Spot the Difference if you Can #24 One of my casual collecting areas is France & their old colonies & protectorates. Last year, I purchased a mixed France Collection from a European dealer while I was on a trip. Having just recently sorted through the collection, I found about 300 stamps of the Peace & Commerce issues. I knew there were some varieties to watch for, but I could not remember, hence the following article to remind me & other collectors to be on the lookout. These two stamps are from the 1876-1892 set of France, but they are common to all French issues of the same ..read more

Black Friday/Cyber Monday Sale for 2023 is now ON. Don’t Miss out on this one time incredible sale         The post SOFTPRO BLACK FRIDAY SALE NOW ON appeared first on EzStamp ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #23 These two stamps from 1893 are form Shanghai, China. There was a set of 7 stamps issued, with multiple varieties. Some were Typographed & others were Lithographed. ( A related article on Lithographed stamps is here for reference: Lithographed Stamps ) There are two stamps in particular in this series that have a very minor visible difference. The varieties are of minimal value, while the main stamps are worth about $8 each. Not a huge value, but many collections do not have the varieties. The stamps shown here are Sc# 154 & 154a but the same variety ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #22 These two Brazilian stamps from 1900 are easy to miss relative to the differences unless you know what to look for.. There are many varieties in the classic Brazilian stamps that have minor variations, but are often overlooked.  The stamps shown here are Sc# 160 & 160a. But the stamp on the right is worth about 5 times as much as the one on the left.. Look at the stamps below & see if you can spot the difference. Can you see the difference? Brazil Sc# 160 & 160a variety The difference lies in the Frame around innermost oval. The left ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #21 One of the areas I have been attempting to concentrate on lately are the early stamps of Finland. The coat of arms issue from 1901 to 1914 have some difficult ones to find. While I was traveling recently, I was browsing online & found a copy of Sc#68, the 1 Mark lilac & green issue valued at $200 – $300 for a MNH copy. The stamp I found was from a dealer I had purchased from before (multiple times) & has a great reputation. I was using my phone to browse & look at the images, but was not able to get to my copy of EzStamp or a catalog, but was ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #20 The former British Colony of north Borneo issued its last stamps in June of 1963. Many of the stamps are beautifully engraved with depictions of the local wildlife & scenery. On July 1, 1950, a set of 15 stamps was issued showing different scenes with a portrait of King George VI. On the 50c denomination, it depicts a Clock Tower in the Capital (in 1946) of Jesselton. In the first printing, there was an error. Look at the stamps below & see if you can spot it. Can you see the difference? There is a distinct difference that is often overlooked Found i ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #19 One of the tasks I have been putting off for a while is the sorting of my DDR Officials from the 1950’s. This series of the Arms of DDR can be very confusing & there are many varieties & combinations to be found, especially if you want to get into the minute details. The two stamps shown below were both issued in the 1950’s. One is worth about ten times the other in Mint condition. In used condition, they are both of minimal value. Can you see the difference? There is a distinct difference that is often overlooked Found it yet? At first glance, they ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #18 The former British Colony of British Guiana has some of the most valuable stamps ever issued. The World Famous One-cent Magenta from 1856 is considered the world’s rarest stamp, valued in the millions of dollars: well beyond the reach of most collectors, even if you have the money. I believe this is one of the few stamps not owned by the Royal Philatelic Collection in Britain. But that does not mean that there are no affordable varieties to be had by most collectors who have the patience and knowledge of what to be on the look out for. These two stamps shown ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #17 This past week, I was spending some time completing a couple of sets in my German collection that were missing a few stamps. There is a definitive series from 1948 to 1951 where the higher denomination stamps have some varieties. I was missing the more valuable ones so I started to hunt for them online. The usual sellers had them for sale at full catalog and some even higher. But I managed to find some sellers who did not bother to look at the details of the available & listed varieties. I picked up the 5 missing items for less than $20 US. The catalog v ..read more

Spot the Difference if you Can #16 While I was scanning some images for addition to EzStamp (Oman), I noticed that there was a significant price difference in one of the varieties that I had no image for. I went to my 4 volume Middle East albums that I was using to get the stamps to scan and I found 4 copies of the Oman stamps shown below. They are Scott # 100 & 101a. They look very similar. So whats the difference? The differences lie in the Arabic value. One is in Rupees & the other is in Baizas. Unless you read Arabic, it’s difficult to spot. Look carefully and you can find these v ..read more