STAMPS: Great American Stamp Show comes to Cleveland in August

All eyes in the U.S. stamp collecting world will be on Cleveland on Aug. 10-13, when the Great American Stamp Show comes to town. With seminars, meetings of specialty societies, outstanding exhibits, new stamps releases and more than 80 dealers offering stamps and covers to satisfy any interest, GASS promises to be the highlight of the year for area collectors. Show hours are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday at the Huntington Convention Center, 300 Lakeside Ave. Admission is free, although visitors must register. The American Philatelic Society, American Topical Association and American First Day Cover Society host the show. The U.S. Postal Service is a co-sponsor. Members of the Garfield-Perry Stamp Club have been leading the effort locally, generating interest and recruiting volunteers for the show. "This is one show collectors will not want to miss," said Rocco Caponi, one of the GP members leading the club's effort. "There will be something for everyone, from the beginner to the advanced collector." GASS is open to the public, so noncollectors and the curious are invited to view some of the classics of philately that will be on display, he said. Among the classics will be a copy of the "Inverted Jenny." The stamp is one of 100 that exist from a production error at the U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing in 1918 that resulted in the blue vignette of the Jenny biplane being printed upside down within the stamp's red frame. This year marks the first time since 1999 that the country's largest annual stamp show will be in Cleveland. Large crowds are expected, Caponi said, noting that hotel rooms have been sold out since March. The show's opening day will feature two presentations by staff members of the Smithsonian National Postal Museum and first-day-of-issue ceremonies for new stamps from four postal entities. The USPS will lead the way with the release of a pane of 20 "Life Magnified" stamps depicting microscopic life. The United Nations Postal Administration, Faroe Islands and Marshall Islands also will release stamps. A second set of stamps from the USPS, with the theme "Thinking of You," will be released on Friday. Martin Mörck, a master stamp and banknote engraver from Norway, will be on hand during Posta Faroe Islands' stamp release on Aug. 11. The stamp will be released as a souvenir sheet with Mörck's 1,000th commissioned engraving. The 50-kroner design is based on the 1933 Faroese painting "Returning from fishing" by Danish artist Emil Krause. On the show's opening day, the island nation will release its 1000th stamp as a souvenir sheet with one stamp denominated 100 kroner. It will feature a design by Faroese artist Edward Fuglø showing cairns, man-made piles of stones used as trail markers. The American Philatelic Society will host its annual general meeting at 9 a.m. Saturday. The American Topical Association and American First Day Cover Society also will conduct annual meetings during the show. Meanwhile, programs sponsored by the AFDCS will feature top U.S. Postal Service officials. William Gicker, director of stamp services, will speak at 1 p.m. Thursday. Four top managers from Stamp Fulfillment Services in Kansas City will discuss the agency's work at 1 p.m. Friday. Representatives of the Royal Philatelic Society of London will visit as well. They will bring 800 pages of exhibits showcasing classic rarities from the British Empire. The visit will complete an exchange involving the U.S. Philatelic Classic Society, whose members visited The Royal's headquarters in May. GASS hosts the Champion of Champions competition featuring the Grand Award winners from nearly 30 World Series of Philately shows across the country during the last year. Among the exhibits competing for top honors will be "The Two Cent Hardings" by James Hering of Marion, Ohio, who won the Grand Award at this year's Garfield-Perry March Party in Strongsville. In addition, GASS will feature the annual APS literature competition. Authors of books, monographs, articles and columns will be vying for honors. Beyond the Champion of Champions competition, myriad exhibits will showcase a wide variety of stamp and postal history topics. Visitors are encouraged to register online in advance to streamline entry. Details about the show, parking, registration and scheduled events are online at stamps.org/great-american-stamp-show. Club meeting moved to Aug. 17 Because of the Great American Stamp Show, the Black River Stamp Club has moved its next monthly meeting to Aug. 17. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. at Harvest Christian Church for socializing, buying, selling and trading, followed by a brief business meeting at 6:30 p.m. and the monthly auction. Dennis Sadowski can be reached at sadowski.dennis@gmail.com.