What is it that makes Stamps rare? A glimpse of rare Indian Bodhisattva and Japanese Mount Fuji Deer Stamps!

One of the thrills of being a collector of stamps stems from the belief that you might be having stamps that are rare in your collection! Misprints or defective prints make stamps rare, especially if the defects go undetected and the defective stamps go into circulation. One example of such a stamp is given below:

                                 

 

The defect is obvious in the above pictures of stamps belonging to the early fifties. The stamp on the left shows an image of Buddha with his left hand held out, placed over his left knee, while the stamp on the right shows Buddha with his right hand placed over his right knee. One of the two stamps is clearly an error.

Stamps become as rare as they age. Thus the older the stamps, the rarer will they be. They are also an important source of History, as they might carry important information about a particular era. The following pictures are of Japanese stamps dating from the period of 1922 to 1937:

                    

             

  

Both stamps seem to be similar except for the colour used. While one is printed in blue ink, the other is printed in brown paint. The price of both stamps is the same, but what distinguishes them is the choice of colour! Three stamps featuring a design of Mount Fuji were issued between 1922 and 1937 and became known as the Fuji Deer stamps.

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