WHY STAMP COLLECTING IS BACK IN VOGUE

Cole Hendrickson writes:

GORGING ON HBO in Washington, D.C., while waiting for the city to unlock itself, my eye wandered from TV to the media cabinet shelf where my long-forgotten stamp albums sat. An inveterate traveler now marooned by pestilence, I began leafing through them, every postmark a childhood touchstone: The Belgian king, dyed an unflattering rose, that I had nicknamed "pink head." The Czech hockey team that seemed sad to be trapped behind their Iron Curtain. The tiny Laotian mahout atop his enormous elephant sparked dreams of jungle journeys across Southeast Asia. Each stamp was a ticket to a destination I would, and did, later visit.

After an absorbing afternoon, I wondered if a revival is due for this fusty pastime where history, graphic design and exotic landscapes commingle on a bit of sticky perforated paper.

Scott English, executive director of the nonprofit American Philatelic Society (APS) that serves as a resource for stamp collecting and collectors, says online search results listing the APS have roughly doubled to 1.2 million since March. Gerard McCulloch, whose blog Punk Philatelist explores stamps and pop culture, has observed more millennials and women taking up the hobby in the pandemic. Both men think stamp collecting's nondigital nature is compelling. "It's a very analog way to spend your day," said Mr. English.

To read the complete article (subscription required), see:
Why Stamp Collecting Is Suddenly Back in Vogue (https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-stamp-collecting-is-suddenly-back-in-vogue-11591358415)

To read earlier E-Sylum article, see:
MILLENNIALS AND STAMP COLLECTING (https://www.coinbooks.org/v23/esylum_v23n15a44.html)

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