A Little Piece of History

The Postal History Walking Tour was an afternoon of big words and old stories. Organized by the Filipinas Stamp Collectors Club (FSCC), it was a small trip in history guided by black and white images and anecdotes. Not to mention, the auction at the end of the tour felt like a time warp.

The tour begins in Liwasang Bonifacio, continues to nearby areas representing significant parts of our postal history, and ends in the compound of the *Manila Central Post Office (MCPO).

This time, for a twist, we will not talk about the tour (not now) but on what happened after.

At the auction, we saw 1898 Spanish–Philippines stamps, an original German (Eagle) Swastika cap, and ancient coins, among others. One of us got a 1953 Pepsi Philippines Ad and a pre-WW2 photo of Intramuros.

That’s where the word and world of Philately welcomed us.

Photo by Eric Isaac ©

Here come the big words…

At the auction, we met bibliophiles (book collectors), coin collectors and numismatics (those who study currency), antiquaries (antique experts/collectors), and stamp collectors and philatelists.

Philately is the study of postage stamps. It comes from the Greek words Philos (friends) and Atelei (to be exempt from charge). It is usually equated to the art and science of stamp collecting. To many, Philately lets you learn about a country’s history, culture, passions, nature, and industries. All that with a small piece of paper.

In 1767, the Philippines established its postal service – the first in all of Asia. We even became a leading center in 1838. We also issued Asia’s very first stamp in 1854 – that of the profile of Queen Isabella of Spain (depicted in the first photo).

In the 1930s, our country also issued the FIRST set of basketball stamps in the world. Now that says so much about us.

Philatelic stamps come in different forms: Mint, Cancelled, Setenant, Souvenir Sheets, and Sheetlets (imagine that!). As with most collectibles, stamps with errors or variants are valued pretty high. With an eagle eye, one collector pointed out to us stamps that had butterflies with only one antenna. A design mistake that resulted to an increase in [its] value.

More importantly, stamps tell stories: paintings and painters, celebrities and events, architectural treasures, rare flora, and endemic fauna. Hometowns, initiatives, and even pets are immortalized in small sheets of paper that travel around the world. Wish you were here never resounded so well when you send postcards paired with wonderfully illustrated tourism or nature stamps.

Stamps also share in the adventure– yours and the letter’s. Sometimes they arrive; sometimes not.

Stamps and stories

One of the best parts of collecting stamps is the story on how you got hold of them. One YTRiP volunteer began stamp-collecting when his grandmother gave him a set of old and used stamps at age thirteen.

My interest arose when I saw the Philippine Lighthouses series and the variant 2004 World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Philippine Owl stamps. It turns out that WWF only prints stamps every seven years. It was an object of pride and joy as much as an investment.  On the other hand, the commemorative stamps for the first Philippine Expedition to Mount Everest have been (unfortunately for us) sold out.

At the end of the day, our guide, Lawrence gave us old stamps as souvenirs; I got three Manuel Quezon stamps from the early 20th century, purposely on Quezon Day.**

In a nation supposedly plagued with selective historical amnesia, it is not a wonder how very few actually engage in such a hobby (a.k.a. passion) - yet there is still so much to know about us, so much to learn about our history. Just an afternoon of meeting new people and seeing old collectibles could give you a freshly informed take on even the most common of things.

Now that e-mail is a much-preferred form of communication, there is no telling what the future holds for postal service. With letters and postcards though, there is always something more. The weathered look when they arrive in your mailbox, the stamps all marked and dated, the handwritten notes – they tell a far better kind of story, a little piece of history that something new technology could not match.

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Text by Clare Amador | 2007

The Filipinas Stamp Collectors Club holds the walking tour and auction every 3rd Sunday of the month. Interested parties may contact us or email Lawrence Chan (FSCC VP) at l_rence_2003@yahoo.com. Join us on September 16, 2007.

*Interestingly enough, the MCPO building is of neo-classical design, built in 1926 by Filipino Architect Juan de Guzman Arellano. The columns are Ionic (Grecian). Quite apt for a building that houses postal service and philately. It is located in Manila. The Philatelic Library and Museum is just beside it.

**August 19 is Quezon Day; it is also the beginning of the Linggo ng Wika.