Hungary.  The Habsburg monarch, Emperor Franz Josef I reigned simultaneously as the Emperor of Austria and as the King of Hungary.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was dissolved by the Treaty of Versailles, after the end of World War I, and all of its possessions were broken up into independent countries.

Russia

Russian classic stamps were issued under three different political entities:

• the Russian Empire, up to 1917
• the confused period of the Russian Civil War, from 1917-1922
• the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR or Cyrillic "CCCP"), from 1922

France

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The early postal arrangements of France were often disturbed by war and revolution.  French stamps provide a very interesting record of the political changes in the country, and provide one of the best illustrations of how stamps demarcate the periods of a nation's history.

Greece

The large Hermes heads of Greece were issued on October 1, 1861, the first stamp issues of that country. They are considered by many to be among the most beautiful of the classic issues of that period.

German Empire

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Early German Empire stamps are fascinating, reflecting the growth of German industry and military self-confidence culminating in the disaster of the First World War.

Welcome!

Welcome to this new blog on worldwide classic stamps. Since 1840 postage stamps have provided a insight into the issuing country's culture, politics and economy. The early stamps, like this famous Penny Black, are also frequently quite beautiful miniature compositions.

The easiest way to start collecting stamps is with a worldwide collection, which can be easy and cheap. After a while, the sheer size of issues around the world may overwhelm you. My solution to keeping my collection to a manageable size was to concentrate on the earlier issues, stopping at around the 1930s - or around the time photogravure rather than traditional engraving became commonplace.

A good catalogue is essential, of course, but what I was looking for was something that provided more information on the background of each country's early stamps. As I couldn't find anything that suited me, I decided to create my own resource - and here it is for you to share - and contribute to.