FEPA News

FEPA NEWS 45 35 FEPA Exhibiting To whet the appetite the introduction page should be inviting. It should not be written using too small a font, it should be clear in structure and where possible the text should be supported by visual elements. But do not go overboard with illustrations. Neither the title of the exhibit nor illustrations should take up half the page. There is much to deal with in the ideal introduction page and the space should be used efficiently. It is hard work to condense all the messages you want to convey into short, readable sentences and it takes good balancing skills to find space for small illustrations or diagrams. Fig. 2. Example of a visual element that could, if relevant, be included in the introduction page: a double timeline showing political and philatelic developments in the country being exhibited in parallel during the relevant period. The introduction page should be well written as well as informative. Specifically, it must: • Provide the title of the exhibit. • Specify the objective & scope of the exhibit. • Give some context or general information. • (Provide literature references). • Provide explanatory comments in relation to all criteria for which points are awarded, viz: – Treatment & importance – Knowledge & research – Condition & rarity – Presentation Title of the exhibit A typical collection in traditional philately is dealing with the stamps of a country from a certain period or issue. This should be made clear in the title. Calling a collection: “The surface printed issues” does not give the spectator much idea of what to expect. Is it stamps from China or from Luxembourg? is it about last year’s engraved miniature sheet or is it a collection on a classic issue? A much more telling title would be “The surface printed issues of Great Britain 1855-1901”, or better still when leading with the country name, i.e. “Great Britain 1855-1901: the surface printed issues”. Being precise with the name of the country in the title is especially important if exhibiting internationally. If the collection is only dealing with part of an issue, it is very important to make this clear in the title and to justify the choice in the introduction page. For instance, “Belgium, the Portman Leopold III stamps issued prior to World War Two (1936-40)”, if the stamps issued during and after the war are not included. In this case the introduction page must explain why this limitation has been made and how the cut-off has been applied. The Portman 10 francs brown-violet was first issued in 1936 but was reprinted several times before, during and after the war. Will only the early pre-war printings be part of the collection or also the printings of the 10 francs made during or after the war? Never, I repeat never, make use of catalogue numbers in the title, in the introduction page or anywhere else in the collection. In the context of exhibiting, stamps should always be referred to by name of issue, watermark etc. and not by catalogue number. You may favour Michel catalogue numbers while others refer to Gibbons or Yvert et Tellier.