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Opening the floodgates.

The Stamp Collecting Report, I'm Lloyd de Vries.

The U-S is hosting a once-a-decade stamp collecting show in New York from May 28th through
June 4th. Collectors, dealers and postal administrations from all over the world are coming.
And the U-S Postal Service is doing its part — and then some! It is issuing stamps every
day but the last day, for a total of nearly 50 different stamps.

That’s a record for the U-S at a show.

Some of the stamps are obviously intended only for collectors: Reproductions of classic
U-S stamps or two designs promoting the show. Others would have been issued anyway, such as
the Service Cross Medals or National Park Service Centennial… and have been thrown into the
show — the Medals because it’s Memorial Day, the Parks, no doubt, because the show provides
a big audience.

The stamps for the planets are the sort of things postal agencies like to issue at shows,
because there is great interest in space subjects. Each planet gets a stamp, but
Pluto — which was recently demoted — gets TWO!

But one issue is puzzling: A booklet of ten somewhat abstract designs that seems aimed at
those mailing greeting cards. And these Colorful Celebrations stamps won’t be available at
post offices… unless the individual offices request them.

That doesn’t make sense.

I’m Lloyd de Vries of The Virtual Stamp Club. For more on stamps and stamp collecting,
visit virtual-stamp-club-dot-com.

• • •

Here’s a rundown of which stamps are being issued when at World Stamp Show, links to
the individual VSC pages about them:

May 28 – World Stamp Show-NY 2016, folio of 24 stamps, 2 designs.

May 29 – Repeal of the Stamp Act, souvenir sheet of 10 stamps, one design.

May 30 – Honoring Extraordinary Heroism: The Service Cross Medals, souvenir sheet of
  12 stamps, 4 designs.

May 31 – Pluto – Explored! souvenir sheet of 4 stamps, 2 designs.

May 31 – Views of Our Planets, pane of 16 stamps, 8 designs.

June 1 – Classics Forever, souvenir sheet of 6 stamps, 6 designs.

June 2 – National Parks, pane of 16 stamps, 16 designs.

June 3 – Colorful Celebrations, booklet of 20 stamps, 10 designs.

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