Time for another in this series. This time I’ll describe some of the oldest items I own..
That’s the first first-day cover I remember actually buying for myself. From the date I would have been 10, although I don’t think I bought it on the day of release. I’ve got a pretty vivid memory of buying it at Garden City (now Westfield Kotara mall), which makes the cancellation stamp of Hamilton intriguing. Local post offices these days don’t usually cancel their own covers. Maybe back in 1982 they did? Perhaps Hamilton canceled covers that were distributed to post offices around Newcastle? I doubt I’ll ever know.
Anyway it’s in scrappy shape today, and the 3c stamp is peeling a little. But it remains one of my earliest possessions that I still own.
This guy is even older! Dating from even before I was born, this was during the time mum and dad were in PNG. Obviously it speaks to the native blood in me, and is a pride of my collection. But what is the provenance? Did Mum/Dad actually buy this in New Guinea when it came out? Or was it obtained later? I can’t remember not having it, so maybe it predates me and is what started me into stamp collecting as a child? Maybe someone will reveal the truth in the comments…
As my oldest first day cover, I was curious to see if it had any value today. A quick search online found at least two for sale, although neither in as good condition as this one. The cost? Under US$5 🙂
There was, back in 198X, a tiny stamp shop in the grimy mall in ‘Hilltop Plaza’ that connected to Charlestown Road. The proprietor had Isaac Asimov sideburns and usually ignored me as I sorted through his endless racks of stamps and covers looking for something I could afford with the pittance in my pocket. Every now and then for whatever reason something caught my eye, and the above is one such example. I recall liking the series – only one stamp is shown on this cover – that linked together to form a larger picture. I had them all separately, which is why I bought this. Into the collection it went one day 30+ years ago, and in ‘the collection’ it remains today 🙂
Here’s the full set by the way:
I no longer own any of these stamps other than the one on the envelope above, but at one time I was pleased to have all five of these arranged together in my stamp album.
These are two other first-day covers that date to the earliest days of my collection. I probably purchased these myself when I was 10 or so, possibly at the same shop mentioned above. Neither of these are particularly notable or attractive, but in those days I was usually more interested in loose stamps than covers and presumably these were very inexpensive.
The above is a mystery. Again, I recall owning it as part of my collection around the time I left Oz, and presumably it caught my eye because I loved stamps that linked together to form a bigger picture. But the date surprises me: 1986. This was after I had discovered girls and Nick Cave and was listening to Black Celebration all the time. Was I still buying stamps?! Maybe I bought this at Rices or Cooks Hill Books, since I recall both of them used to occasionally have stamps on the counter. I genuinely don’t recall…
Speaking of loose stamps, the above was also purchased at that same shop. The photo doesn’t do a great job showing the silver ink, but this is a lovely holiday series issued by Christmas Island (aka. an Australian territory in the Indian Ocean) in 1980. Christmas Island postal issues are a blog post unto themself, but notable to this one is the fact that it was pre-1980, and is therefore not a true ‘Australian’ stamp (unlike those issued today, many of which you’ll see in a future post).
I neither knew or cared about this as a kid. I just thought the above was pretty, and it was one of my most prized stamps. I’m happy it survived whatever happened to my stamp album, and is still in my possession.
Similar to the above are these two German stamps from ’76 and ’77. I’m reasonably sure dad soaked these both off letters we received from relatives in Germany (the postmark is from his hometown in Germany). I certainly don’t remember buying or being sent them, and suspect they (along with perhaps the PNG cover) may have been the earliest parts of the collection. They’re both in remarkably good condition even today, and remain beautiful examples of German Christmas stamps.
As I have mentioned here, I used to own a conventional stamp album with many different stamps from all over the world. I don’t recall exactly what happened to it, but it’s possible I simply gave it away in my early teens when my interests shifted to other things. I’m happy – if this is the case – that I kept the stamps you see here. Aside from the fact I still think most of them are pretty, there’s a lot of nostalgia associated with these particular items.
(When I came to the US I didn’t bring the items shown in this post with me. They stayed with my parents in Australia, ended up being passed on to Bernard, and he returned them to me several years later.)
