Korea Stamp Society

Chun Doo-hwan’s rise to power in South Korea is a tale of military might, political maneuvering, and controversial leadership. Born in 1931, Chun’s early career was marked by his rapid ascent through the military ranks, culminating in his role as a key figure in the 1979 coup following the assassination of President Park Chung-hee1. This […]

In 1999 the Korean National Tuberculosis Association (KNTA)’s Christmas and New Year/TB seal program issued two different small sheets of ten seals, in a souvenir sheet format. These 1999 seals are what the KNTA calls the “Constellations of the night sky”. Also, a sheet of twenty seals were issued that have all twenty of the […]

Up to now, this series has covered the various public notices issued prior to the establishment of the temporary postal agencies, along with the installation of such agencies in the various counties and revisions to the related early regulations. Beginning with this installment, I will introduce materials primarily from my own collection.

Woo Jang-choon (우장춘) was a world-renowned plant breeder who worked in Japan. As an agronomist researching breeding science, a field that combined genetics and crop improvement, he conducted research from 1937 at the research farm of Takii Seed Company in Japan, where he worked on improving vegetable seeds such as cabbage, radish, and Chinese cabbage. […]

A collection of South Korean stamps formed by Robert C. Jones (1915-1999), one of the most active members of the Korea Stamp Society during its early decades, will be offered by Daniel F. Kelleher Auctions in August 2026. The collection appears as Lot 1513 in Kelleher Sale 851, Collections, Stocks & Accumulations of the World. […]

As many collector get older (the author is 79 years old) many, if not most, philatelic collectors realize that they probably are not going to able to find and/or afford the stamps or philatelic related subjects, such as covers, that they have been looking for during their collecting years. Many simply decide to sell their […]

We received a question from a reader through our Facebook page. The question was: “Dear Korea Stamp Society, I have in my collection this military stationery letter that to my knowledge was sent from Korea to Japan by probably Japanese soldier. Could it be possibly for you to help me identify information written on this […]

The Korea Stamp Society (KSS) regularly answers questions from both members and non-members about Korean philately, and one recent inquiry turned out to be a particularly enjoyable puzzle. A collector wrote to us about an airmail cover sent from the Republic of Korea to the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, which somehow ended up first […]

The September 2026 issue of Woopyo, published on 1 September by the Korea Philatelic Federation (한국우취연합), has an unusually broad range. Its contents move from current Korean stamp issues and exhibition affairs to detailed studies of Korean postal history, the Munwi stamps, post-Liberation provisional overprints and postal stationery. Alongside these are articles on tourist datestamps, […]

The August 2026 issue of Woopyo, issue no. 727, was published on 1 August by the Korea Philatelic Federation (한국우취연합). Its contents range from Korean Empire postal administration and the production history of the first Korean stamps to Korean War military mail, post-liberation overprints, international exhibition practice, postal stationery and thematic collecting. Research into Korean […]

The following news items are translated from the July 2026 issue of Woopyo Magazine, the monthly philatelic magazine published in Korea. The news section was compiled and written by Jin Hur, who regularly reports on activities within the Korean philatelic community, including meetings of the Korea Philatelic Federation, preparations for national exhibitions, and new stamp-related […]

I lived in Osaka, Japan, for three years in the mid to late 1970s, spanning my middle- and high-school years. In truth, it was there that I learned most of what I know about stamp collecting. At the time, the economic gap between Korea and Japan was enormous, and the scale of the Japanese philatelic […]

(News from 우정사업본부 / KoreaPost) On 28 August 2026 KoreaPost issued a stamp commemorating the “150th Anniversary of the Birth of Kim Koo”. The stamps were issued in a sheet of 16 (4×4) stamps. The stamps were printed by Cartor for POSA.

(News from 우정사업본부 / KoreaPost) On 16 July 2026 KoreaPost issued a stamp commemorating “Robot Taekwon V”. The stamps were issued in a sheet of 9 stamps. The stamps were printed by Cartor for POSA.

(News from 조선우표사 / Korea Stamp Corporation) On 20 August 2026 the Korea Stamp Corporation issued a set showing “Posters”.

(News from 조선우표사 / Korea Stamp Corporation) On 10 August 2026 the Korea Stamp Corporation issued a set of stamps showing “Songs”.