EARLY SOURCES OF PHILATELY - A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE FRIST PROFESSIONAL PHILATELIC JOURNALS

Abstract

Stamp collecting is not merely a hobby, but an interdisciplinary activity with its own rules, theoretical and historical context, and scientific—or at least quasi-scientific—nature.  Philately is now not merely a field of collecting, but primarily an auxiliary science of history, since the postage stamp is not merely a collectible type of document, but a primary historical source.  As a quasi-scientific field, philately also has its own specialized press, with professional journals dating back to the second half of the 19th century.  This brief research article examines the early sources of philately—the first European philatelic journals of the 19th century—in a comparative context, seeking to situate the history of stamp collecting within a broader context of cultural studies and the history of civilization