Building Knowledge Through Experience
One of the most frequently asked questions I get is how do I get ideas and knowledge to make up new blog entries? Well, one of my trusted sources are user responses / comments from the readers of the blog. For example Dell wrote recently about his interest towards deco stamps in My favourite stamps. Few days later I accidentally stumbled upon with an interesting display of original stamp designs by Fransisco Eppens Helguara, a master of Art Deco stamps. And as the output of these events, I got a bit excited as well, and now I’m writing up this entry about “Eppens stamps”.
1950/52 Mexico - 25c express delivery postage stamp. The design of the stamp is in the core of Art Deco: curvilinear forms, sharply defined outlines,bold colors, and fascination with machinery and modernity.
So who was Fransisco Eppens? In short, he was a Mexican artist who single-handedly revolutionized Mexican stamp design (as well as other fine arts) for decades. To quote his biography on Wikipedia:
In 1935, Eppens was employed by the Mexican government office which produced postage stamps and government securities, the Talleres de Impresión de Estampillas y Valores de México. Between 1935 and 1951, he designed a large number of postage and revenue stamps in a modernist or Art Deco style.
His stamp designs were popular internationally, receiving awards for “one of the best 10 stamps in the world” (1939) and “one of the six best stamps in the world” (1940), both awarded by Scott’s Monthly Stamp Journal, and an exhibition of his stamps was held at the Collectors Club of New York in 1944.
1945 Mexico - The Inter-American Conference at Chapultepec. Many stamps designed by Francesco Eppens feature his signature. For this stamp see the inscription above "CENT".
I don’t know about the rest of collectors, but for me knowing and learning about the backgrounds of stamps makes them much more interesting. Yes, I liked the stamp designs by Eppens a lot before knowing anything more detailed about him, but as I’ve learned more about him, the more I have begun to appreciate and like his stamp designs as well.
1950/52 Mexico - Fransico Eppens also did design many of the Mexican definitive stamps. Though the motifs depict ancient history of Mexican culture, the designs are extremely powerful and modern.
PS. And finally something totally off-topic .. I’ve added FaceBook’s Like-button plugin to the blog. It allows readers of the blog to vote (and share) their favorite posts using FaceBook. Just click the Like-button below in any blog article you like, and Your vote is cast for that specific entry. So go ahead and give it a try. It’s fun 
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I have been collecting stamps now for 35+ years and try to make it a point to look up as much history about a stamp as I can. The information you just posted about Francisco Eppens is wonderful to read, I’ve learned something new.
Thank you.
It was my pleasure
I have collected stamps since grade school. I started with the common stamps from my parents letters and moved on to specialized topics as I got older.
Lately however I have noticed on ebay and the like that covers )not FDC fetch a lot higher prices than regular stamps.
Do you have any idea why this is so?
Makes me regret having torn all of those stamps from the letter envelopes.
Hi William,
Both postal history and cover collecting are these days somewhat popular (and growing), so IMHO the increased prices are just a follow up. Since the number of real posted (not fdc) existing covers is much less than number of soaked stamps they will command higher prices than average single copies. But it would be fools game to assume all covers automatically fetch higher prices – it’s the same demand and supply thing as with any other collectible. Show something several buyers want, and it will rise. Show them something common, and You will have hard time selling it.
Personally I don’t regret having torn all the envelopes. It’s a thing of the past…And it did add lots of stamps to my collection. LOL.
I too am into collecting real covers. Real covers as to distinguish from FDC collectors.
What I love about collecting covers is that you not only get to enjoy the stamps but also all of those postal marks from the 2 countries that the letter passes through.
William,
If you are into covers then I would suggest that you send a registered mail to another country using a fictitious address.
Just search the web for company addressees and alter them a bit. After a few months or weeks the letter will come back to you with all the cancels from 2 countries!
Jane… just being curious. Why registered mail? In most countries (such as Finland) sending registered mail is dead expensive compared to regular postage. And as normal letters do get bounced back if address is invalid, this can’t be the reason either. Just wondering the reason…
best,
-keijo-
Keijo,
Some countries return my letter if wrong address but others just throw them away. To be sure that I will receive them back I use registered mail. It is not very expensive when compared to airmail post. Also registered mail has more postal cancels and stickers too.
I think throwing away postal sendings with clear return address is against UPU regilations in all cases. So it should not happen…. Very likely you are dealing with something else (like dishonest postal service) that causes your covers to get lost.
As for airmail vs. registered post costs… It varies a lot depending on country. For example in Finland a airmail letter (20g or less) to abroad costs between 0,80-1.10€, sending the same registered costs 7 – 9 €. So there is a big difference; and I think most of the European countries share somewhat similar pricing… But I know that in some countries (say for example India, Malaysia, China) the difference is much smaller.
To Keijo-san and @jane
Regarding letters going astray, and the cost of registering vs airmail, I have an interesting story to tell. I had a letter to send to a friend in Austria (filled with used stamps to exchange – the envelope, not the friend;-) I asked about registered mail, but it would be much more expensive. Also, for a registered letter you only purchase a plastic bag in which you put the whole envelope. No interesting stamps on the cover, therefore. I risked sending my letter through the ordinary post. It did not arrive for months. It turns out that letters posted to Austria are very likely to detour via Australia if posted from New Zealand. It is best to include ‘EUROPE’ in the address.