| Stamp collecting is one of the most popular | | | | Generally anything before 1900 and in good |
| hobbies worldwide, attracting over 20 million | | | | condition, will be worth a good sum. The first |
| collectors in the United States alone! Stamps are | | | | United States postage stamps -- the five-cent |
| one of the easiest investments to store and | | | | Franklin and the ten-cent Washington (unused) |
| preserve, more so than jewelry or art. What | | | | sold for $1,400 and $28,000, respectively. Britain's |
| started out as an inexpensive trade item for | | | | first official adhesive one ("Penny Black") sold as |
| British children, has exploded into a global | | | | used postage stamps in an auction for $200 in |
| madness, with auctions, organizations, societies, | | | | the year 2000 -- and unused for $3,000! |
| festivals and magazines dedicated to the subject. | | | | Also, errors, misprints and flukes are naturally the |
| Stamp collecting usually starts with a couple | | | | most coveted. For instance, the "Inverted Jenny" |
| stamps and an album that looks like a photo | | | | is a US postage one from 1918 featuring a photo |
| album. Over time, collectors buy tongs and stamp | | | | of a Curtiss JN-4 airplane where the plane was |
| hinges to properly affix stamps into their books, | | | | mistakenly printed upside-down! Only 100 were |
| minimizing damage. | | | | ever printed and a block of four just sold at an |
| They may also purchase a magnifying glass to | | | | auction for $2.7 Million! Similarly, the "Treskilling |
| get a closer inspection, a perforation gauge to | | | | Yellow" stamp from Sweden was misprinted in |
| detect a rare stamp from a duplicate, plus a | | | | the wrong color, placing its value at over $2 Million. |
| watermark detector to see the secret images | | | | Many people do most of their stamp collecting on |
| and guarantee authenticity. Catalogs like "Scott's" | | | | eBay because the bidding starts as low as one |
| have become a quintessential guide for collectors | | | | cent and often entire collections can be found for |
| who wish to appraise, buy or trade stamps. | | | | reasonable prices. Online auctions are simple to |
| What do people look for when collecting stamps? | | | | use (once registered), expansive in size, and great |
| This depends, of course, on personal preference. | | | | for both beginners and expert philatelists. |
| Some people collect themes, artwork or stamps | | | | Before selling, sellers should organize their |
| from countries they like, just to have a collection | | | | collection using computer software, as well as |
| of some sort to show off to friends and family | | | | upload photos and descriptions of their items, |
| or pass down to future generations. | | | | checking the Scott's Catalogue number |
| Maybe there's someone who collects Star Wars, | | | | beforehand (since this is how most stamp |
| Marilyn Monroe, Elvis and other pop-culture ones. | | | | collectors categorize their items). Before buying, |
| Or there could be another collector who | | | | collectors should check the seller's ranking and |
| specializes in war-time ones from around the | | | | user comments to make sure this particular seller |
| world. Others look out for exceedingly rare prints | | | | is legit. |
| that are worth a great deal of money. | | | | |