Stamp Dilemma Or Not?

To make a long story short, I recently discovered a type of variety on some stamps. I submitted this information to a study group journal publication. It has not been published yet due to delays with the publication. Since I know and discovered this difference, do I just sit on it and wait until it is published or do I buy any such stamps with this variety on it which is not too common that I come across while knowing that it could potentially affect its price upwards after it is pointed out in the publication? What would you do?

Knowledge is power. I see no dilemma in buying stamps with a recognizable variety. People do it every day. The fact that you discovered it or are currently one of the few to know about it changes nothing, you are not required to point it out to dealers who have listed the stamp for sale. They priced it, if you think it reasonable than go for it.

Obviously if you are close friends with a dealer that might be a time when you point it out privately.

Let's just say that the variety type I had discovered over a year ago has already been known and published in the same journal. It appears that most have not really paid attention to it still even though some are hard to find and rare. I just discovered a few other stamps recently that can be added to the list of the ones that I already had listed before which follow the same pattern. It is an open area in which several more stamps can potentially be discovered and added to what is known.

We are close to the fine line of "collecting for investment" here. I suppose the question is what do you think you would get out of it in the long run?


-IBFS

This is not collecting for investment. It is collecting futures in the hope of a price increase which can than translate into a sale or trade for new stamps for the collection.

I agree with IBFS that this is very close to "investment." However, in your position I would do the same and collect as many as possible of the variety. As collectors and enthusiasts, we are so seldom on the same side of the fence as the people from whom we buy the stamps, and I think it morally right and acceptable to do what you are doing. Two fundamental things come to mind in this: that you enjoy your hobby, and that you are able to contribute to further knowledge. That you may be able to make some money is a bonus.

It would be important to obtain a few copies of the variety for the discovering specialist to have as a study reference. However, I am not in any way trying to corner the market in any way in this variety since I do want others to be able to find it too in order to ad validity to it. That is why I decided to write about it in a study group paper. There are some dealers that make discoveries too, but these are usually announced in ads that show the variety for sale by them at a premium over the regular stamp.

The universally-admired (okay, let's make that near-universally-admired, just in case) Herman Herst Jr was a happy arbitrageur, regularly travelling to Europe to buy stamps for which he could get a better price in America. Let's call that geographic arbitrage.

Does anyone think that there is anything wrong with geographic arbitrage? I would hope not, or world trade would grind to a halt, and we would all be the poorer for it.

This is a case of knowledge arbitrage. The creation of that advantage required years of study & experience, and a bit of, you know, like, work to actualize. I can see of no reason why knowledge arbitrage is less meritorious than geographic arbitrage.

All of the above having been said, there is an important difference between buying in the open anonymous market and approaching, say, a friend at the local stamp club, where the word 'friend' suggests a fiduciary obligation that buying in the open market does not.

The only people I see in this entire episode who would be subject to a strong ethical injunction against buying this stamp in anticipation of a price increase are the reviewers & publishers of the journal; for them, this would be insider trading, and profiting before their subscribers had the chance to do so would be wrong.

I am a little surprised about the references to "collecting for investment", as if that were something that is somehow inherently corrupt(ing); AFAIK, the only thing wrong with "collecting for investment" is a practical issue, eg, it so often ends in a loss that it is best avoided altogether.

This seems like a relatively low-risk exception to that rule.

Cheers,

/s/ ikeyPikey

Lets stop dancing around and the heck with your idea of making money off your petty discovery .If you found a variety and your proud of that, find show it here .I have hundreds of varieties that are not listed ,but what do I do with them ? -----I post it ,on a chat room and show and accept comments from other collectors . Your big secret is not worth anything until it is reviewed and studied by experience philatelist and no!! people are not lined up on this chat room to take your profit away from you .

I have hundreds if not thousands of stuff like this in my collection -------

and here is more ------