This book started with a generous gift by Sebastian Baldassarre of Japanese occupation stamps to my collection on WWII at Filipinas Heritage Library. Many occupation stamps were based on pre-war Philippine stamps overprinted and surcharged in black by the Japanese Administration. I became curious to know how these stamps looked without the overprints. The more I delved, the more fascinating the subject became. Thus this book, limited to stamps issued by the Japanese Military Administration during the occupation of the Philippines, together with the same stamps as they appeared both before and after the occupation. The book lists the stamps issued during the occupation by category and date of first issue except the first series designed and printed in Japan. Released on six occasions over a period of a year, they are grouped together. Second overprintings are listed under the original release date. Appendix I shows the stamps as issued under colonial and Commonwealth administrations during the 1930s. Appendix II shows stamps provisionally hand-stamped VICTORY issued in Leyte soon after the landings in October 1944 and the VICTORY - COMMONWEALTH stamps issued to celebrate the liberation. This book has required much detail. All errors and omissions are mine. Most of the stamps in this booklet are fairly easy to acquire, except for those hand stamped VICTORY. These are hard to find and expensive as so few were hand stamped. Fortunately, good scans are available of all the overprinted stamps. (Roderick Hall)

I have always wanted to write a book ever since I can remember but one day I was listening to a programme on Radio 5, which I don't normally listen to, Sir Terry Pratchett the famous author was on there saying how everyone has something in them but if they can't write it down or if they can't type, try and get it down somehow After a while, a couple of days after listening to the programme I was asked to go and clear up something at work and funnily enough there were two dictaphones. I thought this was a bit spooky so I decided to use one of the dictaphones and start my book. It wasn't easy, it was difficult at first to talk into a tape recorder and put down your feelings and thoughts on there. This book was done purely through my imagination, the characters are purely my thoughts and I see how everything was when I was a kid at school, how we were brought up and how the school is broken down into different elements at school, where you have some friends there, some friends there, not so many friends there, no friends there and you went around in a group all your life. This book is about Bong, how he meets his friends, how he falls out with friends and how he has some great friends and they always will be, this is what the book is all about, friends. The biggest thing about the book is honour and respect to your friends and family. The characters in the book are also caricatures of themselves which is self-explanatory.

Journey into China's most rare and valuable stamps.

Elyse, Saul, and Arturo continue their unrelenting quest for the Lunersee stamps. Clues arriving in cryptic envelopes have expanded their search interests to include other priceless artifacts stolen during WWII. The Amber Room, an invaluable treasure stolen from Russia by the Nazis, tops Elyse's list. After completing a philatelic cruise, the trio evades a deadly crash scenario initiated by a sinister driver on a European highway. Another attempt upon their lives occurs on the shores of Lake Lunersee. The adventures continue into an underground cavern where their survival is uncertain.

So why should I write a book a stamp that is arguably the most ever written about? Well, you should take another look at the question to find a logical answer. Someone needs to compile an update and augment the vast amount of material published to date. We need to leverage digital advancements and the new research available. Most information written on the subject is a bit dated, published from 1909-1970. Today we have vastly improved resources that allow for a more graphical approach to the subject. So, I decided to provide a reprise, or revised report with a graphical approach to what is known. Let us bring Dr. Chase and company into this century with some personal flair and touches. Please note that many scholars and authors within the philatelic community are credited for the research and theories found within this presentation. I am merely a scholar, author and researcher that is building upon their years of hard work and dedication. Reporting the advancements and progresses made, I will disseminate on the philatelic postal history since it was last compiled or reported. It should be fully understood that this report is not a complete treatise on the subject. Similar to other work, our studies will require updating as new discoveries and corrections are introduced. I have made an effort to credit key research advancements of individuals and organizations where known by myself or when provided by others (see chapters 29-30 for a partial listing of reference materials, they are credited for the research and dedication on this subject. Most have been instrumental in providing data used for this project. Unfortunately for all students and scholars' of the 1851 stamps the records of the manufacturing firm for these stamps are reported as "destroyed by fire." Government records on this subject is also very limited. This has hindered research investigators for many years. It has been suggested that the 1851 3cents Washington Issue is the most popular of all US stamps and argued by others as the most collected stamp of all time. It is in the opinion of this author, to be the most interesting stamp ever researched, collected and traded. The best part of collecting stamps is that you can tailor your collecting to any degree of simplicity or complexity that you so desire. Almost any type of ephemera can be tied into a stamp collection as complementary artifacts enhancing presentation and the historical value. I have specimens, archives, collections or other supporting materials that have been helpful or inspirational to the research conducted for this project and they can be viewed and downloaded. They're available at my website, http: //www.rvv.com/collections. I have also created exhibits and archives intended as a study guide to this book, especially targeted to philatelic scholars. I think that all levels of collectors will find them enjoyable. This study guide on philatelic research and other material can be found at http: //www.rvv.com/jpcohen_publishing. All of my websites will be made available to everyone free of charge, as long as I can afford to host t

I have been a stamp collector for over 40 years, a postal historian and a philatelist for about 15 of those years and a specialist collector of revenue stamps and documents for the last 5 years. I've been a member of some the most friendly and well-run groups you could ever imagine - the State Revenue Society and the American Philatelic Society are both examples of best practice - and I even flirted briefly with philatelic exhibiting. Despite having served such a lengthy apprenticeship I still don't have an answer to a really basic question: "Why are postage stamps catalogued, collected and researched with so much more energy and enthusiasm than revenue stamps?" There are many countries where there doesn't seems to be a reliable and up-to-date catalogue of revenue stamps - certainly not one accessible to a virtual monoglot such as myself. I think it comes down to what I call "critical mass." Without enough revenue stamp collectors it is hard for dealers to establish a viable business but without dealers generating catalogues and generally raising the profile of this branch of the hobby I suspect that prospective revenue stamp collectors tend to wander off into the sunset searching for easier pickings. The Revenue Society has defined revenue stamps as " ...stamps, whether impressed, adhesive or otherwise, issued by or on behalf of International, National or Local Governments, their Licensees or Agents, and indicate that a tax, duty or fee has been paid or prepaid or that permission has been granted." This small study is intended to bring to the attention of the collecting public the sheer diversity of revenue stamps.

This little handbook is a wonderful way for a person to learn important basics of U.S. stamp collecting. Each topic is presented simply, yet informatively. Information is provided in a way that is suitable for beginners of all ages.

Stamps tell a story--and Chris West's book is the unique, fascinating tale of Great Britain told through its stamps.
Hailed by "The Times" of London""as "a splendid reminder of the philatelic glories of the past," "A History of Britain in 36 Postage Stamps" tells the rich, layered, and breathtaking history of England through thirty-six of its fascinating, often beautiful, and sometimes eccentric postage stamps. West shows that stamps have always mirrored the events, attitudes, and styles of their time. Through them, one can glimpse the whole epic tale of an empire unfolding. From the famous Penny Black, printed soon after Queen Victoria's coronation, to the Victory stamp of 1946, anticipating the struggle of postwar reconstruction--"A History of Britain in 36 Postage Stamps" is a hugely entertaining and idiosyncratic romp, told in Chris West's lively prose.
On their own, stamps can be curiosities, even artistic marvels; in this book, stamps become a window into the larger sweep of history.