The Philatelic Database – Archive of Stamp Collecting Articles

For our many collectors of West Africa, here is a video which should prove informative

This handsome 1d. red-brown and yellow green stamp was recess printed by Bradbury Wilkinson and depicted the Symbol of the Protectorate.

Periodically, reference is made in ”The Aero Field” to “All–Up” mails and the term appears to have puzzled some new collectors for the publishers have had several requests for an explanation. As the few that have written are probably only a small proportion of those who have been mystified the following notes may be of use to many readers.

The Anglo-German boundary of 1890, had done much to separate many of the tribes of West Africa…

This information has been extracted from the “Official Year Book of the Union of South Africa and of Basutoland, Bechuanaland Protectorate, and Swaziland” (1933-4).

For this story, I decided to write about another ruminant that I encountered in my travels…

This is one of the most extravagant advertising covers I have written about, and it is also the third cover to the Congo I have recorded.

This article was written by Bertram W. H. Poole and first published in “Mekeel’s Weekly Stamp News” Feb 25, 1911 Volume XXV, Number 8, Whole Issue Number 1052.

This article is based on an article, which originally appeared in the “Stamp Collectors’ Fortnightly”, October 28, 1911.

[Here is a useful report on the Postal Services of Nyasaland in 1909-1910. Rhodesian and South African collectors/postal historians should find this interesting.] On the first of January 1910, a direct exchange of mails was inaugurated between Chinde and Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia, and vice versa. Communications with South Africa have thus been much accelerated. The [...]

Obock is a French Colony on the Red Sea coast of Africa, on the gulf of Aden. The territory embraces 2,300 square miles with a population of 22,370. Stamps will be issued on January 1st.

The following is an excerpt from “Nelson’s Encyclopaedia”, 1913.

This article by CD Twynam, was originally published in GSM, October 1956. African articles are extremely popular and we are pleased to republish this obscure piece.

This postcard is an important and almost unique piece of Australian postal history. This naval vessel had a very small crew and so any mail sent from Zanzibar during WWI is necessarily rare.