The Bottom Line
Pros
- Copious color illustrations
- Lays flat for easy reading
Cons
- Pages sometimes turn with difficulty
Description
- 380 color pages of stamps from the United States, United Nations and Canada, as well as territories and possessions.
- Listings for major back of book categories including airmail, postage due, and postal stationery among others.
- Includes useful information on stamp identification, pricing and other important concepts.
Guide Review - Stamp Catalog
The BNA in the Harris 2009 US/BNA catalog might seem a bit confusing at first. It is because several areas issued stamps before they became part of Canada. The inclusion of these stamps in their own well illustrated sections is an example of what this catalog offers.The book is very well designed and put together. It has a covered comb-binding which lets the pages lay flat which is very convenient. The pages are a good quality paper that makes the text clear and the images stand out. Each page heading lists the content of the section as well as the catalog numbers covered. This makes looking things up a much smoother process.
The catalog starts with several useful informational features including pricing policy, collector’s guide, centering guide, quality and condition guide and stamp identifier. The information provided is useful and concisely written. The stamp identifier focuses on earlier US issues and is well illustrated and detailed. In the body of the catalog itself there is additional information on the U.S. issues such as the Columbians, among others.
The listings are typical for catalogs with catalog number (they use the Scott system), description and values. For the earlier U.S. stamps they provide mint and used values for three different quality categories: Very Fine, Fine and Average. FDC, Plate Block and select Mint Sheet values are offered for post 1935 issues. In addition to commemoratives and definitives, the popular back of book categories have listings. Territories and possessions covered include the Canal Zone, the Marshal Islands, Philippines, and Rykyus among others, as well as the Confederate States.
The United Nations listings are divided by issue location (Geneva, New York and Vienna) as well as by the denomination currency. Both the UN and BNA sections are as well illustrated and detailed as the US sections.