As a youth, acquisition of stamps was primarily from tearing stamps off of mail we received as well as that from kind family members who also collected for me. I would also purchase stamps at the post office as well as subscribe to first day issues. Besides inheriting my dad’s modest collection, those were pretty much my primary sources of stamps.

Today I find myself getting stamps from a multitude of sources. I bid on online auctions, I attend stamp shows and connect with dealers, and I sometimes get the “oh, my dad used to collect stamps, I have his stamp collection that I don’t know what to do with.”

As an explorer by nature (and semi-clinically proven through a variety of personality tests) I like to explore many different avenues for stamp acquisition. I have made some substantial single object purchases as well as buying an entire filing cabinet full of stamps for a fraction of the former. The former is likely a better investment, but I find the latter to be way more fun.

When I buy a single expensive object (usually a stamp or a cover) I put it in my collection and that is that. When I get a box from an estate, or a stamp show, it can be worth hours of exploration and the possible discovery of a few interesting objects.

Whether philately is a good investment or not is a topic better suited for a different story. For me, philately is first and foremost a hobby that I enjoy tremendously. It checks so many boxes of the things I am passionate about: History, geography, exploring, discovery, research, organizing, writing, presenting, meeting interesting people, and, yes, even investing.

So, when at a recent stamp show I came across a sealed box that said “Worldwide Mystery Box $10.00” I could not help myself. How wrong could I go?

For me, the enjoyment alone of opening the box and exploring the content was worth the price of admission. What else does $10.00 buy today? Not much that I can think of that provides the same amount of entertainment that I get out of opening an unexplored box filled with stamps and postal history. So even if the content ends up having no value, I get value from the experience that in this case far exceeded the amount that I paid.

As it turned out, the box contained several objects that exceeded the price I paid for the box. As of this writing I have not yet fully finished assessing what some of the objects are worth. Suffice to say, I found a glassine containing 6 copies of the 1893 US 2-cent Columbian stamp with the “broken hat” variety. According to my most recent Scott Specialized catalog (2020), these are valued at $3.50 each. Even if mine are not in VF or better condition, they are likely worth at least $1.50 each, essentially covering the cost of the box.

What else did my mystery box contain? For a sampler, here are some of the objects I found:

• Glassines of US and worldwide stamps
• Large amounts of US First Day Covers from 1960s and up.
• Selection of First Flight Covers
• Bundles of select US and WW stamps.
• Unused US postal stationary
• Select US covers from 1920s to present day.

While the content of this box may not be worth that much, I can assure two things:

• It is worth significantly more than I paid.
• The enjoyment I got out of exploring the content far exceeds the price of admission.

In short, for me philately is a hobby that I enjoy, not an investment. The latter I do in the stock market. However, in spite of doing well, the stock market rarely brings the joy I get from philately. Owning a share of a company just can’t compare with owning a physical philatelic object. Stamp collecting gives me so much enjoyment in my day-to-day life and on so many levels. If happiness can be considered a form of investment, then I guess this hobby is providing a strong return for me.

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But the background and purpose for this stamp issue has a slightly  controversial origin story. They were issued to fund Roald Amundsen’s proposed 1926 North Pole expedition. Roald Amundsen was the first explorer to reach the South Pole and is considered one of the greatest polar explorers of his time, and perhaps of all time. In short, the Norwegian government had decided to use this stamp series to help fund Roald Amundsen’s planned 1926 northpole expedition. We are all familiar with semi-postal issues where a portion pays the postage and the addition goes to a special cause. With these stamps, it was proposed that all the income would go to Mr. Amundsen. A large portion of these stamps were given directly to him to sell to collectors for the purpose of raising funding for his expedition. The rest was sold through post offices for regular postage, but with the income going to Amundsen.

Overview of the 1925 Polar Bear Stamps

As early as February 1924, Kristiania Filatelist-Klub (Kristiania Philatelic Society, Kristiania was renamed Oslo in 1925) had a discussion of these stamps on their agenda. Philatelists were outraged about this release which they considered speculative and not the way for a postal service to operated. They submitted a protest to the Norwegian government which read:

“Kristiania Filatelist-Klub deeply regret the governments decision to issue a so-called ‘polmerke’ (polar stamp). We see this in violation of the principals under which the postal service has thus operated. In the event that such a stamp is produced, it is the position of Kristiania Filatelist-Klub that the government is creating a private, speculative issue out of thin air.”

NORWAY: Complete Set of 1925 Amundsen Polar Stamps Canceled

$25.00

The 1925 Polar Series caused quite a bit of controversy when first released. These were Norway’s early attempt at semi-postal stamps, even if they don’t have an additional charge. They were designed to raise funds for Roald Amundsen’s next expedition. All seven values, NK 130-NK 136.

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NORWAY: Complete Set of 1925 Amundsen Polar Stamps Canceled quantity

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SKU: 16

Category: 1920-1939, Norway Stamps

When these stamps were released on April 1, 1925, collectors, as predicated by the Oslo philatelists, flocked to acquire these. A lot of covers, a few of which are shown on these pages, were produced with philatelic intent. Ironically, several covers bearing the names of members of this club or the club itself have been discovered over the years. Maybe they weren’t so undesirable after all?

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To my surprise, and great delight, I found that the SCC Library (SCCL) is located within the Rocky Mountain Philatelic Library, in Denver, CO. Given my proximity to Denver, this has become a tremendous resource for my philatelic research and writings. This past fall I had the honor of becoming part of the SCC Library Committee.

Over the decades, SCC has acquired volumes of books, catalogs, journals, and articles. However, these were in different locations and there was a desire to give this collection a permanent home. In 1997, then President of SCC, Roger Quinby, reached out to the Rocky Mountain Philatelic Library (RMPL) about the possibility of creating a permanent home for the SCC Library. The RMPL was founded in 1993 and had become the premier philatelic library in the Rocky Mountain region. There could be many win-win outcomes with such an arrangement. The SCCL would get a permanent home and access to volunteers from the local SCC Chapter. RMPL would gain the prestige of housing a major national society speciality-library. The central location would also be a benefit in terms of serving SCC members on both coasts.

Today, the SCCL has expanded to two rooms within the RMPL. SCCL librarian Roger Cichorz has been a major driving force behind the success of the library. His great organizational skills and countless hours (years) of cataloging and indexing titles has led to the fine library that it is today. I believe it is safe to say that the SCCL is home to the largest collection of Nordic philatelic literature in the US. You may check out a complete listing of all the books currently available on the SCC web site. As of this writing, all the catalogs and journals are also being added to our index.

You do not have to live close to Denver to take advantage of the SCC Library. SCC Members can request to borrow from the library and have items sent to them. Items can be checked out for two months at a time.

SCCL holds semi-annual auctions. With all the donations, the library often ends up with duplicates and triplicates. Those, along with philatelic materials, are offered to members during these auctions, which are organized by Roger Cichorz.

The SCC Library’s holdings include:

• Over 2,000 books primarily related to Scandinavian and Nordic countries, including Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Greenland, Iceland, Faroe Islands, Åland, and Danish West Indies.
• Several thousand philatelic periodicals from 65 journals, of which 20 are still active.
• Four hundred plus philatelic auction catalogs
• 500 plus philatelic exhibitions and show catalogs.
• 400 plus stamp catalogs, including extended runs of FACIT, Norgeskatalogen, AFA, and more

If you collect stamps from any of the Nordic countries and are not already a member of SCC and take advantage of the SCC Library, I strongly urge you to take advantage of this tremendous philatelic resource.

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