The fi rst choice for stamp collectors since 1890 a Stanley Gibbons publication SEPTEMBER 2011 Gibbons £3.50 tampMonthly SPECIAL AEROPHILATELYS ISSUE 0 1 9 770954 808144 US Pioneer Airmails Mail ights of the US 0 2 pioneering period 9 770954 808144 0 3 9 770954 808144 0 4 9 770954 808144 Zeppelin Airmails Britain’s First Zeppelin airships and 0 5 the philatelic material 9 770954 808144 they produced Aerial Post 0 6 9 770954 808144 Also inside... Great Britain’s 0 7 Unique to 9 770954 808144 World Philately Rarest Stamps Russian New Zealand’s We compile Aircraft rst government the de nitive 0 8 The extraordinary career life insurance ‘wants9 list’ 770954 of GB 808144 of Andrei Tupolev, as collecting told through stamps stamps 0 9 PLUS: Machin Watch · Rugby World Cup · Festival of Britain 9 770954 808144 1 0 9 770954 808144 1 1 9 770954 808144 1 2 9 770954 808144 Gibbons 39 tampMonthly THE UK’S NUMBER ONE STAMP MAGAZINE SVolume 42 Number 4 September 2011 UK Aerial Post Centenary: New miniature sheet 91 100 60 33 112 New Collector – Express A Tonic to the Nation – Aviation Superstar – Rugby World The Day the Hindenberg Mail: The Festival of Britain: Andrei Tupolev: Cup: Professor Flew over the Olympics: John Holman Derek Connell Ian Hamilton Chris Coggins John Moody Contents NEWSDESK SPECIAL FEATURES 7 Newsdesk 78 United States Pioneer Airmail Multiples at Sotheby’s; Imperforate Thunderbirds sheet; Peter Martin tells the stories of some early airmail flights Cook Islands variety discovered; Autumn Stampex and the pilots who undertook them 22 Society News 84 Norway, Its Stamps and Postal Service Reports from philatelic societies Peter Jennings FRPSL, FRGS, reports from the ‘Land of the Midnight Sun’ 26 Diary Dates Forthcoming Fairs and Auctions 91 An Aviation Superstar – Andrei Tupolev Ian Hamilton looks at the career of ‘the father of Soviet 30 Around the Houses aviation’ and the aircraft he designed News of recent auction results 96 Australian Embossed Food Parcel Labels 1946–49 BRITISH STAMPS Neil Russell FRPSL, FBSAP, provides some further thoughts on the labels used to ship post-war food parcels to Britain 39 GB News Issues for the First UK Aerial Post and the House of Hanover 100 Rugby World Cup in Stamps The Rugby World Cup begins this month in New Zealand; 42 Centenary of the Coronation Aerial Post Professor Chris Coggins highlights some of the stamps Peter Jennings FRPSL, FRGS, takes a look back to an produced to mark previous competitions important aviation achievement 102 The Postmarks of the Gilbert and Ellice Islands 47 The First UK Aerial Post Within the King George VI Period, 1937–1956 Tony Buckingham looks at souvenirs marking David Horry moves to the Pacific in search of postmarks to anniversaries of the first UK Aerial Post be found on the stamps of King George VI 51 Machin Watch 107 New Zealand’s First Government Life Insurance John Deering’s regular update Stamp Issue 58 A Tonic to the Nation The unique ‘Lighthouse’ stamps of New Zealand are Derek Connell takes a philatelic visit to the Festival of examined by Robin Gwynn FRPSL, FRPSNZ Britain 112 The Day the Hindenburg Flew Over the Olympic 66 Great Britain’s Rarest Stamps Games Exceptional items reviewed by Paul Brittain John Moody provides a brief history of Germany’s Zeppelins 68 GB Specialised Catalogue 150 A Corner of the Empire – Pangkor and the Dindings A supplement to the Great Britain Specialised Catalogue This little-known area of Malaya is visited by Rob Holley 4 G.S.M. September 2011 Dear Reader Other than inside the pages of my own stamp album (a place which is, of complete the questionnaires in the existing, printed, catalogues, suggest that course, much more important than what most people consider to be ‘the real the vast majority of us want them to stay that way. world’), I have to admit to not being the best organised person around—just I really don’t know what form the Stanley Gibbons Catalogue will take in ten ask my wife! or 20 years time—but I am confident that SG will continue to provide us with However, one thing which I do manage to do, most of the time, is to keep the catalogues we want—it’s up to us to make it clear just what that is! separate my twin pleasures (or sometimes, tasks) of editing this magazine and Just as I ask catalogue users to give me their thoughts via a questionnaire, I the Stanley Gibbons Catalogue. am frequently asked, as editor of Gibbons Stamp Monthly, how I view the future of Only at this time of year, as the next edition of ‘Part 1’ goes through its final the magazine and, in particular, when I think it will move from a print-on-paper checks before being sent off to the printer, do I find it difficult to consider product to an electronic one. I always tick the ‘more than ten years’ box (always either job in isolation. I hope, therefore, that you will not mind this month’s the longest option), but it seems that most magazine editors think it will happen ‘Dear Reader’ having a slightly catalogue-oriented slant. a lot sooner that that for their titles. When I started collecting British Commonwealth over 50 years ago, I was one This may be a reaction to the fact that magazine sales, generally have fallen of many, many thousands, for whom ‘Part 1’ was the annual guide. Today, as sharply during the current recession and some are either closing altogether or collecting becomes more and more specialised, I find myself in a minority going ‘online’ only. and people I meet express surprise that I still attempt to collect such a wide The good news is that GSM’s sales have definitely gone against this trend field. and have, in fact, been increasing in recent months, so the future for this For those collectors who concentrate on Australia, Mauritius or Ceylon, magazine seems healthy. We are grateful to you for ‘sticking with us in these Stanley Gibbons now produce a range of 22 ‘Commonwealth Country difficult times’ and, for our part, will continue to strive to bring you the most Catalogues’, with predominantly yellow covers, and these have proved extremely informative, entertaining and best value stamp magazine anywhere. popular, listing each country’s stamps right up to the present day, while ‘Part 1’ now closes at the end of 1970. The only problem is that these smaller catalogues are published roughly every two-to-five years, so at a time when the market is active, as it is at present for most Commonwealth stamps, they can quickly become out of date, as far as the prices are concerned. The current Indian Ocean catalogue was published in 2006, but you will be shocked to discover that, when you empty your piggy bank and go down to the Strand to buy SG 1 and 2 of Mauritius, the £1 million which you have saved up will now only buy you the 1d. ‘Post Office’ stamp, whereas five years ago it would have bought both of them! Your1 £ Stanley Gibbons So, how do we provide the more specialised collector with the regular price Voucher can be found on updates which we can still provide for the ‘all-Commonwealth’ man—or woman. page 194 The only answer seems to be via an electronic version of the catalogue—and we are busy working towards having this available. But feedback from those who REGULAR FEATURES 164 The Unissued Stamps of Queen Elizabeth II David Horry reveals the story behind an unissued stamp 33 New Collector Catalogue Column John Holman looks at Express Mail stamps; designers Hugh Jefferies reports on the new Commonwealth and Arnold Machin and Stuart Rose, both born 100 years British Empire Stamps catalogue ago; UK Aerial Post anniversary items and National Trust ‘Passport Stamps’ NEW ISSUES 71 Dear GSM 155 Shore to Shore Readers’ correspondence Island Hopper reports on stamps for The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society, a Commonwealth Youth Games 73 Postal Stationery Matters sheet from the Isle Man and issues for Jersey’s financial Peter van Gelder reports on New South Wales Greater industry and scenery Jubilee cards, early GB aerogrammes, New Zealand postcards and Cecogrammes 158 Stamp News in Brief A summary of recent and forthcoming issues from around 90 Stamp Hunting the world Stamps worth looking for from Northern Rhodesia Competition 162 Panorama Your chance to win a £50 SG voucher Dean Shepherd investigates some recent new issues 117 The Diarie of Samuel Creeps 165 Catalogue Supplement Michael Banister selects extracts from the Creeps’ journal A 12-page update to the Stanley Gibbons Catalogue EDITORIAL OFFICE ADVERTISEMENT SALES NOTICES Copyright of Articles 01425 481 042 01425 481 054 All the Articles and Features in this [email protected] [email protected] ISSN 0954-8084 magazine are copyright and must not be reproduced without the consent of the Editor Price Editor and/or the respective authors. HUGH JEFFERIES Sales Executives £3.50 a copy from booksellers, EDWARD WIDDUP newsagents and stamp dealers. Printed by Assistant Editor HARRIET WALDRON Wyndeham Roche Limited DEAN SHEPHERD ALANDA KEMPTON Postal Subscription Rates UK £42. Europe, Overseas (surface mail) Trade Distribution News and Art Editor £67.20. Airmail £116.20. Comag, Tavistock Road, MICHAEL BRIGGS West Drayton, Middlesex UB7 7QE POSTAL SUBSCRIPTIONS We accept all major credit cards. Tel: 01895 444055 Editor’s Assistant 01425 472 363 LORRAINE HOLCOMBE [email protected] Please note that subscriptions cannot be Opinions expressed in articles in Gibbons booked for shorter periods than one year.