Australia/Tasmania Telephone Link 🇦🇺 Australia, 2d | Issued April 1, 1936 | Brusden-White AU 169A 1936 was an astoundingly eventful year around the globe, just as nearly every year was in the first half of the 20th century. The UK’s George V died in January after years of declining health. The nation and its dominions... Continue Reading →
Signed FDC for International Geophysical Year issue 🇺🇸 United States, 3¢ | Issued May 31, 1958 | Scott 1107 One of my central topical philatelic interests is the International Geophysical Year. I’m fascinated by these nascent days of space science and global cooperation. The IGY also marks a period when the last few empty spots... Continue Reading →
George Rogers Clark 🇺🇸 United States, 2¢ | Issued February 25, 1929 | Scott 651 Picture this: You walk by the break room at work, and you see one. You drive home from work and check your mailbox before going inside, and there one is again. The doorbell rings, and there’s one sitting on your... Continue Reading →
International Geophysical Year stamp and official emblem on cacheted first day cover 🇺🇸 United States, 3¢ | Issued May 31, 1958 | Scott 1107 When did space exploration begin? Nailing down an origin point on such a subjective timeline is objectively impossible. Was it with the first human spaceflight in April 1961? Or when the... Continue Reading →
“Freedom” with Flag and Cigars 🇨🇺 Cuba, 2¢ | Issued December 6, 1948 | Scott CU 421 When I first saw this 2c stamp, I assumed it must have something to do with liberty, revolution, and national identity. Then I discovered it was just about cigars. I say “just”, but after doing the research for... Continue Reading →
Pan-American Exposition Issue 🇺🇸 United States, 1–10¢ | Issued May 1, 1901 | Scott 294–299 When you start to gain a grasp on early American commemorative stamps, you begin to pick up on certain series names: Columbian Exposition, “the Trans-Mississippis”, et cetera, et cetera. So, sure, I understand quality specimens can be very valuable. But... Continue Reading →
Marine Timekeepers: Decorated Enamel Dial 🇬🇧 Great Britain, 24p | Issued February 16, 1993 | SG GB 1654 Since 2020, many people (myself included) have felt that time isn’t what it used to be. Days are too long and too short at the same time. Hours take weeks. Months go by in a flash. We... Continue Reading →
It’s snowed out every “significant” birthday of my life so far. The day my mother went into labor, there were 17 inches of snow on the ground. So much snow, that my father and the EMT on duty had to hoist her four-foot-ten frame by the armpits and carry her the nearly-quarter mile down the... Continue Reading →
900th Anniversary of the Death of St. Stephen: Pope Sylvester II, Archbishop 🇭🇺 Hungary, 10f | Issued January 1, 1938 | Scott 516 America was famously born when the Second Continental Congress of 56 delegates agreed to adopt the Declaration of Independence in 1776. But according to history, the birth of Hungary as a nation... Continue Reading →
Armchair Philately 