Completeness And Varieties

In the lexicon of stamp collecting, what is the generally accepted meaning of the term "complete collection"? For example, if a collector says he/she has a complete collection of US stamps from 1940 onwards, does it mean that the collection has every US stamp issued during the specified period, including all known varieties of every stamp? Or does it simply mean that it has every US stamp that has been assigned a Scott number (major and minor)? Or something else?

The one thing about stamp collecting, is there are "no rules" and you can collect stamps anyway you choose.

More to your point, as a practical matter, one who claims to own every US Stamp from 1940 to date is probably referring to Scott catalog numbers. I wouldn't add all minor Scott number suffixes, as those can include very scarce imperfs and color and gum varieties and other such anomalies that would not be contained in most people's collections.

And even though it doesn't have its own Scott Number suffix, how many can really expect to own the Jenny Souvenir Sheet Reprint (with right-side-up airplane) variety?

It just goes to show that even for the "completist collector", there typically is a limit to just how many "varieties" one can add to a collection and still claim it to be fully complete.

I like wt1's reply. I lay claim to a "complete" collection of US Airmail stamps. In this case, "complete" could be defined for me by what is depicted in the White Ace album pages for US Air Mail stamps. In truth, my collection goes further, but is complete in the sense described by wt1 in that I have (at least) one mint each of C1-C150. As wt1 says, if we insist on "complete" meaning every known variety, or even every variety for which Scott has identified with a separate suffix, we're soon into an area where only the most wealthy could ever have a "complete" collection in that sense.

Just as "beauty" is in the eye of the beholder, so may "complete" depend on the collector's interest and intent. For specific stamps, or types/groups of stamps, "complete" may well encompass all known varieties. But for broader categories, having just one of the main Scott # variety usually suffices.

Completeness does NOT exist, it is a false concept. Catalogues are utterly inconsistent in applying kriteria for their main numbers. And that also goes for so-called specialist's catalogues.

There may be some mainstream but most international catalogues like Scott, Yvert, Michel or Stanley Gibbons prefer to disagree....

You may find Dutch stamps recognized by stanley Gibbons but NOT by the Dutch Stamp Dealers Association.... And the other way around...

Michel in the Specialist Germany Catalogues are highly inconsistent as to types of paper. Sorting out the GDR Ulbricht stamps using Michel. Michel relies on the work of Study Circles [ArGe] and each ArGE is proud to invent the wheel over and over again.

Completeness is what you define it to be.

...Or you can collect using someone else's definition (catalog and album editors). Catalogs and albums have changed their scope over the years, think about if this is good or bad - for you.

http://johnapfelbaum.blogspot.dk/20...rieties.html

There is no universal definition.

Completeness to me means filling every space in my album, which means every major Scott number. If I happen to have a varities with minor suffixes not pictured in my album, I would consider my collection to be "beyond complete".