Search for a Show Ends at the Stardust

Question: I began collecting stamps in high school but unfortunately put my collection on hold while I attended college. Now that I’ve graduated I’d like to get involved again, but I haven’t been able to find any stamp shows here in San Diego. What is the best way to find them?--M.K.

Answer: The Los Angeles area has bigger and more extravagant stamp shows than San Diego, but there is the San Diego Stamp Fair, which is held frequently throughout the year at the Stardust Hotel in San Diego.

For a schedule of dates and other information on these shows, write to Edward G. Rosen Enterprises, Box 5502, Redwood City, Calif. 94063.

Q: I own 23 Pakistani stamps from 1957 to 1986, with errors. On some, the amount is printed wrong; on others there are colors that are different from the original issue. What is their present value?--A.A.

A: Pakistani errors are not the most popular items in the stamp market. “Stanley Gibbons Stamp Catalogue, Part I: British Commonwealth,” lists some stamps from Pakistan with known printing errors. For common errors you might expect to get about $5 or $10 per stamp.

If the error is extremely rare (one sheet found, for example), then the value would rise considerably. Show your stamps to a dealer for a quick evaluation.

Q: I have two sets of British Red Cross Centenary Congress stamps. One set has three phosphorus bands and the others do not. Would you help me to determine their value?--F.H.

A: Issued in 1963 to honor the Red Cross Congress in Geneva that year, these British stamps were printed both with and without phosphorescent chemicals on the face of the stamps. The phosphors aid in mail sorting by electronic machines.

Your set of three values is priced at $11.75 without phosphorus, and $99.50 with phosphorus, both prices assuming mint condition.

Stamp News

First day sale of 22-cent stamp commemorating the 150th anniversary of Michigan statehood will be Monday at Lansing, Mich. 48924.

The 22-cent commemorative honoring the Pan American sports games, which will take place throughout Indiana in August, will have its first-day sale Jan. 29 at Indianapolis, Ind. 46206. More than 6,500 athletes from 38 Western Hemisphere nations will participate in the games.

A 22-cent special Love stamp, traditionally issued for Valentine’s Day, will go on sale Jan. 30 at San Francisco, Calif. 94188.

The new 1987 Scott Specialized Catalogue of United States Stamps has just been released. This 980-page catalogue lists the stamps of the United States, Confederate States, United Nations and present and former U.S. possessions, as well as U.S. revenues, essays and postal stationery.

Several thousand price changes have been noted in the U.S. sections. Plate number coil strips of three have been added to the catalogue and the Identifier of Definitive Stamps and Commemorative Stamp Index have been updated to include recent issues. More than 40 new major errors are listed.

Any serious collector of U.S. postage stamps is traveling without a map if he doesn’t have access to a Scott’s Specialized Catalogue. Retail price is $20, and this catalogue can be bought at most stamp shops, or directly from the publisher at Scott Publishing Co., P.O. Box 828, Sidney, Ohio 45365.

Barry Krause, a member of several national stamp-collecting organizations, cannot answer mail personally but will respond to philatelic questions of general interest in this column. Do not telephone. Write to Your Stamps, You section, The Times, Times Mirror Square, Los Angeles 90053.