The History of Stamp Collecting 7, Natalis Rondot

Inspired by a series of articles by K. Kouwenberg that appeared in the monthly magazine Philatelie in the late 1970s, Rob Smit describes the history of stamp collecting anew in biweekly installments. This is part 7, Natalis Rondot.

It happened in 1862, as we have already seen in previous installments of this column. For the time being, therefore, we will linger on personalities who played a significant role in the development of stamp collecting in or from 1862. One of those individuals was Natalis Rondot (born March 23, 1821, in Saint-Quentin and died August 26, 1900, in Lyon). After studying at the University of Paris, he took up a position at the Chamber of Commerce in Reims. He participated in an international mission to conclude trade agreements and, at a young age (between 1843 and 1847), visited countries such as China, India, Indochina, Malaysia and Africa, Russia, and Belgium. Subsequently, he worked for the Chamber of Commerce in Lyon and, in that capacity, visited all the World Exhibitions, among other things. He has much written and published on diverse subjects. After his death, a book about his life and works appeared in 1902. This book is here to watch. View the page where his philatelic items are mentioned here. Between April 1862 and November 1866, a series of articles by him appeared in the 'Magasin Pittoresque', a French family magazine. The series is titled 'Les Timbres-Poste de tous les états du globe'. It is remarkable to see how extensive and thorough the information in the articles is. Compared to the limited information available at the time through limited catalogues, the articles contain so much data that it raises the question of where Rondot obtained so much detailed information. Especially since quite a lot can be found about Rondot, but virtually nothing about his philatelic connections. Furthermore, no other publications on stamps by him are known other than this series of articles. It is known, however, that he owned a stamp collection which was sold after his death for 15000 francs to Victor Robert. It appears that the series was written as a side job, probably with the help of third parties. In this context, the name of Armand Martin, a senior official of the French postal service, is often mentioned. In any case, it is clear, also from his other publications, that Rondot had a very large network and a thorough approach. Rondot uses a geographical classification. He begins with Russia, then Finland, Sweden, etc. For each country, he discusses the origin of the stamps, provides a description, includes illustrations in beautiful woodcuts, covers the monetary system, the country, population, and the number of letters sent; he mentions proofs and even corrects errors in catalogs in circulation at the time. It seems incomprehensible how Rondot managed to gather so much data. It is not without reason that K. Kouwenberg calls him 'the greatest philatelist of all time'. Below is one page from the first article on Russia, spanning two and a half pages. Click here to view the 1862 volume of the 'magasin pittoresque'. The articles have been of immense value for many years as a guide for the development of (specialized) collections, further studies, and catalogues. That his network was extensive is evident from, among other things, his article in July 1864, in which he writes about Greece with information in long lists regarding color proofs of the large Hermes heads supplied by Mr. Th. Leonardos, Director-General of the Greek post. But the maker of the printing plates for the large Hermes heads, Albert Barre, was apparently also an acquaintance of Rondot, as evidenced by the above proof with a note addressed to him. In 1867, there was a section at the World Exhibition in Paris where the 319 clichés of Rondot's articles were on display.

To be continued on July 23.

Published so far:

1. Introduction and start

2. The first collectors

3. The first catalogue

4. Alfred Potiquet

5. Booming 1862

6. Edard de Laplante