STAMPBOARDS - Postage Stamp Chat Board and Stamp Forum

Many here feel the high face values issued by some countries are purely for collector consumption. Not always true.

Margo and I are on holiday now in Western Samoa.

AMark asked if we could mail him a postcard if we found time.

We have driven entirely around the large main island here during this visit, and right down the two centre roads and saw just ONE Post Office. Finding a gas station is near as hard - NONE on the entire long south coast.

Dutifully went inside for a look and noticed a nice Philatelic counter with all issues, and a detailed listing.

Went to sales counter and the charming young lady there helped us find a pretty fish mini sheet for Mark's postcard - at $S5 it was double rate for a Canada postcard, (about $S2.50 in actuality) but will be the ONLY one ever postally used I can bet!

She happily allowed me to cancel it neatly as you can see - in my 50 years of travelling globally to 140 countries, have never had a refusal .. no idea why others say getting to cancel your own mail is hard to do - just takes a smile.

ANYWAY - chatting to her, I asked what the HIGHEST face value Samoa issued was, and she cheerfully handed me over her counter book which had part sheets up to $S200 values (=$A112 EACH) and $150 and $100 and $80 and $70 values as yo'u can see that I took photos of.

I asked what $S200 covered and she said a 6 kilo parcel to Australia. She said for heavier parcels to oz, or heavy parcels to USA or Europe she often used THREE or even FOUR x $S200 stamps = $600 or $S800 face. (Unskilled workers here get paid $S2 an hour). A very large beer in a restaurant is $S4!

So - what HIGHER face purely postage stamps exist over $A112? ANYWHERE!

Most of these are not even on member here Steven Zirinsky's superb site! -

https://zirinskystamps.com/shop/catalog/index.php?cPath=1086_956_511&sort=1a&page=6

Glen

Glen-

Yes....and they have issued several $200 stamps over the years as they go through them. With COVID, parcel use skyrocketed. These are all listed in the Scot Catalogue now. I haven't updated that part of my site in a while.
But here they are. The beer looks good.

Will send a complete listing later, and will tweak this...but here are some of the issues you mentioned. There is a series from November 2022 that I will send later as well as a listing of everything since 2011.

Regards from NYC

Enjoy your travels! We have lots of students from these islands, so I would love to visit one day. However, my students said I shouldn't because Samoan teachers are very strict and still whallop kids over the head as part of their classroom behaviour management strategies! Perhaps they don't want me to pick up some ideas.

Beaut stamps. I wonder if Tonga issue similar high value stamps like these? Not sure, but I would suspect Samoa takes the lead here.

Stamps issued in October 2022.

I only looked in her thick counter book back to about $50 value, and there were a ton more under that in there.

So nothing issued during 2023 as far as you know?

Beautiful stamps and great photos. Mark will be very happy with that card.

Enjoy your time there

So no contenders above $A112 face anywhere else?

Here in the land of Royal Mail, the current highest denomination is just £5 - which from next month will only be 4 times the basic 1st class inland postage rate.

A lot of British post offices don't even stock the £5 stamps. Any postage requirement above basic rates defaults to a ubiquitous counter printed label.

I'm surprised Royal Mail don't issue higher value definitives. Whether post offices stock them or not, I would have thought there was profit to be made selling £10 and £20 stamps to collectors. And you can easily get rates over £20 with Special Delivery or overseas parcels.

Perhaps the fact that they haven't is an indication that they have given up selling stamps and "collectibles" to stamp collectors and instead see their market as the fans of whatever franchise they put on each issue (Warhammer, Paddington etc.)

The UK £10 Britannia stamp was a superb looking stamp - STACKED with endless security features the Chinese fakers could never copy - so what did Royal Mail do - ceased printing them! You cannot make this stuff up.


I LOVE this stamp – so many security features – Braille dots, extensive micro printing, silver foil printed in many places, side ellipses, coloured silk rag paper security fibres etc, etc.

MEMO to Royal Mail -- THESE

never

got forged. So what does Royal Mail do - stopped printing them soon after they were issued!

lesbootman wrote: ↑03 Sep 2023 16:40 Here in the land of Royal Mail, the current highest denomination is just £5 - which from next month will only be 4 times the basic 1st class inland postage rate.

A lot of British post offices don't even stock the £5 stamps. Any postage requirement above basic rates defaults to a ubiquitous counter printed label.

For once, the USPS outdoes its British counterpart! We do have a specific issue for Express Mail service (overnight in most places) that rings in at $28.75. Annoyingly, it is only available to order by mail in a sheetlet of 4, making it a whopping $115 to put in your album.
That's the highest I am aware of; the largest definitive available online (and likely not in many post offices outside main branches) is the current $10 definitive. Either way, Glen's Samoa issue has us beat by miles!

Those stamps are incredible high values, must be hard for collectors then.

Highest face value for a Belgian stamp was a parcel post stamp, face value 1000 Belgian franc, issued in 1977. that was quite a lot of money back then. When the Euro was implemented in 2002, conversion was around 1€= 40 franc, thus this had a face value of +/- 25 euro. The price for a 800g bread was 0,75 euro back then.

Global Admin wrote: ↑07 Sep 2023 19:18 The UK £10 Britannia stamp was a superb looking stamp - STACKED with endless security features the Chinese fakers could never copy - so what did Royal Mail do - ceased printing them! You cannot make this stuff up.


I LOVE this stamp – so many security features – Braille dots, extensive micro printing, silver foil printed in many places, side ellipses, coloured silk rag paper security fibres etc, etc.

MEMO to Royal Mail -- THESE

never

got forged. So what does Royal Mail do - stopped printing them soon after they were issued!

I too loved the UK £10 stamp I have mint and used normal and a used one of the 'ten pounds' text in fluorescent ink. I have a few spares as my teacher friend was marking GCSE exams in the summer of 1993 when it was issued and the children's papers came in heavy parcels all with £10 stamps on, to say I was pleased was an understatement.

If we have a higher rate than covered by stamps and very often they are printed instead of stamps, the dreaded Horizon label is printed at the Post Office counter and stuck on the package. I have collected a few and the highest value one I can easily lay my hands on is £21.35 for International standard 0.58 kg parcel UK to USA.

The lowest from memory is a part payment make up rate to Large with I think 3 commemorative stamps and the Horizon label for 2p (this is in my shoebox of items to process and I don't want to get it out at the moment during New Year Holiday period - people with a wife around will know this dilemma). It must have cost more to print it than the value on it!

I know Revenue Stamps are not Postage Stamps - I just thought it’ll be interesting to share (I’m sorry if inappropriate)

Back in 2015 Maldives released a 10,000 Rufiyaa Revenue Stamp

Face value in todays money is approx:
AU$950
US$650
£510
€590

I am unaware of any stamp currently available with any face value this high

For those curious about how high Zimbabwe's whacky dollar face values got to...

First dollar lasted maybe 26 years, from 1980 to around 2006. Highest face value on the last stamp issue using this got to 650,000.

Second dollar lasted maybe 2 years, last stamp using this one got to 10 million.

Third dollar they didn't even bother using numbers. Letters designating zones instead, like Z for Zimbabwe, A for Africa, E for Europe & R for Rest of world.

They've been using US$ since around 2009/2010, so nothing 'high' on today's stamps.

Last time we were in Zimbabwe a couple of years back, there was no real currency.

Arrive into Airport from Windhoek Namibia, and need a Visa on Arrival.

'What currency will you paying me in?' the Official asks.

No credit possible cards - of course - the ATMS have not worked there for years. one poor sod ahead of us in line tried 4 different cards - all kept getting 'communication error' message.

'I have Sterling and $A and USD' I replied - - no problem - and he writes down how much in each for the Visa is needed.

Get into the cab for ride to hotel. Same story - 'What currency will you paying me in?' And so it was hotels Hotel and restaurants. They get by SOMEHOW!

Glen

Cheesie Hi

I echo your sentiments ref the £10.00 Brit. You mentioned getting extra copies from a teacher friend on papers sent for marking.

Two questions

1) Did you keep some on their original wrappers?

2) If yes do you have any spares?

Sark

The Express Mail stamp shown above is the highest value sold in the US. You will not be able to get one without ordering it in a sheet of 4 from Kansas City (the fulfillment center) or I'd guess, the Philatelic Window in the main PO in a few cities. I couldn't get them in Milwaukee, for example. The ugly US$10 definitive is the highest value of those, and also "not sold in any store" as they used to say in the TV ads.

It would not be crazy, I'd guess, to order a set of those Samoan stamps if you have the spare $$$. The average collector isn't going to pay US$73 ($S200) FV for a modern stamp they can never use. The number out there after a few years will be tiny.

PetCin88 wrote: ↑01 Jan 2024 23:25 I know Revenue Stamps are not Postage Stamps - I just thought it’ll be interesting to share (I’m sorry if inappropriate)

Back in 2015 Maldives released a 10,000 Rufiyaa Revenue Stamp

Face value in todays money is approx:
AU$950
US$650
£510
€590

I am unaware of any stamp currently available with any face value this high

Imagine if the Australian Tax Office (ATO) had revenue stamps!

PetCin88 wrote: ↑01 Jan 2024 23:25 I know Revenue Stamps are not Postage Stamps - I just thought it’ll be interesting to share (I’m sorry if inappropriate)

Back in 2015 Maldives released a 10,000 Rufiyaa Revenue Stamp

Face value in todays money is approx:
AU$950
US$650
£510
€590

I am unaware of any stamp currently available with any face value this high

I have yet to find a revenue stamp that has a higher face value than the following - S$50,000 (about US$37,000 in today's money) revenue stamp from Singapore. However, this stamp (and the other revenue stamps in the series) was withdrawn in 1999.

Margie1148 wrote: ↑17 Jan 2024 11:56

PetCin88 wrote: ↑01 Jan 2024 23:25 I know Revenue Stamps are not Postage Stamps - I just thought it’ll be interesting to share (I’m sorry if inappropriate)

Back in 2015 Maldives released a 10,000 Rufiyaa Revenue Stamp

Face value in todays money is approx:
AU$950
US$650
£510
€590

I am unaware of any stamp currently available with any face value this high

I have yet to find a revenue stamp that has a higher face value than the following - S$50,000 (about US$37,000 in today's money) revenue stamp from Singapore. However, this stamp (and the other revenue stamps in the series) was withdrawn in 1999.

You win

Reminds me of the US $100,000 Treasury banknotes / bills / gold certificates

Catweazle wrote: ↑17 Jan 2024 10:29

PetCin88 wrote: ↑01 Jan 2024 23:25 I know Revenue Stamps are not Postage Stamps - I just thought it’ll be interesting to share (I’m sorry if inappropriate)

Back in 2015 Maldives released a 10,000 Rufiyaa Revenue Stamp

Face value in todays money is approx:
AU$950
US$650
£510
€590

I am unaware of any stamp currently available with any face value this high

Imagine if the Australian Tax Office (ATO) had revenue stamps!

It would be interesting

I think some are getting carried away with adding revenue stamps here, there is a vast difference between a regular postage stamp and a revenue stamp.

The question after all was... postage stamp.

Allanswood wrote: ↑17 Jan 2024 16:30 I think some are getting carried away with adding revenue stamps here, there is a vast difference between a regular postage stamp and a revenue stamp.

The question after all was... postage stamp.

erich wrote: ↑17 Jan 2024 07:34 The Express Mail stamp shown above is the highest value sold in the US. You will not be able to get one without ordering it in a sheet of 4 from Kansas City (the fulfillment center) or I'd guess, the Philatelic Window in the main PO in a few cities. I couldn't get them in Milwaukee, for example. The ugly US$10 definitive is the highest value of those, and also "not sold in any store" as they used to say in the TV ads.

Not completely true, the USPS website does offer a "Hi-Value year packet" each year with single copies of the priority mail, express mail, and his value definitives such as this year's $10 stamp at face value. The 2023 set is still available. https://store.usps.com/store/product/stamp-collectors/2023-h ... t-S_992306

And it's possible to buy single high-denomination stamps at local post offices subject to availability. I did it more than once at my local USPS office.

Number-O-Ne wrote: ↑18 Jan 2024 00:01 And it's possible to buy single high-denomination stamps at local post offices subject to availability. I did it more than once at my local USPS office.

True, it really depends on the counter person and their mood at any given time. If you have a working relationship with a counter person they usually will help you out, others just give you blank look and say they only sell the full pane.

Here, they pretty much have Forever stamps and the dreaded White Label Machine.

We used to have a much better-stocked counter back when they still had a philatelic window, but it's been at least a decade since it was running. It's too bad, too, because they always had a nice display of present and past issues.

That being said, I've never had an issue getting any current commemorative stamps or high-value definitives--one of the benefits of my local PO being the main distribution center for southeastern New England!

I wonder who has the lowest 'high value' stamps currently issued?

AP has given up on high values and just asks you to use multiples of the same stamp. 30 years ago we had a $20.00 stamp... long gone.

As far as I can see, the highest international stamp is just $4.30 and the highest domestic stamp is $3.60

A large envelope costs more than that to post.