Stamp Collecting is Reviving Again - The Philatelic Revolution

There is a fascinating paradigm shift happening right now to a hobby that has connected people since the 1840s. Stamp collecting is getting social again.

This evolution in how we connect, how we share and how we learn can be seen on all corners of the internet - the Facebook groups, the thousands of Instagram posts to Twitter threads, the YouTube channels, the incredibly well-written and entertaining blogs, the revolution can be heard on the podcasts and seen in chat rooms and video conferencing so on.

Social media has definitely helped in bringing philatelists closer and giving them more chances to get hold of their desired items on internet and even from within their communities. It has undoubtedly enhanced the philatelic experience manifolds.

Has social media affected your philatelic community in any way?

Source: Exploring Stamps on Youtube

Odd-shaped stamps on Slovakia Cover

Today I am sharing a Slovakian cover from my collection. The cover shows an odd-shaped stamp that was issued on Philately Stamp Day on 5 December 2014. The magnificent stamp has been impressively shaped as a trapezium with triangle coupons.

The trapezium-shaped stamp shows a portrait of "Severín Zrubec" (1921–2011). Dr. Severín Zrubec lived, worked and received his degree of Doctor in Laws at the Faculty of Law of the Slovak University (1948) in Bratislava. Severín Zrubec worked as a lawyer in various organisations, however, the philatelic public knows Severín Zrubec as a successful exhibitor, journalist and an association member. He took part in organised philately for more than fifty years. He engaged in modern view of philately as a hobby with a significant cultural and social mission.
His activities earned him various awards. Severín Zrubec worked as a member of the Thematic Philately Commission of FIP (1974 - 1984) and International Jury of the Association of Slovak Philatelists (1973 − 2011), as well. His name has been written in golden letters in the Slovak and European philatelic history. The exhibit “Today Rotary Press Machines Revolve” was displayed at several tens of domestic and foreign exhibitions for twenty eight years. It was awarded four gold, seventeen gilded and seven silver medals at five world’s fairs under the patronage of FIP and twenty two international exhibitions. When finishing his exhibition activity in 1998, Severín Zrubec gifted his extensive thematic collection “Printing and Book” to the Museum of Book Culture in Trnava.

The stamp is dominated by his portrait and autograph. Zrubec’s first gold medal awarded at the World Postage Stamp Exhibition PRAGA 1962 extends over the right coupon, while a section of the emblem of the Society of St. Gabriel, he co-founded (1962), is depicted on the left one.