Close examination of the Penny Red, left, reveals a "148" in the margin, indicating that it was printed with plate #148. The Penny Red, issued in 1841, succeeded the Penny Black and continued as the main type of Postage stamp in the United Kingdom of Great Britain Stamps printed from plate #77 are extremely rare.

Philately is the study of revenue and postage stamps. A revenue stamp, tax stamp or fiscal stamp is a type of Adhesive label used to collect Taxes or fees on various items A postage stamp is an adhesive paper evidence of pre-paying a fee for postal services This includes the design, production and uses of stamps after they are authorized for issue, usually by government authorities, the most common one being postal authorities. Although many equate it with stamp collecting, it is a distinct activity. Stamp collecting is the Collecting of Postage stamps and related objects such as covers (envelopes or packages with stamps on them For instance, philatelists will study extremely rare stamps without expecting to own copies of them, whether because of cost, or because the sole survivors are in museums. A museum is a "permanent institution in the service of society and of its development open to the public which acquires conserves researches communicates and exhibits the Conversely, stamp collecting is the acquisition of stamps, at times without regard for origin or usage.

The Penny Red was used in the UK for many years, and comes in hundreds of variations. The Penny Red, issued in 1841, succeeded the Penny Black and continued as the main type of Postage stamp in the United Kingdom of Great Britain The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located

Etymology

The coining of the word "philately" in its French form has been circumstantially attributed to Georges Herpin in the publication Le Collectionneur de timbres-postes, Vol. 1, November 15, 1864. Events 655 - Battle of Winwaed: Penda of Mercia is defeated by Oswiu of Northumbria. Year 1864 ( MDCCCLXIV) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year It is formed from the Greek words philos (friend) and ateleia (exempt from charge, or "franked"), which is a stretch to relate to the study of stamps, but the alternatives of "timbrophily" & "timbrology" or "timbrologist" never caught on.

The origin of philately is in the observation that in a pile of stamps all appearing to be the same type, closer examination reveals different kinds of paper, different watermarks embedded in the paper, variations in color shades, different perforations, and other kinds of differences. A watermark is a recognizable image or pattern in Paper that shows in various shades of lightness/darkness when viewed by transmitted light (or when viewed by reflected Comparison with records of postal authorities may or may not show that the variations were intentional, which leads to further inquiry as to how the changes could have happened, and why. To make things more interesting, thousands of forgeries have been produced over the years, some of them very good, and only a thorough knowledge of philately gives any hope of detecting the fakes. Forgery is the process of making adapting or imitating objects statistics or documents (see False document) with the intent to deceive.

The Inverted Jenny is a famous error; philatelic study explains exactly how it happened. The (C3a Inverted Jenny (or Jenny Invert) is a United States Postage stamp first issued on May 10 1918 in which the image of the Curtiss JN-4 A Postage stamp error is any of several types of failure in the stamp printing process that results in stamps not having the intended appearance

One explanation for all the variation is that stamp printing was among the early attempts at large-scale mass production activity by postal authorities. Mass production (also called flow production, repetitive flow production, series production, or serial production) is the production of Even in the 19th century, stamps were being issued by the billions, more than any other kind of manufactured object at the time.

Areas of philately

Basic or technical philately, then, is the study of the technical aspects of stamp production and stamp identification. It includes the study of

• The initial stamp design process
• Paper (wove, laid, etc, and including watermarks)
• Printing methods (engraving, typography, etc)
• Gum
• Separation (perforation, rouletting)
• Overprints on existing stamps
• Philatelic fakes and forgeries, especially the identification of forgeries

A topical philatelist might be interested in which subspecies of giraffe is represented on this 1925 stamp of Tanganyika. Postage stamp design is the activity of Graphic design as applied to Postage stamps Many thousands of designs have been created since a profile bust of Queen A watermark is a recognizable image or pattern in Paper that shows in various shades of lightness/darkness when viewed by transmitted light (or when viewed by reflected In Philately, gum is the substance applied to the back of a Postage stamp to enable it to adhere to a letter or other mailed item For Postage stamps separation is the means by which individual stamps are made easily detachable from each other An overprint is the addition of text (and sometimes graphics to the face of a Postage stamp after it has been printed (although some overprints are solely in the Selvedge In general philatelic fakes and forgeries refers to labels that look like Postage stamps but aren't The giraffe ( Giraffa camelopardalis) is an African Even-toed ungulate Mammal, the tallest of all land-living Animal Species Tanganyika is the name of an East African territory lying between the largest of the African great lakes Lake Victoria, Lake Malawi and Lake Tanganyika

Topical, also known as Thematic, philately is the study of what is depicted on the stamps. Topical or thematic Stamp collecting is the practice of collecting Postage stamps relating to a particular subject or concept There are hundreds of popular subjects, such as birds, insects, sports, maps, and so forth. Interesting aspects of topical philately include design mistakes (such as use of the wrong picture on a US stamp honoring Bill Pickett), design alterations (for instance, the recent editing out of cigarettes from the pictures used for US stamps), and the stories of how particular images came to be used (one US stamp from the 1920s shows a Viking ship apparently flying an American flag, but this was not a mistake; the stamp depicted a modern replica). The United States of America —commonly referred to as the Willie M "Bill" Pickett ( December 5, 1870 - April 2, 1932) was a Cowboy and Rodeo A Viking is one of the Norse ( Scandinavian Explorers Warriors Merchants, and pirates who raided and colonized wide areas

One of many covers flown on the Hindenburg zeppelin, featuring a variety of postal markings. A Zeppelin is a type of Rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century based on designs he had outlined

Postal history concentrates on the use of stamps on mail. Postal history is the study of Postal systems and how they operate and or the collecting of covers and associated material illustrating historical episodes of postal Mail, or post, is a method for transmitting information and tangible objects wherein written Documents typically enclosed in Envelopes and also It includes the study of postmarks, post offices, postal authorities and the process by which letters are moved from sender to recipient, including routes and choice of conveyance. A postmark is a Postal marking made on a letter, Package, Postcard or the like indicating A post office is a facility authorized by a Postal system for the posting receipt sorting handling transmission or delivery of Mail. A classic example is the Pony Express, which was the fastest way to send letters across the United States during the few months that it operated. The Pony Express was a fast Mail service crossing the North American continent from St Covers that can be proved to have been sent by the Pony Express are highly prized by collectors. In Philately, a cover is an Envelope or Package, typically with stamps that have been cancelled

Cinderella philately is the study of objects that look like stamps but aren't stamps. A cinderella stamp is a label similar in appearance to a Postage stamp but which does not normally pay a fee associated with sending mail beyond a purely local service Examples include Easter & Christmas Seals, propaganda labels, and so forth.

The results of philatelic study have been extensively documented by the philatelic literature, which includes many books and nearly 15,000 different periodical titles. Philatelic literature is written material relating to Philately, primarily information about Postage stamps and Postal history.

Philately is basically an activity of reading and study, but the human senses typically need augmentation. The stamps themselves are handled with stamp tongs or tweezers so as to preserve them from large, clumsy, and possibly greasy fingers. Tweezers are tools used for picking up small objects that are not easily handled with the Human Hands They are probably derived from Tongs, Pincers A strong magnifier reveals details of paper and printing, while the odontometer or perforation gauge helps distinguish a "perf 12" from a "perf 13". A lens is an optical device with perfect or approximate Axial symmetry which transmits and refracts Light, converging or diverging For Postage stamps separation is the means by which individual stamps are made easily detachable from each other

Early stamps of India were watermarked with an elephant's head. India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country A watermark is a recognizable image or pattern in Paper that shows in various shades of lightness/darkness when viewed by transmitted light (or when viewed by reflected

While many watermarks can be detected merely by turning the stamp over, or holding it up to the light, others require the services of watermark fluid, such as benzine (not to be confused with benzene, which is toxic), carbon tetrachloride or trichloro-trifluoro-ethane that "wets" the stamp without dissolving gum or ink. Petroleum ether, also known as benzine, VM&P Naphta, Petroleum Naphta, Naptha ASTM, Petroleum Spirits, benzine, X4 Benzene, or benzol, is an organic Chemical compound and a known Carcinogen with the molecular formula C 6 H 6 Carbon tetrachloride, also known by many other names (see Table is the Organic compound with the formula CCl4 Other techniques, such as using coloured light filters have been attempted in an effort to avoid the use of toxic substances.

An oddball philatelic cover that mixes the stamps of several places together. A philatelic cover is a cover sent through the mails for the purpose of creating a collectible item

Experts evaluating the authenticity of the rarest stamps use additional equipment such as fluoroscopes. Fluoroscopy is an imaging technique commonly used by Physicians to obtain real-time moving images of the internal structures of a patient through the use of a fluoroscope Some stamps are printed with ink which fluoresces when exposed to ultraviolet light. Ultraviolet light sources are also used to examine stamps and postal history for signs of repairs or various types of faults.

Organizations

• Fédération Internationale de Philatélie
• Académie Européenne de Philatélie
• American First Day Cover Society
• American Philatelic Society
• American Topical Association
• National Postal Museum (USA)
• Old World Archaeological Study Unit
• Australian Philatelic Federation
• British North American Philatelic Society
• Cyprus Philatelic Society
• Royal Philatelic Society of New Zealand Inc
• Thematic Collecting Group in South Africa
• Royal Philatelic Society London
• National Philatelic Society UK
• Philatelic Traders Society (London)
• Welsh Philatelic Society

• Féderación Argentina de Entidades Filatélicas
• Hellenic Philatelic Federation
• Hellenic Philatelic Society
• Federation of Norwegian Philatelists
• The Rossica Society of Russian Philately
• The Ottoman and Near East Philatelic Society
• Oriental Philatelic Association of London
• Odessa City Collectors' Society
• Scouts on Stamps Society International
• Wreck & Crash Mail Society
• GEOPHILA Association of collectors of stamp territories around the world

See also

• List of notable postage stamps
• List of philatelic topics
• List of philatelists
• List of philatelic museums

References

• Leon Norman Williams, Fundamentals of Philately (American Philatelic Society, 1990) ISBN 0-933580-13-4
• Richard McP. Fédération Internationale de Philatélie (FIP founded on June 18 1926, is the world federation for Philately based in Zürich, Switzerland The American Philatelic Society (APS is the largest nonprofit Stamp collecting and organization of Philately in the world with almost 44000 members As of 2007 The American Topical Association (ATA is the largest organization devoted to topical philately. See also The British Postal Museum & Archive, formerly known as the National Postal Museum The Royal Philatelic Society London is the oldest philatelic society in the world Since the advent of Scouting in 1907 Scouts have been depicted on the Postage stamps of almost every nation during different times of their political development This is a list of philatelic topics. A - Acknowledgement of receipt - Aerogram - Aerophilately - Affixing machine This is a list of philatelists, persons notable for their contributions to Philately. This is a list of Museums related to Philately or Postal services. Leon Norman Williams ( 1914 - 03-25 - 1999 - 04-09) originally a Barrister, was a noted British philatelic writer who collaborated Cabeen, Standard Handbook of Stamp Collecting (Harper & Row, 1979)