 How
to collect
Postage stamps are treasured for many reasons - including their history,
intrinsic value, and beauty! No hobby can take you to more destinations
than stamp collecting. Millions upon millions, from kings to commoners,
collect simply for the FUN of it.
Kenmore helps bring the FUN of collecting to you by offering hundreds
of affordable stamp offers on this site. If you are uncertain what to
collect, simply follow your heart to what captures your interest and curiosity.
A favorite choice of many collectors is to receive Stamps-on-Approval.
Our buyers search the world for the most beautiful issues and desirable
topics. Kenmore will send you these colorful, exciting selections for
you to enjoy in the convenience of your own home on 15-day Free Examination.
Foreign Country Indentifier
Since the world's first postage stamp appeared in 1840, hundreds and
hundreds of countries have been born, undergone name changes or disappeared
into history as "Lost Nations".
1847 First Issues vs Reprints (#1 vs 3; #2 vs 4)
1867-1871 Grilled Issues (#85C to 141)
1869 15¢ Columbus Type I & II (#118, 119)
Hard and Soft Papers (#134 to 191)
1873 Secret Marks (#156 to 191)
1881-1882 Re-engraved Designs (#206-209)
1890 Caps on 2¢ Washington (#220a, 220c)
1893 2¢ Columbian Broken Hat (#231c)
1894-95 2¢ Washington Triangles - Type I, II, III
$1 Perry Varieties (#261, 261A, 276, 276A)
First Watermarked Issues
10¢ Webster Types of 1898 (#282C, 283)
1908-1922 Washington Franklin Identifier
Distinguishing Flat Plate from Rotary Press Printings
1912-1921 2¢ Wash. Types I, II and III (Engraved Printings)
1918-1920 2¢ Wash. Types IV, V, Va, VI and VII (Offset Printings)
Identifying 3¢ Washington Types I to IV
5¢ Washington Color Error (#467 and 505)
1923-26 2¢ Washington (#599 vs 599A; #634 vs 634A)
Protect and Display your Investment
Our Hingeless Albums provide a quick and convenient way to arrange your
collection with 9 pocket strips on each page . The Kenmore World Album
offers affordability and economy. Its ability to hold over 10,000 stamps
from more than 230 countries make it our most popular printed album. Stocksheets
offer the same conveniences as our Hingeless Albums plus the flexibility
handling a multitude of stamp sizes with 2, 3, 4 or 5 slots per page.
In addition, their single page 3-hole format allows you the freedom to
quickly rearrange your collection.
If you are collecting United States stamps, the fully-illustrated Liberty
Album is the best album in its class. Every U.S. stamp is pictured along
with historical details and handy guides to identifying valuable issues.
Helpful Hints: Keep your albums upright. Pressure from the weight when
stacked horizontally may cause the stamps to stick to the page.
Mounting Your stamps
The most common and affordable method to safely mount stamps is the pre-folded
Stamp Hinge . This small gummed, semi-transparent paper is the link between
the stamp and the album page and yet can be easily peeled from the stamp.
Easy-to-use clear acetate Stamp Mounts with a black background, protects
both the front of the stamp and the back as well. They are available in
many sizes, either precut or in strips which can be cut to length. Many
collectors use hinges on their less expensive stamps and stamp mounts
on their more valuable acquisitions.
Helpful Hints: Never use tape or "magnetic" photo albums to
mount your stamps. Over time the chemicals in the adhesives will discolor
and damage your stamps.
Language of Collecting
| Airmail Stamp |
Stamp issued specifically to prepay postage for mail carried by air |
| Approvals |
Look before buying" opportunity
where stamps are sent to a collector for examination. Approvals offer
the collector a wide range of material to choose from and must be
bought or returned to the dealer within a specified time |
| Block |
Four or more attached stamps forming a square or rectangle |
| Booklet Panes |
Small, specifically-printed sheets of stamps sold in a booklet format |
| Cachet |
Illustration or description
on an envelope denoting the commemorative purpose for which it was
mailed |
| Cancellation |
Any mark applied to a stamp to prevent its reuse |
| Centering |
The position of the design on a stamp. On perfectly centered stamps,
the design is exactly in the middle. Coil Stamp Stamp produced in
a roll for use in vending machines. Usually identified by a pair of
straight edges on opposite sides |
| Commemorative Stamp |
Stamp issued specifically
to honor a person, place or event; usually on sale for only a short
period of time. |
| Commemorative Sheet |
A small sheet of stamps bearing a commemorative inscription |
| Cover |
An envelope, postcard
or any other wrapper used to mail correspondence. |
| Cut Square |
The cut corner of
a postal stationery item (envelope or postcard) bearing the imprinted
stamp with ample margins. |
| Definitive |
Stamp issued for ordinary
postal use that remains on sale for an extended period of time. |
| Denomination |
The monetary value printed on a stamp. |
| Die |
The stamp design is engraved on this small flat piece of soft steel
used to |
print the stamp
| Duck Stamp |
Issued annually since
1934, these U.S. duck hunting permits help finance the federal waterfowl
program. |
| Embossed Envelope |
An envelope bearing
a postage stamp with raised surface designs printed on the envelope
itself |
| Errors |
Highly-collectible
stamps because of something incorrect in their design or manufacture. |
| First Day Cover |
Envelope or card postmarked
on the affixed stamp's first day of use. |
| First Flight Cover |
Envelope or card carried
on the inaugural mail flight between two points |
| Grill |
Series of small dots
embossed on a stamp allowing ink from the postmark to sink in, thus
preventing cleaning and reuse of the stamp |
| Gum |
The coating of glue
on the back of an unused stamp. |
| Hinges |
Small gummed, glassine strips
used to affix stamps to album pages. |
| Imperforate Stamp |
Stamp bearing straight
edges on all four sides. |
| Invert |
Stamp with one part of its design
upside down in relation to the rest of the stamp. |
| Mint |
Stamps in original
unused condition, never canceled. |
| Mint Sheet |
An entire sheet of stamps in original
unused condition. |
| Official Stamp |
Stamp valid solely for government
agency use. |
| Overprint |
Any printing added to a stamp
after the original printing was completed. |
| Pair |
Two unseparated stamps
joined either vertically or horizontally |
| Perforations |
Holes punched between stamps on
a sheet to facilitate separation. |
| Perforation Gauge |
Device that measures the number
of perforations on a stamp per two centimeters. |
| Philately |
Technical name for stamp collecting.
|
| Pictorial |
Stamp that features a view such
as a landscape or seascape, rather than a portrait, coat of arms or
other symbolic design. |
| Plate Block |
Four or more attached
stamps still fastened to the margin on which the . number of the printing
plate is inscribed |
| Postal Stationery |
Envelopes, cards or
other covers bearing imprinted or impressed stamps. |
| Postmark |
Marking on a postal
item recording the date and/or origin of its transit through the mail
system. |
| Precancel |
Stamp canceled by
the post office before it is sold. |
| Revenue Stamp |
Any stamp that indicates payment
of a tax or fee. |
| Rouletting |
The use of slits or cuts between
stamps to facilitate separation. |
| Selvage |
Unprinted paper around panes of
stamps, sometimes called the margin. |
| Semi-Postal |
Stamp from which all
or part of the sales receipts go to charity or other causes. |
| Se-Tenant |
Term describing adjoining
stamps that differ from each other in design, denomination or some
other aspect. |
| Surcharge |
Overprint altering
or establishing a stamp's face value. |
| Tab |
Illustrated or descriptive label
attached to a stamp. |
| Tongs |
Metal tweezers used for safe and
easy handling of stamps. |
| Topicals |
A group of stamps with the same
theme, such as space travel or Disney cartoons. |
| Unused |
A stamp with no cancellation
or other sign of use. |
| Used |
A stamp that has been canceled. |
| Watermark |
Design or pattern in paper formed
during the manufacturing process,valuable as a security precaution
against forgery. |
| Se-Tenant |
A method of safely
determining the existence of a watermark by placing a stamp in a tray
filled with special fluid |
|
