Welcome and a lot of joy with your collection.
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Are you saying to NOT remove stamps? As in this box of stuff there is loads if envelopes with tha mans name on.. I was gonna take them off.. who woukd buy an envelope with someones address on
Naturally, it is for you to decide how you want to collect your stamps. From what you have written, your stamps, mostly, are classic. The definition of 'classic' in philately is not set in concrete. Most philatelists use it for the first century of stamp issues: 1840 – 1940. Some refer to the nineteenth century and Great Britain and Commonwealth collectors, sometimes, use it to refer to stamps issued before Queen Elizabeth's reign (1840 – 1952).
Stamps used on cover can carry a premium over used stamps. Being addressed to someone is irrelevant. A nice handwritten address on a nineteenth-century cover may even be preferred. The trade-off will always be between the added postal history value of an 'entire' and the space it takes up when you mount it, or, alternatively, being stored in a box where you will not enjoy it.
The older the envelope, the more interesting it will be. Envelopes, or, more generally, entires better preserve the full cancellation and help you to date the stamp.
There, however, always is the consideration of appearance. A very smudgy envelope may detract from the stamp's appearance and not add any value. Interesting cancellations and cancellations in other colours than black, or – for very old British stamps – red may even be worth a lot more. Again, there are exceptions. So, do not hesitate to ask what you have. For newer stamps, envelopes will not carry much extra monetary value. It, primarily, will be a matter of whether you like the complete picture (taking up a big space) or just the stamp.
Rod's remark holds very true:
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… as you progress you can make better.
Posted 09/23/2022 09:29 am
EmilySloth,
