Overrun Countries Blocks Of 10

Hi! I'm new to stamp collecting and this group! I just received my husband's grandfather's collection, and have been busy making an inventory. I live in a small town and our library does not have a set of Scott books, nor have I been successful finding anything about blocks of 10 on the Internet. These pages were separated from one of his albums. I know these stamps are quite common...I just was wondering if there was anything unique about the blocks of 10.

Thanks so much for your help!

First let me say to the forum.
I know starting out or having some stamps drop in your lap can be quite changeling. You will find here many knowable people that will be more than willing to help and answer your questions. Here is the best way to start out. First you need to post scans or high quality photos of the stamps, preferably on a black back ground. Once you have done that you will start receiving answers to your questions. One of the first things I always tell new collectors is make the small investment in the basic equipment and reference materials. Believe me it will save you in time and frustration.
Looking forward in seeing your scans.
Ron

Thanks Ron! My husband's grandfather passed away a number of years ago. The last time he showed his collection of US Air Mails was in 1956 where he won the Grand Award. He was quite a collector! I am a " newbie" to the stamp world, but have greatly enjoyed researching his stamps for the past few weeks. I have so much to learn! I was so glad to come across this site this evening! I am sure you will read many posts from me in the future!

I'll attempt to scan some stamps in the next few days. Anything of particular interest?

Start with the Overrun Nations blocks of 10
As a Flags collector they will surely be a sight for sore eyes !

Oh yes.....



Have fun at SCF and post often.

Londonbus1

Oops! I forgot this one.
You will need to post some good scans....they are common but there are some rather juicy varieties that are not so common.

Welcome txblueeyes!

Do any of the airmail stamps have blimps on them?

Another way to obtain a set of Scott Stamp Catalogs without breaking the bank is to look for used ones on ebay or Amazon. It's ok to use catalogs that are a few years old, although for your purposes I think catalogs from 2006 and newer would be fine. There are six volumes that cover the entire world. If your husband's grandfather collected just US stamps then you could just buy Volume 1 which has US stamps plus countries starting with A and B. There is also a Scott Catalog that is not part of the six volume set that is called the Specialized Catalog of United States Stamps and Covers. If the collection is just US stamps, this catalog would also be suitable for you.

I built my 2006 Scott Catalog set by buying them used, one at a time, mostly on Amazon. You might find complete sets on ebay that are several years old.

I'm looking forward to seeing what you have.

~~ Mary-Jane ~~

Hi Mary Jane! Yes, I do have the Zeppelins...just wish I had the upside down "Jenny" as well! My mother-in-law made color copies of these, so I will try to scan the copies instead of the originals to see if they turn out. I'll try it now and will post soon.

Let's see how this works out. Here's the block of Korea stamps...

Here's the Greece Block of 10...

These might be normally referred to as plate blocks of ten. Or a margin block of ten. Your husband's grandfather put alot of love into his stamp collecting. The write-up for each stamp is not a common practice and very desireable.

You truly have a wonderful collection. You don't know how lucky you are!

I wonder if there's a cow in the rain.
(It's a high-value turn-of-the-century stamp.)

Nice looking stamps and desirable blocks. You may want to consider getting them into something that is acid free and protective so that they remain in desirable condition. Great stuff though txblueeyes and WELCOME, glad to have you with us. - Jeff

Thanks! I am not sure why my husband's grandfather never put these into an album when he put so much work into them. This portion of his collection consists of 18 pages...a title page, a Forward, Stamp History, then a separate page for the 13 sets with blocks and history of the country, Research Data page followed by a map of the Overrun Countries outlined. He must have spent hours working on this and it's so nice to have the descriptions. I'm not sure what he used for reference, but I do know he loved history. He was retired military who fought in WWI and WWII.

It looks like your husband's grandfather made his own albums and his own commentary, which to me is better than placing them in any store-bought album. What he may not have considered is the acid condition of the paper he used. We don't know if he used the best acid-free paper he could find or non-acid-free paper. Non-acid-free paper will affect the stamps and cause them to deteriorate by oxidation (think of rust).

You could place the stamps in mounts specifically designed for stamps and then attach the mounts to the same pages you already have. That way none of his writing would have to be discarded. The mounts would also surround the stamps and prevent creases.

Thanks for the advice. He did place everything in mounts and he purchased Lindner albums and binders. The pages this work is on looks like they were also supplied through Lindner, just never placed in a binder - no holes in the pages to place in a binder. My mother-in-law bought some Upright Archival storage boxes at The Container Store for the collection. I'm not sure if this is adequate. Please let me know if you have any other suggestions.