Korea Stamp Society

There is an unusual Korean seal that occasionally shows up in Korean collections and on eBay, which sometimes confuses collectors. This seal was actually designed by Dr. Sherwood Hall and is sought out by some collectors of Dr. Hall’s Korean Christmas seals. It was issued for the “50th Anniversary of Korean Methodism” in 1934, shortly […]

In “Paquebot Cancellations of the World” Mike Dovey and Keith Morris list a series of Korean paquebot cancellations. However, it might be that not all of the cancellations shown are paquebot cancellations.

The DPRK issued a set of 5 porcelain stamps in 1999. The KSC numbers for these stamps are KSC3983-3987. However, a careful collector might find something strange about two of the stamps in this set, KSC3983 (70 jon) and KSC 3987 (2.50 won).

Figure 1 illustrates three essay stamps recently sold by Michael Rogers in a private treaty sale, while Figures 2 and 3 illustrate the front and back of essays originally owned by Jim Kerr and sold by private treaty after being withdrawn from auction. These essays, referred to as both Cheon or Plum Blossom Essays, have […]

Highway 1 leads northward from Seoul to Kaesong and then to P’yong-yang, connecting two ancient capitals of Korea with the modern one. A few miles from the Seoul city limits, a smaller road leads east towards Uijong-bu, and about two miles from Highway 1 there is a narrow gravel road headed north, up the steep […]

I became interested in Korean Christmas Seals in 1936 when I was asked to cover the South Pyengan Province. Each year, thereafter, I sold more than anyone else. In the ninth year – 1940 – I sold all that were sold in that area as far as I know. This consisted of an order for […]

As some readers of the KSS website know, I have not been interested in most North Korean (DPR) stamp issues. However, the peace talks between South Korea and North Korea, and the even more recent nuclear talks between North Korea and the USA, have caused some worldwide interest in philatelic material commemorating these talks. I […]

For a project about KSS members from the past I am currently looking for information about Lee Chang Sung. He was chairman of the Busan Philatelic Club for years, but was known outside of Korea for his many paquebot covers. He was first mentioned in Korean Philately in 1956(!), in the KP Vol. V No. […]

The primary intent in creating this list of post offices is to aid philatelists and researchers in the identification of postmarks used in Old Korea during the Japanese period. For the average Western philatelist not familiar, or somewhat familiar with Chinese characters, reading cancels or postal addresses can be a daunting task. This task is […]

During the course of collecting South Korean stamps since 1983 the problem of how to store the collection is always a difficult one. Stamp album page published by various companies are the traditional method for keeping a collection for easy access and viewing. Using Showgard or comparable stamp mounts preserves the stamps well but the […]

A Dutch footballer famously once said approx. “you will only see it if you understand it“. This is true of Korean blogs as well: sometimes you really have to read on before you notice there is something important being said. Take a recent blog post on Korean National Tuberculosis Association’s Facebook page.

POSA (the Korea Postal Service Agency / 한국우편사업진흥원) has released a series of lighthouse related graphics on the K-stamp Facebook page. The graphics show tourism related cancellations with Korean lighthouses shown in the cancellation. According to POSA “it’s a journey along the country’s lighthouses by tourist datestamp”.

(News from 우정사업본부 / KoreaPost) On 14 August KoreaPost released a series of stamps commemorating the different shapes and colours of the Taegeukgi, the national symbol and flag of Korea.

(News from 우정사업본부 / KoreaPost) On 6 August 2019 KoreaPost issued a series of stamps showing “must visit places” in Korea. This is the fifth series of stamps in the Tourism Series showing places in Korea known for their outstanding beauty or their historical significance. The stamps were issued for the new first class postal […]

(News from 조선우표사 / Korea Stamp Corporation) The Korea Stamp Corporation has published a stamp in a souvenir sheet to commemorate that “Supreme Leader Kim Jong Un Met with the US President Donald J. Trump at Panmunjom”. 

(News from 조선우표사 / Korea Stamp Corporation) The Korea Stamp Corporation has published a stamp in a souvenir sheet to commemorate the meeting in Pyongyang of the leaders of the DPRK and China.