Wish to see gold, silver and diamond crusted stamps! Be at Kolkata Philatelic Expo

Stamps made of silver and precious stones! Yes, not jewellery, but rarest of rare stamps have made their home in Kolkata over the week. The ongoing 9th state level Philatelic Exhibition at the Academy of Fine Arts held every four years brings to you this collection with 6,400 pages of Philately items collected from more than 100 collectors.

The Exhibition is on till November 21 and has an inspiring name! Ekla Cholo Re! Keeping in mind Tagore’s lines and Mahatma Gandhi’s unwavering determination to drive the British away from India through non-violence gives this exhibition such a name. The non-competitive invitee class in the exhibition is on Gandhi and showcases stamps derived from 71 countries to mark his 150th birth anniversary. The rare stamps on display include a Rs 10 ‘Service’ overprinted Gandhi stamp that was issued on the first Independence Day anniversary of India in 1948.

The competitive category has exquisite gold and silver stamps from Netherlands and France. There is even a diamond studded stamp from Portugal and one with Swarovski crystals from Austria. There is a set of 7-disc shaped stamps from Bhutan that are nothing but mini records. There is also a Russian postal section where a stamp on Rabindranath Tagore depicts his death year as 1945 instead of 1941! In the World of Philately such errors also make stamps rare!