The future in the past
It is always interesting to read in old magazines how people viewed the future back then. Towards our time, that is, or in this case, even well over 100 years ago. In the first issue from 1885 of the magazine...
Rob Smith
My name is Rob Smit, born in 1961, and in 1983 I founded and remain the owner of stamp dealership PostBeeld. Professionally, I work with stamps on a daily basis; in addition to overall management, I am involved in purchasing collections and pitch in wherever necessary. Outside of my own company, I am a board member of the NVPH and chairman of the NVPH.
Small Collecting Areas (4), Biafra Stamps
In this column, we discuss a region that issued a number of stamps for only a short time. This time, Biafra. Biafra was a short-lived state in southeastern Nigeria, which existed from May 30, 1967, to January 15, 1970. It...
The Netherlands on foreign postage stamps (1)
In this new column, we will regularly highlight a Dutch subject found on one or more foreign stamps. We begin this column with an interesting issue. It concerns the Brazilian 430 réis stamp from 1961, issued ter...
before the NVPH Netherlands catalogue
A new Netherlands catalogue will be published next week (click here to read more about it). The first NVPH catalogue was published in 1934, six years after the founding of the Dutch Association of Stamp Dealers. The information for that catalogue naturally came...
Small Collecting Areas (3), Stamps of Afars and Issas
In this column, we discuss a region that issued a number of stamps for only a short time. This time, Afars and Issas. Stamps bearing the country name "Territoire Francais des Afars et des Issas" were issued between 1967 and 1977. They concern...
Small Collecting Areas (2), Stamps of the Carolingians
In this column, we discuss a region that issued a number of stamps for only a short time. This time, the Carolingians. Stamps bearing the country name "Carolinians" have been issued since 1899. The Carolingians are located in the South Pacific and comprise...
Small collecting areas (1), Stamps of “Tchong-King”
In this section, we discuss an area that issued a number of stamps for only a short time. This time, Tchong King. Tchong King, now called Chongqing (重庆), is a large city in China located at the confluence of the rivers...
New NVPH Catalogue Netherlands 2027
A new NVPH Netherlands catalogue will be published in September. This catalogue once again offers many additions and improvements compared to previous editions. For the first time, it includes not only stamps issued by the Dutch PTT/TPG/PostNL but also all stamps issued by Sandd...
The Faroe Islands have four underwater tunnels.
51 years ago, the first stamps of an archipelago that was until then relatively unknown to many appeared. The Faroe Islands, belonging to Denmark and situated between Scotland, Iceland, and Norway. On April 1, 1976, the islands became postal independent with...
Self-adhesive or gummed, what do you collect?
More and more stamps are being issued as self-adhesive. That is hardly surprising, as most people who send letters or cards prefer using a self-adhesive stamp to having to lick it themselves. Yet I hear from many collectors that they would rather...
SEPAC stamps, what are they?
Most collectors occasionally come across stamps from different countries that feature the same SEPAC logo. In this blog, we delve deeper into the background and meaning. Naturally, we will also show some SEPAC stamps...
Something about stamp perforations
Comb perforation, line perforation, roller perforation, zigzag perforation, slit perforation. What types of perforations are there on postage stamps, what are the differences, and how are they measured? Measuring perforation An international unit of measurement has been agreed upon for measuring perforation. It does not matter...
Turtle Jonathan not only on stamps but now also in the Guinness Book of Records
At 194 years old, Jonathan the turtle is the oldest known living land animal on Earth and perhaps the most famous inhabitant of the island of Saint Helena. Consequently, Jonathan has appeared on postage stamps several times. Since yesterday, he is...
What are the differences between stamped, pre-stamping, used, and CTO?
Philatelic terminology explained. Cancelled (1) Means that a stamp has been cancelled, rendering it invalid for postage. The cancellation may have been applied by the postal service when the stamp was used for postage, but it may also...
Welcome to Freestampmagazine
Freestampmagazine is the continuation of our English-language blog and the Dutch-language Stamp Blog. The platform is now available in six languages, with plans to expand this number further. Our goal is to make Freestampmagazine an international platform...
New Dutch Design – Recurring Memories
On February 16, 2026, PostNL will issue the New Dutch Design – Recurring Memories stamps, the first stamp sheet of this year in the New Dutch Design series. The New Dutch Design – Recurring Memories stamps bear a value indication of 1, intended...
