The history of stamp collecting 19, the Netherlands in 1863.

Inspired by a series of articles by K. Kouwenberg that appeared in the monthly magazine Philatelie in the late 1970s, Rob Smit re-examines the history of stamp collecting in biweekly installments. This is part 19, The Netherlands in 1863. Actually, it is not surprising that philately in the early 1860s took place mainly outside the Netherlands. With three stamps issued, there was not yet much to collect here (although a modern collector of the first issue stamps or plates might think otherwise). In 1864, the number of stamps doubled, and in 1867, it doubled again. In the year slavery was abolished, and just before the year the number of Dutch stamps doubled from three to six, a stamp catalogue appeared by another Dutch author—and no stranger to him. Pieter Harmen Witkamp was a well-known figure, certainly in Amsterdam, during the 1850s and 1860s. He wrote about history, geography, and the city of Amsterdam, among other subjects. He was also an excellent cartographer. In late 1863, he published a stamp catalogue. Unlike all other catalogues published up to that point, Witkamp did not cover stamps from the entire world, but only those from Europe. Two volumes were published: Volume 1: Northern Europe and Volume 2: Central Europe. Nowadays, most catalogues are geographically limited. Witkamp was the first to do so. He may have intended to publish an entire series, as the title of the catalogues was always 'The Stamps of all Realms and States', followed by a number and geographical designation. However, it remained limited to two volumes. In France, attention was given to Dutch stamps in 1863. Natalis Rondot covers the Netherlands in the first 1863 issue of the Magisin Pittoresque. The translation of the text reads as follows: —– Kingdom of the Netherlands 5 stamps, 1 type. The Postal Reform Act dates from April 12, 1850, but the use of stamps did not begin until January 1, 1852. With the Act of 1850, fixed amounts were established for letters weighing 15 grams at 5, 10, and 15 cents, depending on the distance. The rates were reduced in 1855 to 5 cents for a distance up to 30 kilometers and 10 cents for a distance greater than 30 kilometers. A uniform rate of 5 cents was adopted by the House of Representatives in 1860 and subsequently rejected by the Senate. The rate is the same for letters franked with or without stamps. The number of letters has been as follows: in 1848, under the old law, 6,157,856; in 1852 under the new law, 12,308,410; in 1856 under the amended law, 16,125,116; and in 1860; 19,057,326. In five years, in 1860 compared to 1855, the number of letters increased by 29%, and in a three-year period, 1858-1860, compared to 1855-57, by 15%. The number of inhabitants of the Netherlands was 3,324,135 in 1860, so the average number of letters per inhabitant came to 6 in that year. Between 1848 and 1852, 14% of the letters were franked, in 1856 16%, and in 1860 19%. In 1860, 3,653,662 stamps were sold, of which 1,897,341 were 5-cent stamps, 1,618,051 were 10-cent stamps, and 138,270 were 15-cent stamps. The stamps have been the same since as early as 1850 (?!). They show the portrait of King William III in an oval and ornamented frame. The head is turned to the right. At the top is "Post Stamp", and at the bottom the value and numerals. The stamp measures 20 by 18 mm, is upright, engraved, and printed in color on white paper. 5 cents (0f.1058), – 1′ deep blue; 2′ sky blue 10 cents (0f.2116), – red 15 cents (0f.3174), – orange

• For the calculation into French Francs, an exchange rate of 1 guilder = 2f.12 was used.

A proof print of 5 cent black exists. The stamps were produced at the Royal Mint in Utrecht. The use of stamps was introduced in Dutch Guiana in 1861. —– The above shows how extensively Rondot covered the various countries. Below is an image of the original publication.   To be continued on January 7.  

Published so far:

1. Introduction and start 2. The first collectors 3. The first catalogueOscar Berger Levrault is the first to provide an overview. 4. Alfred Potiquet, The first commercially published catalogue. 5. Booming 1862, The most turbulent year in philatelic history. 6. Edard de Laplante, the first to live exclusively from the stamp trade. 7. Natalis RondotThe first true philatelic literature appeared in a family magazine. 8. Henri Justin Lallier, Publisher of the first stamp album. 9. Frederick W. Booty, The first catalogue in English. 10. Mount Brown, A successful English catalogue. 11. Dr John Edward Gray, Inventor of the postage stamp, the very first collector, or merely a good cataloguer? 12. The first stamp magazineFirst a failed attempt, but then a sheet of stamps after all. 13. Edward Pemberton, Active philatelist with descendants in philately. 14. Dr. C.W. Viner, Father of English philately. 15. Jean Baptiste Moens, The greatest trader of all time. 16. Moens' publishing house, of great importance in the early days of philately. 17. Germany in 1862, The slow start of an important philatelic country. 18. The Netherlands in 1862, The first Dutch catalogue and album.