Autumn Stampex 2009

The recreated Victorian Post Office at Blists Hill

This year’s Autumn Stampex starts next Wednesday and if you’re going make sure you look out for the BPMA. There will be displays on our re-created Victorian Post Office at Blists Hill, Ironbridge, as well as London 2010: Festival of Stamps. You will also be able to find a stall run by the Friends of the BPMA amongst the dealers. The Friends will be selling some of the products available in our Shop and can give you general information about BPMA activities and events. See you there!

Walking back through 400 years of postal history

by Jennifer Flippance, London 2010 Project Officer

K2 and K6 phone kiosks at Smithfield Market

For the last three years BPMA has been running popular walking tours, which take you into the heart of old GPO London, exploring 400 years of postal history and developments in the iconic street furniture of telephone kiosks and letter boxes.

The full tour lasts around 3 hours but next year, as part of our programme of activities to celebrate the London 2010: Festival of Stamps, we’re developing a ‘highlights’ version that will last around 1.5 hours and finish up at Guildhall Art Gallery. This will give you the opportunity to visit the fascinating exhibition, Empire Mail: George V and the GPO which will contain many significant objects and items of postal history from the reign of George V, when the GPO (General Post Office) was at its height.

Last week, Chris Taft, one of the curators at the BPMA who helped to develop and run the tours, took me out on the route of the new walking tour.

The Central Telegraph Office c. 1935

It takes in the old GPO heartland around St Martin’s Le Grand, once the bustling hub of communication throughout the empire. This incorporates the majestic former GPO headquarters of King Edward Building – opened in 1910, the front of which is still standing today – and the sites of GPO North, the Central Telegraph Office and GPO East, from where crowds gathered each night to witness the spectacle of racing mail coaches leaving London.

Today King Edward Street is overlooked by a statue of Rowland Hill, the social reformer who revolutionised the postal service in 1840, making mail communication within reach of ordinary people for the first time.

Curator Chris Taft, takes a break beside the statue of Rowland Hill, outside King Edward Building

Then travel further back in time to the site where the ‘bishop mark’ the world’s first postmark was struck in 1661. Continue to the area of the City where many coffee houses clustered in the 17^th and 18^th Centuries. Coffee houses were significant in the development of communication because many had the facility for visitors to post letters. Due to the coffee shop owners’ close relationships with ship owners, this was considered a more efficient way of carrying letters overseas than using the Post Office.

A little further on is the site of the office of the Postmaster General. In 1680 this was the only place you could post letters in the country. By 1808 the office was called “the most important spot on the surface of the globe.”

Dates for the new walking tour will be announced later in the year.

The last full-length walking of 2009 takes place on Saturday 26 September (1.00 – 4.00 pm). Click here to find out how to book tickets

Midpex 09

by Jennifer Flippance, London 2010 Project Officer

Last Saturday I went to Midpex 09, a two-yearly stamp show, held just outside Coventry. Midpex is one of the largest UK stamp shows and attracts 600 visitors and 50 stamp dealers.

One of the things that makes Midpex different to many other shows is the large number of specialist societies represented (40 this year) for whom the show acts as a place to meet fellow enthusiasts, showcase their activities and recruit new members.

One of the Polar Explorers stamps from 1972, featuring Robert Falcon Scott.

Whatever your collecting interest there will be a society where you can meet like minded people, share your interests and learn. Some of those present at Midpex included: the Aden and Somaliland Study Group; the Cinderella Stamp Club; the Forces Postal History Society; the Pacific Islands Study Circle; and the Polar Postal History Society of Great Britain.

As I waited for the shuttle bus to collect me from a rather rain-drenched Canley rail station, I took the opportunity to talk to some collectors about their involvement in philately and what brings them to Midpex.

Eric was stationed in Gibraltar with the RAF and this led to an interest in the stamps of the island later in life. He had collected as a child and then returned to philately about 30 years ago when he joined the Gibraltar Study Circle. He now has a very respectable collection of material from Gibraltar, is active in a number of societies and exhibits competitively at a national level. He will be entering one of the classes at the London 2010 International Stamp Exhibition.

Eric now sources most new acquisitions for his Gibraltar collection from specialist auctions so at Midpex he was on the look out for material for his secondary collecting interests of Madeira and the Ionian Islands. He attends about half a dozen stamp shows a year.

Similarly to Eric, David collects stamps from an area he has a strong connection to – the Isle of Man. He has been visiting since 1934. He has many friends there and his parents retired to, and were later buried, on the island.

Not so much a Snaefell cachet, more a stamp which may have been cancelled by one: John Nicholson's regional definitive for the Isle of Man, 1958.

David’s collecting passion is the Snaefell Summit cachets. Snaefell is the only mountain on the Isle of Man and has been a popular tourist destination since the mountain railway opened in 1895. Letters and souvenir postcards can be posted on the summit during the summer months. Since 1904, these have been marked by a special diamond-shaped hand-stamp. His ambition is to collect an example of every cachet issued and he is already a good way there. Considered to be one of the world’s two foremost experts on the cachets, David gives talks on the subject to societies. He visits each Midpex and always attends the London International Stamp Exhibitions that take place every ten years.

And in case you’re wondering why so many stamp shows end with ‘PEX’, it’s a shortening of ‘Philatelic EXhibition’.

Third London 2010 postcard coming soon

We will soon be publishing the third in a series of postcards raising awareness of London 2010: Festival of Stamps. The postcard is a limited edition of 5,000 and will be released at this year’s Autumn Stampex (16-19 September 2009).

The image on the postcard consists of a relief of the head of King George VI by Edmund Dulac, which was the basis of the effigy on all his definitives. In the right-hand corner is an essay dated 27th November 1937 of Eric Gill’s unadopted “Heraldic Lions and Dragon” design, incorporating Dulac’s effigy.

London 2010 postcard #3: A relief of George VI by Edmund Dulac

Artist Edmund Dulac (1882-1953) came to London from France in 1904. He was mainly known as a book illustrator, but had a successful period of designing coins, banknotes and stamps from the mid 1930s, and his designs for the British Post Office span a period of 20 years. One of his greatest achievements was his work on the definitive series for King George VI. He created the portrait as a plaster cast used thereafter throughout the reign (apart from the Royal Silver Wedding issue of 1948), working from photographs rather than from life, and the border designs used for the low values from 7d to 1/-. He also created the designs for the 2/6 and 5/- high values issued in 1939.

The first postcard in our London 2010 series was issued at Autumn Stampex 2008. It features the 1984 Mailcoach Bicentenary stamp issue, an initial engraving by Czeslaw Slania based on a James Pollard print of the 1816 attack by an escaping lioness on the leading horse of the Exeter mailcoach passing The Pheasant Inn near Stockbridge.

London 2010 postcard #1: An attack on the Exeter Mail in 1816

The second postcard issued depicts an essay of a 1s pictorial stamp for the coronation of Edward VIII, showing St James’s Palace and the photograph (taken by the GPO Film Unit) on which it was based, and is currently available from selected shows organised by member federations of the Association of British Philatelic Societies (ABPS).

London 2010 postcard #2: St James's Palace and the coronation of Edward VIII

Please go to www.london2010.org.uk for further information about London 2010: Festival of Stamps.

For more information on stamps from the era of George VI please visit our website.

The BPMA does Swinpex

by Jo Sullivan, New Centre Project Assistant

Jennifer and Jo man the BPMA stall at Swinpex

On Saturday 13th June, Jennifer Flippance (BPMA’s London 2010 Project Officer) and myself attended Swinpex, a philatelic show hosted by the Swindon Philatelic Society.  Although there primarily to promote the joint aims of the BPMA‘s New Centre Project and the 2010 Festival of Stamps and not to sell (or buy) anything we were given an exceptionally warm welcome by all those involved.  In fact, we received star billing in the programme, our presence described as “a great coup for Swindon philately!”

The crowds at Swinpex

Swinpex is one of the largest and best attended philatelic shows in the country and gets around 400 to 500 visitors on the day.  This year organisers reported over 500 people attended and, if the crowds in the main hall were anything to go by, we could well believe it.

The BPMA’s stand was right by the front door and we had a steady stream of people coming over to talk to us throughout the day, lured in no doubt by the promise of free 2010 postcards and free newsletters (free gifts at stamp shows it would appear is manna from heaven).  Here we have to give thanks to the BPMA’s continued communication and PR effort as everyone we spoke to not only knew about the proposed move to Swindon but were enthusiastic and supportive.  In fact, the only complaint people had was that we can’t be open sooner.  

Some of the BPMA leaflets and postcards available on the day

It is not just philatelic societies that can’t wait for us to arrive in Swindon as I also spoke to local history and family history group members and a teacher who was interested in the BPMA’s wealth of Key Stage educational resources.  Those looking forward to next year’s Festival of Stamps were able to see facsimiles of some of the King George V stamp artwork and essays that will be on display as part of the Empire Mail exhibition at Guildhall Art Gallery.

I found out that Swinpex 2010 is being held at one of the BPMA’s neighbours on the Churchward Village site, Steam. Society members were looking forward to having a new venue for Swinpex and being able to see the BPMA’s new home for themselves (although I perhaps should mention to the organisers they will need to provide 500 hard hats and high vis jackets if they want the tour inside the building).  Whilst some were excited that the proximity of the McArthur Glenn Designer Outlet meant they could combine two of their favourite hobbies: shopping and philately!

The London Philatelist

by Jennifer Flippance, London 2010 Project Officer

The BPMA Search Room holds many old journals, which can make fascinating reading. Among the many periodicals available to view is The London Philatelist (the journal of the Royal Philatelic Society London). Published since 1892, it gives an absorbing insight into the world of stamp collecting over a century ago.

Past issues are an intriguing mix of philatelic news, reviews, essays, adverts, auction and exhibition reports, warnings about forgeries, new stamp issues (from the British Empire and beyond), obituaries and accounts of meetings.

In volume IX, covering 1900, there are a number of curious articles including an appeal for help in locating a man, described as ‘age about 40, grey mixture jacket suit, bowler hat, heavy moustache, rather dark, otherwise clean-shaven” who was accused of stealing a book of old German States stamps from Messrs. Bright & Son.

Another article relates a report from the Daily Mail on how it had been found possible to spread tuberculosis through stamps if they had been licked by a carrier.  Child collectors were cautioned against placing any stamps near their mouth to moisten them and it was advised that foreign stamps were disinfected in a solution of carbolic acid.

There were several reports on the efforts of the Philatelic War Fund Committee, who raised over £1500 for the Boer War through a combination of sales, auctions and donations. One meeting was held the day after the relief of Mafeking. Perhaps not surprisingly, much interest was also given to the postage stamps used during the siege.

By 1914, the nation once again found itself at war and The London Philatelist considered the effect this would have on philately, speculating that the loss of Germany’s colonies would see an end to the large number of overprinted stamps they produced. No great loss, the author implied patriotically, as they were of little interest to any collectors outside Germany.

Then, as today, international stamp exhibitions were significant and much anticipated events. The very first issue reported on the 1890 London Jubilee Philatelic Exhibition, at which Alfred, the Duke of Edinburgh and second son of Queen Victoria, displayed a considerable portion of his own collection. This tradition continues to this day and parts of the Royal Philatelic Collection will be on display in the Empire Mail exhibition at Guildhall Art Gallery during the period of the London 2010 International Stamp Exhibition in May 2010.

Browsing the competitive class list for the 1897 London Stamp Exhibition, the differences are very striking. In one class, competitors faced no restrictions on how much material could be exhibited, unlike today where even top international exhibitors are limited to a maximum of 128 album pages. In 1897, individual entries could consist of several thousands stamps.  One entry numbered over 20,000 stamps in 24 volumes.  I certainly don’t envy the judges of that class.  Another class, no longer held today was ‘For Philatelic Accessories and Appliances for use by Collectors.’

However, despite the huge changes philately has seen over this period, some things remain the same. The October 1896 editorial discussed the challenges of attracting new young collectors, a subject still very much of concern to philatelists today.

Her Majesty The Queen Patron of London 2010: Festival of Stamps

Her Majesty The Queen has graciously agreed to be Patron of London 2010: Festival of Stamps, a year-long festival of philatelic exhibitions and events, marking the centenary of the accession of George V, the philatelist king. This continues a long standing tradition of philatelic patronage by the UK Royal Family.

The Queen has been Patron of the London International Stamp Exhibitions each decade since 1980. She is also Patron of the Royal Philatelic Society London, the oldest philatelic society in the world, of which George V was executive President until succeeding to the Throne, when he agreed to be the society’s Patron.

The Queen’s private collection – the Royal Philatelic Collection – includes many exceptional rarities, among them unique items such as drawings and proofs, and is said to be the world’s most comprehensive collection of postage stamps of Great Britain and the Commonwealth.

The Royal Philatelic Collection began in 1856, when the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) and his younger brother Prince Alfred (later Duke of Edinburgh), were given examples of the then new 6d stamps. Prince Alfred continued to collect and served as Honorary President of what became the Royal Philatelic Society London from 1890 until his death in 1900. His collection passed to his nephew (later King George V) whose own collection was already substantial. The form and structure of the Royal Philatelic Collection today is the creation of King George V and his philatelic advisers. After his death his successors have continued to add to the Collection.

The London 2010: Festival of Stamps will combine a wide range of exhibitions and events such as the International Stamp Exhibition at the Business Design Centre, and the exhibition ‘Empire Mail: George V and the GPO’ at Guildhall Art Gallery, featuring material from The British Postal Museum & Archive (BPMA) and the Royal Philatelic Collection. The BPMA is also coordinating this wider festival, which includes special displays at the British Library, the Royal Philatelic Society, London, the British Museum, Marylebone Cricket Club Museum at Lord’s, and several other venues across London. A range of philatelic events throughout the UK are also being coordinated by the Association of British Philatelic Societies.

2010 also sees the 170th Anniversary of the Penny Black and Twopenny Blue, the world’s first adhesive postage stamps.

Michael Sefi, Keeper of the Royal Philatelic Collection, commented: “We are delighted to have The Queen as Patron for this very exciting Festival, which will bring stamps and philately to a wider audience”.

The man who posted his dog and other reasons to visit a stamp show

by Jennifer Flippance, London 2010 Project Officer

Stamp shows are an important element of philately and stamp collecting, providing an opportunity for collectors to catch up with friends, purchase items, exchange material, attend society meetings and enter their collections in competition.

Visitors and traders at WestBex 2009

Last weekend, I took a trip out to the first show of the year to be held by one of the regional federations of the Association of British Philatelic Societies, the Thames Valley & District Philatelic Federation stamp show – Westbex 2009.  It was hosted by the Thatcham and District Philatelic Society, a popular stamp club of over 80 members who meet twice a month.  The show took up two halls in a local school, which were mainly filled with dealers, catering for a wide range of tastes and budgets.

In addition there were prize-winning displays from members.  Stamp collecting has an active competitive element.  Enthusiasts collect, write up and display a topic of their choosing and these displays can be entered into a variety of classes.  These range from the more formal classes like traditional philately and postal history, but also include thematic classes and open classes where a much wider range of material, beyond stamps, can be displayed.

The National Philatelic Society also held a meeting where members could present a small selection of their collection.  These covered a broad range of subjects, from Machin stamps to posted autographs, to the history of the Post Office Savings Bank.

Viewing the competition entries, WestBex 2009

I found one prize-winning exhibit particularly interesting.  Its subject was W. Reginald Bray (1879-1939), who experimented by sending items through the post that challenged the postal system, for example, by being unusual objects or through having challenging addresses.

Bray posted himself (he is actually believed to be the first ‘human letter’) and the family dog, along with less animated items such as a turnip, sheep’s skull and bowler hat.

Some of the fascinating items on display from this eccentric individual included postcards made from shirt cuffs and others addressed, ‘to a resident of…‘ followed by an image of the town cut from a picture postcard with no other clue as to where it might be.  Some letters had addresses written in verse or picture puzzles.  Many were returned, officially stamped (and you can imagine the rather vexed postal employee) ‘CONTRARY TO REGULATIONS’ or ‘INSUFFICIENTLY ADDRESSED’. 

Next year, ABPS regional shows like WestBex, will form part of the London 2010: Festival of Stamps, aiming to attract new members to this rewarding hobby.  The dates of 2010 shows are available at www.london2010.org.uk/exhibitions-and-events