The 2021 Stanley Gibbons Commonwealth & British Empire Stamp catalogue is the standard work of reference for collectors of Commonwealth stamps all over the world. This Stanley Gibbons comprehensive catalogue covers Great Britain, Commonwealth and Empire countries 1840-1970. The listings include variations in watermark, perforation, paper and printing methods, major shades, watermark varieties, important plate flaws, errors, government telegraph stamps and booklets (all listed and priced).

KEY SELLING FEATURES:

• The authoritative reference source for GB and Commonwealth information – all stamps from 1840-1970 listed and priced.
• To help readers avoid buying forgeries or fakes, or stamps with forged postmarks, there is helpful information on identification.
• Strengthened, casebound binding for extra durability.
• Unique listing by SG number.
• Full colour illustrations.
• Invaluable six-page article on stamp condition.
• Helpful guide to valuing stamps on commercial cover up to 1945.
• Prices have once again been revised from cover to cover. The market for fine Commonwealth stamps remains buoyant, with increases in most sections, some of them quite substantial (India 31a/Straits Settlements Z64a is up from £250,000 to £750,000!). Areas of particular strength include Australia and States, India and States, New Zealand and many African territories, while plate flaws and watermark varieties also see widespread price rises.
• Whether you are an active buyer of Commonwealth stamps, a dealer or an investor, it is vital to be right up to date with this very active market – and there is no more up-to-date reference than the 2019 ‘Part 1’.

Detailed Contents/Countries Covered

Guidance is given throughout the catalogue on subjects such as unusual usages, overprint settings, forgeries and much, much more. More such notes have been added to the latest edition.

• Further revisions have been made to the bi-coloured ‘Admirals’ of Rhodesia, with shades adjusted to allow easier matching with the Stanley Gibbons Colour Key and new items added to the listings.
• The ‘NGR’ (Natal Government Railways) perfins on the stamps of the four South African provinces have been fully listed and priced.
• Further additions have been made to the ‘Damaged frame and crown’ listings on the Edward VII key types and a new variety, the ‘Serrated edge’ has been added to the King George VI definitives of Leeward Islands and Mauritius.
• Important new plate varieties have been added in Great Britain, Australia, British Guiana, Ireland and New Zealand, among others.
• The telegraph stamps of Jammu and Kashmir have been rewritten, with several additions to the listings.
• Other significant editorial improvements can be found in Burma, Indian States, Malta, Morocco Agencies, New Zealand and elsewhere.
• Further improvements have been made to the illustrations in the Great Britain section.
• Over 250 new stamps have been added and many previously unpriced items have now been given a valuation

Further prices have been given for high face-value stamps with fiscal cancellations and a start has been made (in India) in pricing telegraphically used stamps.

ABOUT THE EDITOR:

Hugh Jefferies has been a stamp collector for over 60 years, concentrating on the stamps of Great Britain and the Commonwealth. He was the editor of Gibbons Stamp Monthly for over 25 years and has been Stanley Gibbons catalogue editor since 2003.

REVIEWS/ENDORSEMENTS:

…a ‘must buy’
Quite simply an ESSENTIAL volume to sit on the desk of every collector , every auction, and every dealer who ever handles British Commonwealth stamps.
…trust me , you’ll do well to invest in one.
Glen Stephens, Stamp News Australasia

…a joy for the collector whose speciality is vintage stamps.
Seasoned collctors consider the annual publication a key resource in pursuing Commonwealth and British Empire items.
Michael Nowlan, Canadian Stamp News

About Stanley Gibbons Catalogues

Stanley Gibbons is the world’s longest established rare stamp merchant. The world-famous Gibbons Catalogue was first published by Edward Stanley Gibbons in 1865 and sold for 2d., post free. The main catalogue now comprises several parts and is intended for the more advanced collector. Commonwealth and British Empire Stamps 1840–1952 includes all stamps of this area from the earliest issues up to the end of George VI’s reign and additionally lists and illustrates many of the better varieties popular with collectors. A series of single country or limited area catalogues covers Commonwealth countries from their first issues to date. Of the remaining parts, ten are devoted to European countries and eleven to ‘overseas’ countries. Thematic Catalogues are also published covering stamps featuring Aircraft; Birds; Butterflies and Insects; Chess; Fish; Fungi; Mammals; Motor Vehicles; Railways; Shells and Ships. Commonwealth and British Empire Stamps 1840–1952 and Stamps of the World are published, fully updated, each year, new editions of the others are published as required.

About Stamp Catalogs

The stamp catalogue, basically a dealer’s price-list, is a most essential work of reference for the stamp collector. It provides complete, detailed lists of all the postage stamps issued by every country in the world from the earliest days, with information about dates of issue, commemorative events, face values, colours and designs, and – if it is a fairly new catalogue – the current prices of the stamps, unused and postally used. For the beginner and general collector the most useful catalogue is the Stanley Gibbons Simplified Catalogue of Stamps of the World published in five volumes. This catalogue contains all the details – except perforations, watermarks, designers, printers and varieties – the average collector needs for every country.