Supporting Philatelists Since 1952
It all started with curiosity. I knew that I had a lot of stamps but didn’t really knew them. Like a normal person, the first thing that came across my mind was is it worth any money? With the help of Mr. Chen Yi Fu and Ivo Spanjersberg, I began to understand the value and […]
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Is the current market condition a buyer’s market or seller’s market? The price one pays for a stamp or stamps depends on the condition and rarity. Also, supply and demand dictate current prices in the market place. The current condition of the market is a buyer’s market. The flood of North Korean stamps which started […]
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The picture below is the 1962 Scott #429 / KSC #393 imperforated 10 jeon “Launch of Soviet Manned Rockets Vostok 3&4”. The KSC does mention an imperforated version. However, the Scott catalog does not mention an imperforated version of this stamp. I wonder how many of our readers have seen or possess this stamp?
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Internet is where most people buy and sell stamps today. In the months leading up to the February 2019 US – DPRK summit in Hanoi, there were massive unloads of North Korean stamps on the internet. This presented a good entry point for beginning collectors like myself to acquire some early North Korean stamps. However, […]
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Stamps with different colors were used to indicate different denominations until multicolored stamps appeared along with the development of color printing techniques. The majority of modern stamps are still of a single color design. In the early days of printing stamps, inks were made up in batches as needed and the colors were inconsistent. In […]
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Previously I have written an article on North Korea’s “Remarkable Tourist Market Sheet” stamps. KSS member Mr. Chen Yi-Fu stated that the article referred to so-called “stamps for domestic use”. In the Korean Stamp Catalogue, the 2 stamps are No. 3758 & 3760, issued in 8×3 small sheets for international collectors. He also mentioned that […]
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From 2000 to 2006 I visited North Korea 15 times, each time during 4 weeks. During those 4 weeks, I spent weekends and rainy days in the hotel (Mt. Myohyang or Chong Chon Hotel). Also, on my departure from the country, I spent 3 to 4 days in the capital Pyongyang (Yang Gak Do Hotel) […]
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The design of the 2004 Lunar New Year stamp (Scott A1942, KSC4321) is adorable. A young boy and girl playing in Korean traditional clothing (Hanbok, or 한복) on Lunar New Year’s Day (Seollal or 설날), both relating to Korean culture. The design shows the political and economic changes in North Korea at the time (due […]
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A question from one of our KSS members: are these stamps real, fake, or a reprint? The stamps in this partial sheet were part of a batch of 1961 and earlier North Korean stamps. These 10 stamps (2×5) are from a sheet of 70 jeon 1959 “Peaceful Reunification of Korea” stamps (Scott 175a / A141; […]
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Mt. Myohyang Hotel, summer of 2003. I was doing my morning walk around the hotel lobby and saw the telephone booth lady putting out a display tray of stamps in the display cabinet. After she had finished displaying, she started to cut sheet stamps to individual stamps to replenish the display trays. This is when […]
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