I've been so busy with this channel, that I've neglected my own collection. Here's some of the projects that I'm hoping to get to soon. Perhaps this is a preview of some future episodes.
Hi Ken. Thank you again for your GREAT videos. I love your calmness and your methodical approaches to collecting. I also love how graciously you demonstrate your appreciation for the unsolicited gifts from your viewers. Like you, I have tried to avoid spending much money on my stamps and most of my stamps from Upper Silesia have come in lots for which I rarely paid more than $30. I guess I missed (or was just overwhelmed by the amount of information you share) that you had a fascination for overprints. I have shared with you my fascination with the stamps from Oberschlesien (Upper Silesia) because my mother's family was from there ( and had to flee their village hours ahead of the Soviet army in January 1945). Upper Silesia had several overprints that are listed in Scott, but Michel shows MANY overprint varieties. For example, the 20 pf definitives have 5 and 10 pf overprints. Michel lists at least 4 varieties of the numeral 5 and 2 for the pf! On the CGHS officials, Michel lists 20 different configurations! Of course, there are also the odd errors - like the entire pane I found with "Plebiscite 20 Mars 1921." on the gum! These have provided me with many hours of fun and reminders of a region steeped in history.
Another thing I love is seeing what other people are passionate about. It's fun to learn where there is depth and nuance that I wasn't aware of. It's all too much for just one person, but when we all dive deep and share, well, that's just fantastic. Thank you for sharing ... and watching me share.
Another comment about this video - seeing your Belgium collection, in particular the early series with the accompanying label, made me wonder about oddities in postage stamps. The early Belgium definitive stamps from the 1890s until 1912-13 had a label in French and in Flemish: "Ne pas livrer le Dimanche" and "Niet bestellen op Zondag" - translates to "Don't deliver on Sunday." If the sender left the label on the stamp it would not be delivered on Sunday and if removed could be delivered any day of the week including Sunday! I also have an encapsulated Germania stamp that, similar to those used after the American Civil War, were used as currency due to metal shortages. Can you think of any other oddities similar to these?
I think those little tabs are clever, although as a collector, they are a real pain. They are so fragile, and the value of the stamp goes way down if the tab is missing. As for others, hmm, I'm thinking of those Italian parcel post stamps that came with a receipt stamp on one side. They are worth considerably less once they are pulled apart, and as best I can tell, they must be pulled apart if they are properly used. I don't really collect them, but I have a whole bunch of those little half sides.
So sad…my entire collection burned up in the Eaton Canyon fire😢. World wide, George IV, Machins, US, and New South Whales. All gone. Thanks for the video…it’s all I got.
Hi Michael, I'm so sorry to hear this. First, I hope you are safe and have a good place to be. Stamp collecting is a calming hobby for me, and it must be extra hard to lose one of those things that helps you through a difficult time. I imagine you are not ready to get a fresh start of stamps, but when you are, let us know. Also, drop me an email if you will, I have an off-line question to ask.
Those WWI poster stamps have always intrigued me. They’re affordable and still pretty available on eBay. What a great way to commemorate such a dark part of human history.
Dear Ken Thank you so much for your effort and sharing your collections and how to videos , I enjoy both. It looks that you're having a lot of fun. Best regards. By the way if you have any duplicates of the Germany flower set I am interested , especially the higher values.
I'm grinning from ear to ear watching this video, Ken! It seems like our collecting crossed paths many times in the past year. I got my Canadian definitives in shape, then focused on Australia for a bit, and just finished working on Belgium this week. 😂 I arrange things a little differently (that Aussie 'series' is more like four separate series with overlapping issue dates) but that is the fun of collecting. I've learned a lot from you, not least of which is giving myself permission to focus on definitive issues first. If you have a chance to get ahold of a recent Unitrade catalogue (say, 2019 or more recent), you will make quick work of those Canadian definitives. Even a few days with a borrowed copy. I love your videos, but please make sure to take time for your collecting! 💖
So funny. I have access to uni trade at the museum. It’s mostly a priority issue. I assumed they were all part of the same set because they didn’t overlap denominations. I’ll take a closer look. I appreciate the pointer
@KensStampCollection yeah, it's tricky. During that time, they decided they needed a stamp with the queen paying letter rate. And a flag stamp (for the non monarchists?) paying letter rate. And the berries for low values, and the fruit trees to pay overweight, USA and international rates. And then they raised rates every single year (!) so each year we got a new queen, new flag, 3 new fruit trees. Personally, I take all the flag stamps of that era and call them a 'set.' All the Queen's are another set. The low value berries are a set. And the fruit trees are a set. But again, that's what fits my brain, there's no general consensus like with the classic stamps. When you find a recent unitrade , flip to the very back pages. The editor summarizes post 1980 definitive sets by design type. I tend to think like the editor in this case (but again, there are lots who will disagree with me!)
Awesome! So much fun to be had:) That anteater did look "spicey" lol. Please know that the time you take to make your videos means SO much to so many. Extremely appreciated! I have learned so much and also feel better about life in general after watching your wonderful, calming videos:) Cheers!
This approach is awesome! While I like the other “formal, deep dives” because I learn a lot from your experience, this new style also provides the excitement we all feel as go through unsorted items. Thanks again for your wonderful videos!
Fantastic video Ken! Thanks for sharing - lots of projects to progress! Just a quick note, not sure that is Belgium Number 1, the first issues of Belgium have straight lettering rather than curved which I am not sure that stamp does but is quite heavily cancelled so difficult to see. Worth a second look - generally the first couple of issues are more expensive than the curved varieties.
What a fun tour of the ongoing work on your collection Ken! Love the rescue work you are doing for the Spellman - I have rescued many stamps from deteriorating albums like that but no where near the value lol. I also appreciate your message about expense and collecting - as you have demonstrated you don't have to spend a ton to build a nice collection and spend many joyful hours on it.
Thank you, Ken, great video! I just love your in depth/deep dive videos. I am learning so much from them. However, I think you could also include more "spontaneous, unscripted" videos like this one. I think there is place for both. I know how much time creating content for RUclips takes, but I for certain really hope you will not stop making videos! I appreciate and enjoy each one of them!!! In general, thanks again so much for your time! It was very interesting to see all the projects you are working on. It is also informative to see how the stages progress during your work process. I think you are still getting a lot done, despite your work for the Spellman Museum and your making videos for RUclips! Ken, if you get only one stamp that fits both into your World War I collection, and also in one of your country collections, what do you do? Do you first put it in the country collection by preference, and seek for another of the same stamp for your World War I collection? Wow, you got some excellent treasures in that old album which was given to the Spellman Museum! The Museum is very privileged to have you on their team! I also have some albums with old collections, but the albums I can find on the local New Zealand digital trade platform are almost always cherry picked. There are only a few sellers that do sell album collections on that site. Take care!
Certainly room for both types. You'd think the ad hoc videos would be easier, but they aren't. Ha. I'm not slowing down yet. Okay, the WWI question. I generally favor the WWI collection and then find a second for my country collection. In the WWI album, I just need a representative example. For my country collection, I go into more depth with varieties, shades, etc. That WWI collection was my gateway to countries other than the US, so I has priority in my head. I've been thinking about cherry-picking recently. Even that album has missing spots that show cherry-picking, but I think something else is going on. I think someone started a transfer from that album into a new one. Otherwise, they wouldn't have left so many gems in there. I think that's what might be going on with a lot of albums that look like they've been cherry picked. Even with that, people leave treasure behind.
@@KensStampCollection I still have a large number of old collections in old albums to work through. Just maybe some day I might find a treasure as well! I will jump out of my skin with joy!!! Thanks for the WW1 info. I am still so unsure how to handle my country and topical collections in relationship to each other. I really like your ad hoc video, Ken. You speak so well, it is as good as scripted. Yes, one has much more control over scripted videos. Take care!🙂
Hey Ken. I do not want to choose between this kind of video and the more deep dives one. Just make them as you feel. I get what you mean it is a hard balance between 'the collection' and 'youtube'. You indeed need the work on the collection in order to be able to show something in a video. I always enjoy your videos, so don't change :-)
38:38 I see an overprinted stamp “O.M.F.” Occupied Military France those I usually store other the occupied country. There are some French stamps with OMF overprint for Cilice which is Adana of Today’s Turkey, nontetheless there are stamps know as Levant where the captitulations were leveraged by some countries for using their stamps and act as local post offices one of which is France, most of these have a overprinted face value of Turkish currency at the time. Other countries in that regard Germany, GB, Russia, Romania, Polonia, Austruia, Italy, Egypt.
I also usually collect these with the occupied country. It's interesting that these are listed as some of the first stamps of Syria rather than as N# stamps. I suppose that's because Syria had been a part of Turkey prior to this occupation and never went back to being part of Turkey. I love overprints because they are often a great window into the history of a country.
Hello Ken, greetings from Argentina! I wanted to ask you if you collect stamps from all over the world or if you focus on a specific country or theme. Best regards.
I collect from all over the world, with a focus on regular issues instead of commemoratives. I have albums for US, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, France, Australia, Japan and Ukraine. I have stock books with a lot of other countries, but very little of islands and the middle east. How about you?
@@KensStampCollection Hello Ken, thanks for your response. I have stamps from all continents, some more than others, but I collect stamps from Argentina, the United States, and Great Britain. My favorite themes are ships, Machins, and Wildings of Queen Elizabeth. I'm now considering starting a collection from Spain because I have many stamps from there. Let's stay in touch. Greetings from Buenos Aires.
Oh, you should see my dining room table. I'll be doing an update for my next video. It's so much work, but I'm making progress. Even an accumulation like the museum had will be just a start of a reference collection.
![Seungmin "그렇게, 천천히, 우리(As we are)" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kAzmhLHePqU/mqdefault.jpg)
Hi Ken. Thank you again for your GREAT videos. I love your calmness and your methodical approaches to collecting. I also love how graciously you demonstrate your appreciation for the unsolicited gifts from your viewers. Like you, I have tried to avoid spending much money on my stamps and most of my stamps from Upper Silesia have come in lots for which I rarely paid more than $30. I guess I missed (or was just overwhelmed by the amount of information you share) that you had a fascination for overprints.
I have shared with you my fascination with the stamps from Oberschlesien (Upper Silesia) because my mother's family was from there ( and had to flee their village hours ahead of the Soviet army in January 1945). Upper Silesia had several overprints that are listed in Scott, but Michel shows MANY overprint varieties. For example, the 20 pf definitives have 5 and 10 pf overprints. Michel lists at least 4 varieties of the numeral 5 and 2 for the pf! On the CGHS officials, Michel lists 20 different configurations! Of course, there are also the odd errors - like the entire pane I found with "Plebiscite 20 Mars 1921." on the gum! These have provided me with many hours of fun and reminders of a region steeped in history.
Another thing I love is seeing what other people are passionate about. It's fun to learn where there is depth and nuance that I wasn't aware of. It's all too much for just one person, but when we all dive deep and share, well, that's just fantastic. Thank you for sharing ... and watching me share.
Hi Ken - really interesting and I loved your box of goodies!!!!
I enjoyed sharing, and will enjoy going through everything even more.
Thank you so much for a few quiet, and thoughtful moments with your stamps, Ken.
You are welcome. I appreciate you watching!
Another comment about this video - seeing your Belgium collection, in particular the early series with the accompanying label, made me wonder about oddities in postage stamps. The early Belgium definitive stamps from the 1890s until 1912-13 had a label in French and in Flemish: "Ne pas livrer le Dimanche" and "Niet bestellen op Zondag" - translates to "Don't deliver on Sunday." If the sender left the label on the stamp it would not be delivered on Sunday and if removed could be delivered any day of the week including Sunday! I also have an encapsulated Germania stamp that, similar to those used after the American Civil War, were used as currency due to metal shortages. Can you think of any other oddities similar to these?
I think those little tabs are clever, although as a collector, they are a real pain. They are so fragile, and the value of the stamp goes way down if the tab is missing. As for others, hmm, I'm thinking of those Italian parcel post stamps that came with a receipt stamp on one side. They are worth considerably less once they are pulled apart, and as best I can tell, they must be pulled apart if they are properly used. I don't really collect them, but I have a whole bunch of those little half sides.
So sad…my entire collection burned up in the Eaton Canyon fire😢. World wide, George IV, Machins, US, and New South Whales. All gone. Thanks for the video…it’s all I got.
Hi Michael, I'm so sorry to hear this. First, I hope you are safe and have a good place to be. Stamp collecting is a calming hobby for me, and it must be extra hard to lose one of those things that helps you through a difficult time. I imagine you are not ready to get a fresh start of stamps, but when you are, let us know. Also, drop me an email if you will, I have an off-line question to ask.
Those WWI poster stamps have always intrigued me. They’re affordable and still pretty available on eBay. What a great way to commemorate such a dark part of human history.
Yeah, it's good to remember that this isn't just an interesting time, but a rather dark time.
Thanks for the great video! I loved all of it but particularly liked your explanation of overprints in the catalogues. Your collection is great.
I'm so glad that helped. The catalog can be tricky if you haven't wrestled it down a few times.
Dear Ken Thank you so much for your effort and sharing your collections and how to videos , I enjoy both. It looks that you're having a lot of fun. Best regards. By the way if you have any duplicates of the Germany flower set I am interested , especially the higher values.
Thanks Bernard. I'm not sure if I have duplicates yet. Newer issues are always hard to get, right?
I'm grinning from ear to ear watching this video, Ken! It seems like our collecting crossed paths many times in the past year. I got my Canadian definitives in shape, then focused on Australia for a bit, and just finished working on Belgium this week. 😂
I arrange things a little differently (that Aussie 'series' is more like four separate series with overlapping issue dates) but that is the fun of collecting. I've learned a lot from you, not least of which is giving myself permission to focus on definitive issues first.
If you have a chance to get ahold of a recent Unitrade catalogue (say, 2019 or more recent), you will make quick work of those Canadian definitives. Even a few days with a borrowed copy.
I love your videos, but please make sure to take time for your collecting! 💖
So funny. I have access to uni trade at the museum. It’s mostly a priority issue. I assumed they were all part of the same set because they didn’t overlap denominations. I’ll take a closer look. I appreciate the pointer
@KensStampCollection yeah, it's tricky. During that time, they decided they needed a stamp with the queen paying letter rate. And a flag stamp (for the non monarchists?) paying letter rate. And the berries for low values, and the fruit trees to pay overweight, USA and international rates.
And then they raised rates every single year (!) so each year we got a new queen, new flag, 3 new fruit trees.
Personally, I take all the flag stamps of that era and call them a 'set.' All the Queen's are another set. The low value berries are a set. And the fruit trees are a set. But again, that's what fits my brain, there's no general consensus like with the classic stamps.
When you find a recent unitrade , flip to the very back pages. The editor summarizes post 1980 definitive sets by design type. I tend to think like the editor in this case (but again, there are lots who will disagree with me!)
Perfect. Thank you, I will
Awesome! So much fun to be had:) That anteater did look "spicey" lol. Please know that the time you take to make your videos means SO much to so many. Extremely appreciated! I have learned so much and also feel better about life in general after watching your wonderful, calming videos:) Cheers!
Spicy was a funny slip. I appreciate your support and am glad to be a part of making your life better.
Fantastic episode Ken, thanks for sharing. Very inspiring. I enjoyed the tour through your stream of consciousness!
I'm so glad. Oddly, it doesn't feel natural. But, I think it's a style many people like, and there's room for it in my content.
This approach is awesome! While I like the other “formal, deep dives” because I learn a lot from your experience, this new style also provides the excitement we all feel as go through unsorted items. Thanks again for your wonderful videos!
Thank you. I felt that joy while filming this one. I'll probably keep doing both types.
Those are some fun finds, I'll have to be sure to visit when I'm in Boston for the 2026 show!
I suspect we'll be quite busy that week. Perhaps I'll see you there.
Fantastic video Ken! Thanks for sharing - lots of projects to progress! Just a quick note, not sure that is Belgium Number 1, the first issues of Belgium have straight lettering rather than curved which I am not sure that stamp does but is quite heavily cancelled so difficult to see. Worth a second look - generally the first couple of issues are more expensive than the curved varieties.
I'll take a second look. Thanks for the pointer!
Hi Ken, nice video! It's a lot of work, but a great way to do it, respect!
I'm fortunate to have so much hobby in front of me
What a fun tour of the ongoing work on your collection Ken! Love the rescue work you are doing for the Spellman - I have rescued many stamps from deteriorating albums like that but no where near the value lol. I also appreciate your message about expense and collecting - as you have demonstrated you don't have to spend a ton to build a nice collection and spend many joyful hours on it.
Thank you. It takes just as much time to look up and mount an inexpensive stamp as a valuable one.
Thank you, Ken, great video! I just love your in depth/deep dive videos. I am learning so much from them. However, I think you could also include more "spontaneous, unscripted" videos like this one. I think there is place for both.
I know how much time creating content for RUclips takes, but I for certain really hope you will not stop making videos! I appreciate and enjoy each one of them!!! In general, thanks again so much for your time!
It was very interesting to see all the projects you are working on. It is also informative to see how the stages progress during your work process. I think you are still getting a lot done, despite your work for the Spellman Museum and your making videos for RUclips!
Ken, if you get only one stamp that fits both into your World War I collection, and also in one of your country collections, what do you do? Do you first put it in the country collection by preference, and seek for another of the same stamp for your World War I collection?
Wow, you got some excellent treasures in that old album which was given to the Spellman Museum! The Museum is very privileged to have you on their team! I also have some albums with old collections, but the albums I can find on the local New Zealand digital trade platform are almost always cherry picked. There are only a few sellers that do sell album collections on that site.
Take care!
Certainly room for both types. You'd think the ad hoc videos would be easier, but they aren't. Ha. I'm not slowing down yet.
Okay, the WWI question. I generally favor the WWI collection and then find a second for my country collection. In the WWI album, I just need a representative example. For my country collection, I go into more depth with varieties, shades, etc. That WWI collection was my gateway to countries other than the US, so I has priority in my head.
I've been thinking about cherry-picking recently. Even that album has missing spots that show cherry-picking, but I think something else is going on. I think someone started a transfer from that album into a new one. Otherwise, they wouldn't have left so many gems in there. I think that's what might be going on with a lot of albums that look like they've been cherry picked. Even with that, people leave treasure behind.
@@KensStampCollection I still have a large number of old collections in old albums to work through. Just maybe some day I might find a treasure as well! I will jump out of my skin with joy!!!
Thanks for the WW1 info. I am still so unsure how to handle my country and topical collections in relationship to each other.
I really like your ad hoc video, Ken. You speak so well, it is as good as scripted. Yes, one has much more control over scripted videos.
Take care!🙂
Hey Ken. I do not want to choose between this kind of video and the more deep dives one. Just make them as you feel. I get what you mean it is a hard balance between 'the collection' and 'youtube'. You indeed need the work on the collection in order to be able to show something in a video. I always enjoy your videos, so don't change :-)
A little bit of both it is! It is an oddly hard balance, as you know. I've been surprised by it. I'll figure it out though. Thanks for the support
38:38 I see an overprinted stamp “O.M.F.” Occupied Military France those I usually store other the occupied country. There are some French stamps with OMF overprint for Cilice which is Adana of Today’s Turkey, nontetheless there are stamps know as Levant where the captitulations were leveraged by some countries for using their stamps and act as local post offices one of which is France, most of these have a overprinted face value of Turkish currency at the time. Other countries in that regard Germany, GB, Russia, Romania, Polonia, Austruia, Italy, Egypt.
I also usually collect these with the occupied country. It's interesting that these are listed as some of the first stamps of Syria rather than as N# stamps. I suppose that's because Syria had been a part of Turkey prior to this occupation and never went back to being part of Turkey. I love overprints because they are often a great window into the history of a country.
Is that Charles Minard's Napoleon's Russian Campaign flow chart in the background? Classic😊 Great video!
It sure is -- fantastic work
👏👏👏👍👍👍💪💪💪🥰 Spellman Museum have online store?
They are working on it, but slowly. It's a mostly volunteer team, and finding time to manage it is difficult. Someday, I'm sure.
Hi Ken - would you be interested in providing a video about tagging. I'm having a lot of trouble deciding what mottled tagging looks like.
Great idea! I'm assuming you mean Canada in particular. Or was there another country you were thinking about?
@@KensStampCollectionThinking of USA stamps only.
Hello Ken, greetings from Argentina! I wanted to ask you if you collect stamps from all over the world or if you focus on a specific country or theme. Best regards.
I collect from all over the world, with a focus on regular issues instead of commemoratives. I have albums for US, Canada, Germany, Great Britain, France, Australia, Japan and Ukraine. I have stock books with a lot of other countries, but very little of islands and the middle east. How about you?
@@KensStampCollection Hello Ken, thanks for your response. I have stamps from all continents, some more than others, but I collect stamps from Argentina, the United States, and Great Britain. My favorite themes are ships, Machins, and Wildings of Queen Elizabeth. I'm now considering starting a collection from Spain because I have many stamps from there. Let's stay in touch. Greetings from Buenos Aires.
Sounds like a great set to collect. I love the Wildings and Machins too. I think I have Spain coming up soon for me as well. Stay in touch
Any progress on your Machin work at the museum?
Oh, you should see my dining room table. I'll be doing an update for my next video. It's so much work, but I'm making progress. Even an accumulation like the museum had will be just a start of a reference collection.