Catalogs By Country

So I have a general idea of catalogs by country:

People in the US use Scott
People in Britian and former British colonies use Stanley Gibbons.
Germans use Michel
Canadians use Unitrade

Is there a guide to catalog by country?

I think you are mostly correct my where people live. But there is a collecting crossover, serious collectors of UK and Commonwealth would probably have the SG regardless of where they live.

Netherlands use the NVPH Speciale Catalogus
France uses Yvert et Tellier
Switzerland Zumstein, Michel or Yvert et Tellier

I use Michel at present for central Europe, including Switzerland, Austria, Hungary, etc. mainly as an authoritative reference, because Scott is inferior (its most appropriate for US). I use Scott first because its easier for me language-wise, but rely on Michel for disambiguation and proper organization and eventual design of my European album pages.

I use Scott for US and the rest of the world, at present, mainly because my library does not stock Michel or Yvert. I have only purchased Michel Central Europe and Scott US Specialized. When I get to (organizing) France I may have to pick up Yvert.

So, although you're asking for a guide to the country-catalog association based on catalog country of origin, but that may differ from a guide to which catalogs are most appropriate for the country you are collecting.

Collectors of China material use Chan's
Collectors of Scandinavian material use Facit

I guess I should have said based on country you collect instead of where you live. I collect Ukraine and the Ukrainian Post Office uses Michel numbers right on their web site.

I have favourite catalogues for many countries but I get a lot of benefit from having several catalogues that give different perspectives on the same country.

My starting point for most countries is Stanley Gibbons Parts 1-22 and their Commonwealth country catalogues.

I also use Michel for Europe and the Scott Classic and Standard catalogues.

For Scandinavia and Finland I use Facit but I prefer Norgeskatalogen for Norway.

For Germany I use the Michel Specialised and Private Posts catalogues.

For France I use Maury.

For Greece I use Hellas and Vlastos.

For Crete I use the Feenstra handbook.

For the Russian Zemstvos I use Artuchov.

For Australia I use the ACSC (Brusden White).

I have quite a few more but these are the ones I use most.

i would like to find a specialized Argentina catalog in English...Stanley Gibbons has a list of catalogs for Central America and all kinds of small countries ..but not Argentina...Scott gives a small overview but they can not list everything !!

Hi philb,

SG's standard catalogue for Argentina is Part 20 "South America" but I wouldn't describe it as "specialised". It appears to me to be at a similar level of detail as the Scott Classic but I don't have much experience with Argentina's stamps.

If one collects Trucial states, including the labels,
one apparently needs Michel.
I have ordered but not arrived yet
Minkus and "official" Trucial states catalogues are hopeless.

As I'm mainly collecting Finland I use LaPe. Finnish Post Office uses LaPe and Norma numberings on their online database.

For collectors of Japan, there are two competing general catalogs, the Sakura ("cherry blossom"), and the JSDA (Japan Stamp Dealers Association). The Sakura is more commonly used in Japan, I think, and certainly is in the US, if one goes beyond Scott. Every stamp is pictured in color, which clearly helps with identification. However, the JSDA lists telegraph stamps, which I'm pretty the Sakura doesn't.

There is a specialized catalog, now in multiple volumes covering separate time periods, usually referred to as the JSCA (not sure what that really stands for) in specialized auction houses, etc. It is also sometimes called the "Nissen", which uses the first kanji for Japan ("ni" from "ni-hon") and the first character from "specialty" ("sen" from "senmon"). (I'm using a new laptop -- I've got to figure out how to invoke a Japanese keyboard on here, and then I'd be able to show those characters on here.)

The Sakura and the JSCA use the same numbering system (and I believe they're published by the same group?), while the JSDA uses a different numbering system.

-- Dave

Thanks Nigel, I guess I am stuck with the Scotts A-B catalog for now !!

As a relative newbie to Japan collecting,
the "prefectures" cause the most angst.
Which catalogue adress these the best with suitable images?

Rod, I think the Sakura would serve your needs very well. The prefectural stamps are in a separate section (called "furusato" stamps), with each one individually pictured in color. Also, commemoratives are broken out separately from definitives, as are National Park, New Year's and Airmail stamps. It also shows in a simplified fashion postal stationery as well.

The Sakura 2013 should be out now, and hopefully for a reasonable price in Australia. The most recent I have is 2010, and its cover price was 800 yen. Because the US$/yen exchange rate sucks (that's the technical term), anything from Japan has become ridiculously expensive here. I think the Australian $ has fared better, given that it's also strong compared to the US$. Also, I don't think anyone is importing these catalogs (including the specialized) into the US anymore, and they're hard to find here, and stunningly expensive on ebay (like US$30-40). I've got to believe that you will fare better in Australia.

And I'm happy to help id any more you have. I think I had just started reading this board several weeks ago, when you had posted about a rogue prefectural then. I think Kim had come to the rescue.

I'm personally just thrilled to find someone else collecting Japan! Usually on any stamp chatboard I participate in, I am frequently the solitary collector (or it feels that way, at least).

-- Dave

Thank you Dave,
You may be surprised how many Japanese collectors here.
But part of the deal is, if you are a senior collector
then you have to "show and tell" with what you have,
we like showoffs here
Attempt to convert some SCF members.