Stamp collection valuation?
Discussion
Is there any particular slant or theme to the collection - GB, Commonwealth, US for example (they are the most in demand in the UK) ? Any particular age range ? Mostly used or unused ? Are they mounted in albums using hinges, or in mounting strips or stockbooks for example, or just loose in boxes ?
You could get them valued by Stanley Gibbons in The Strand, but don't have high expectations. A few years ago there used to be a number of stamp auction houses, e.g. Tony Lester, Warwick and Warwick, Somerset Auctions - if one of them is nearby you might find they will give you an idea of any value. I don't know how many of them are still going.
There are also occasional "stamp fayres" where collectors set up stalls selling their surplus stock; you could try hawking your collection around one of them.
Or you could put them on eBay, either individually or in groups/sets, but you would really want to describe them properly to get best prices and that would probably involve investing in catalogues and significant amounts of time.
You could get them valued by Stanley Gibbons in The Strand, but don't have high expectations. A few years ago there used to be a number of stamp auction houses, e.g. Tony Lester, Warwick and Warwick, Somerset Auctions - if one of them is nearby you might find they will give you an idea of any value. I don't know how many of them are still going.
There are also occasional "stamp fayres" where collectors set up stalls selling their surplus stock; you could try hawking your collection around one of them.
Or you could put them on eBay, either individually or in groups/sets, but you would really want to describe them properly to get best prices and that would probably involve investing in catalogues and significant amounts of time.
Stanley Gibbons, the world’s longest established rare stamp merchant.
They have shows on in September in London.
Depends what you have - is it old stamps, mint, used, British, in an album, loose in a box, so many variables.
I sold most of my GB collections years ago, except the modern mint after decimalisation ones that were not worth more than face value.
Throw them away? Don't be daft! I used them for a good number of years when posting my books - yes, even today you can still use mint GB stamps, not a lot of people know that!
I still have a folder of posted goods (kept in case something went astray in the post and I then had proof not just of posting, but what the package condition was when it left me) - for example see pic: a first class large letter I sent in April 2016, note the stamps (mint) stuck on the packet are all over 30 yrs old from the 1980s - all perfectly legal to use as long as total meets postage payable. In this case 1st class was 95p, the four stamps are that value.
edit
just seen Scaffold (sorry Lily!) has made similar point about S. Gibbons.
They have shows on in September in London.
Depends what you have - is it old stamps, mint, used, British, in an album, loose in a box, so many variables.
I sold most of my GB collections years ago, except the modern mint after decimalisation ones that were not worth more than face value.
Throw them away? Don't be daft! I used them for a good number of years when posting my books - yes, even today you can still use mint GB stamps, not a lot of people know that!
I still have a folder of posted goods (kept in case something went astray in the post and I then had proof not just of posting, but what the package condition was when it left me) - for example see pic: a first class large letter I sent in April 2016, note the stamps (mint) stuck on the packet are all over 30 yrs old from the 1980s - all perfectly legal to use as long as total meets postage payable. In this case 1st class was 95p, the four stamps are that value.
edit
just seen Scaffold (sorry Lily!) has made similar point about S. Gibbons.
Edited by dandarez on Saturday 21st August 00:03
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