This is the second in a series of articles highlighting key philatelic resources for collectors of Central and South American stamps. The next article in the series will be published in a few weeks and will cover Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela. The complete series of articles will ultimately replace the Resources section in the […]
Publications
Argentina, Bolivia and Brazil – Philatelic Resources Part 1
This is the first in a series of articles highlighting key philatelic resources for collectors of Central and South American stamps. The next article in the series will be published in a few weeks and will cover Chile, Colombia and Ecuador. The complete series of articles will ultimately replace the Resources section in the menu […]
Latin American Philatelic Resources – A Major Update
When I first launched this website ten years ago, I added the Resources section you see on the menu bar above. The idea was to provide a reasonably detailed overview of the various reference points collectors could use – catalogues, societies and the rest – in pursuing Latin American philately. As time went on, I […]
The Collector | Venezuela | Will Castillo
Will Castillo is a passionate collector of Venezuela and an avid student of how the philately of Venezuela is intertwined with the country’s history. Around a decade ago, he authored a widely respected study of the 1871–1880 Escuelas issue—demonstrating how a complex and often confusing series can be organised into a clear, systematic and accessible […]
Latin American stamp design and its harshest critic
Turn to the letters page of any self-respecting philatelic monthly magazine and you will invariably find a diatribe from a reader bemoaning the paucity of creativity in current-day stamp design. Whether it be yet another Harry Potter or Marvel series of stickers, or the ubiquitous photoshopped images that tend to monopolise stamp design, there is […]
Costa Rica at The Royal
There are a few ways in which an advanced collection can be shared with fellow philatelists, not least in the global competitive arena in the Quest for Gold. Club displays are the alternative route with some offering more cachet than others; none more so than an invitation to speak at the Royal Philatelic Society in […]
The Postage Stamps & Postal Stationery of Guatemala
We appear to be in something of a Golden Period in the introduction of new resources for the Latin American philatelist. An excellent example is the Mi Oficina YouTube channel which has now garnered well over 1600 subscribers since inception and is heading towards 250,000 views in under three years – a remarkable achievement and […]
Venezuela – the final specialized catalogue for 2022
Just as I’d pressed ‘send’ on my recent post about new Latin American catalogues, along comes yet another (very welcome) reference work. This time, it is Venezuela’s turn. The last generation of specialized catalogues of Venezuela were originally published by Juan Jose Valera. He had been releasing updated editions since 1964 and old copies can […]
New Specialized Catalogues: Bolivia, Nicaragua, Peru and Paraguay
It’s been a good year for new and updated specialized catalogues for the Latin American collector with four catalogues recently published. First up is the Cefibol catalogue – Especializado en Filatelia Boliviana by Daniel Gonzalez Fernandez. This is a substantial, full color catalogue that improves considerably upon my aging Cefilco alternative. The first Cefibol catalogue […]
The Bustamantes of Peru
For three generations the Bustamante family has been producing both simplified and specialized catalogues for collectors of Peru. A new edition is planned for publication in 2022 (see details below). In this article we discuss Peruvian catalogues and collecting Peru with Ysmael Bustamante, the grandson of the founder. CLA The name “Bustamante” has been associated […]
Book Review | The 19th Century Issues of El Salvador 1867-1900. Guillermo F. Gallegos & Joseph D. Hahn
Many of the Latin American republics have had a variety of specialized catalogues and handbooks written over the years but El Salvador has not been one of them. There has been a dearth of literature on the early philately of the country; certainly, various articles have appeared in specialist journals in the past but nothing […]
The Mainsheet goes digital
Next year will be the fiftieth anniversary of the publication of The Mainsheet. And to bring it in to the 21st century, the entire run has now been digitised. For those not familiar with The Mainsheet, it is one of the most (if not the most) comprehensive sources of information on the myriad aspects of […]