Supporting Philatelists Since 1952
A group of North Korean covers and postal stationery offered as lots 2957–2976 in the Christoph Gärtner 66th Auction provides a compact view of postal use during the first years of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. The material is varied: ordinary inland letters, registered mail, air mail, foreign destinations, postal stationery and a small […]
Continue Reading
As an example of a postal rate that is difficult to explain, this April 1950 cover should come as no surprise to collectors of North Korean postal history. What makes it special, is the rate, 20 won. This is the highest pre-Korean War franking that I have recorded in nearly 20 years of specialising in […]
Continue Reading
(Editor’s Note: Years ago when scanning the membership list it seemed to us that there were only 12 current members with numbers below 100. We suggested to Ye Treas that he do a “short article” on the 12 — the “Dirty Dozen?” – – and he eventually responded with this happily long report on the […]
Continue Reading
This Dutch “Briefkaart” postal card bears a 5 cent Queen Juliana franking and a green marking reading “PORTVRIJ militairen op weg naar Korea”: “Postage free: servicemen on their way to Korea.” This concessionary marking is the principal postal-history feature of the item, identifying it as mail connected with Dutch military personnel travelling to Korea.
Continue Reading
Among the sheets presented to the participating nations issued between 1951 and 1952, there is a mixture of two types: those manufactured on the same printing plate together with the stamps arranged side by side, and those manufactured from a printing plate composed solely of the sheets without any stamps. The former takes the form […]
Continue Reading
The Korean War began when North Korea launched a surprise attack on South Korea, crossing the 38th parallel on June 25, 1950. The South Korean military was taken completely by surprise and North Korea rapidly advanced southward, taking over Seoul in just few days on June 28,1950, and then taking control of Taejon (now Daejeon) […]
Continue Reading
After the Japanese were defeated in WW2, Koreans wanted to establish a nation state of their own on the peninsula. But which political direction would they, or could they, choose? Northern Korea was occupied by the Red Army, and the South was occupied by the US Army. Within a matter of weeks the new Cold […]
Continue Reading
The following is an expansion of two articles which were recently published in the American Philatelist and The London Philatelist. Rather than simply republishing them, they are combined and expanded here to tell a more detailed story. Mail to and from the largest POW components (excluding South Koreans) – American and British – are detailed […]
Continue Reading
The year 1953 was a significant one in the history of South Korea. The country was still in the throes of the Korean War, which had been raging since 1950, but the situation had begun to stabilize as the two sides continued negotiating a ceasefire. Meanwhile, life for ordinary Koreans continued, albeit with significant challenges […]
Continue Reading
In 1952, the Korean War was still raging on, causing much upheaval and uncertainty in South Korea. The year was marked by intense fighting and continued efforts by the United Nations to push back against the invading North Korean forces.
Continue Reading
In 1951, the Korean War continued to rage on between North and South Korea, with no end in sight. The year was marked by several significant events that shaped the course of the conflict and impacted the lives of the Korean people.
Continue Reading
1950 was a year of great upheaval for the people of South Korea. The country was still reeling from the aftermath of World War II and the division of the Korean peninsula into two separate states. Tensions between North and South Korea were high, and in June of 1950, war broke out between the two […]
Continue Reading
We have previously posted articles on the Korea Stamp Society’s (KSS) website about charity seals that were issued by Soviet Bloc countries which supported North Korea during the Korean War. And a follow up article on these charity seals was published in the Korean Philately magazine Vol. 58, No. 2 (2022).
Continue Reading
Once in a while we report on the KSS website on interesting items showing up in stamp auctions worldwide. Here are some of these items from the last few months from Cherrystone Auctions, Auktionshaus Christoph Gärtner and Chiswick Auctions, plus some Ebay items related to the Korean War.
Continue Reading
Once in a while we report on the KSS website on interesting items showing up in stamp auctions worldwide. Here are some of these items from the last few months from Cherrystone Auctions, Corinphila Veilingen, AAK Phila GmbH and Auktionshaus Christoph Gärtner.
Continue Reading
One of our Korea Stamp Society members has the fortune to have in his collection a genuinely postally used postcard that was mailed just before the start of the Korean War in 1950. At the time of the purchase, our member did not realize the significance of the postcard; he was just interested in obtaining […]
Continue Reading
Shown here are 5 covers sent between June and September 1950 to North Korea. Covers no. 1-4 were sent by Soviet citizens of Korean ethnicity to their relatives or friends, who were living in the territory of North Korea. The sender of the fifth cover is presumably the wife of a Soviet officer, who at […]
Continue Reading
On the occasion of Mao Zedong’s 100th birthday, the Korean Stamp Corporation (DPRK) issued a series of postal stationery in honor of Mao. The cards have three-dimensional images, which is why they are quite heavy and made of plastic; but it’s not the comical “wobbly images” often seen in 3D – that would probably not […]
Continue Reading
This cover commemorates the appointment of Mark Clark and was sent by the Commander of the ROK Third Division to the Commander of the Ninth Division. General Mark Clark took over the United Nations Command on May 12, 1952, and held the position until July 27, 1953, when the armistice was signed.
Continue Reading
The Chinese Government attached great importance to the Korean and Chinese units differing significantly from each other in formal terms. The Chinese People’s Volunteers received different troop designations, rank insignia and uniforms. Field letters from Korea were given their own troop cancellers (fig. 1), which differed from the Chinese field post letters (fig. 2).
Continue Reading