Looking around the stamp dealers' showrooms, it is easy to gain the impression that things have not changed very much since today's parents were themselves introduced to philately as youngsters a generation ago. In stamp collection there is a very strong adherence to tradition. It is, however, possible to pick out some significant changes which have taken place over the last ten to fifteen years. For mint stamps, particularly, collectors have tended to discard hinges, which can leave a slight mark on the back of the stamp, and go instead for stamp mount. There are plastic pockets, designed to take either individual stamps or rows of stamps, which are stuck onto the album page. They come with either white or black backgrounds. Some albums have the mounts already in position, they are known in the catalogues as hinges albums. A second alternative to the hinge is the stockbook which usually has pages of stiff cardboard and retaining strips into which stamps can be tucked. This has traditionally been sold as an accessory, to be used for temporary storage of stamp pending their transfer to an album. Some collectors, however, have come to look upon stockbook not as a half way house but as a substitute for the album. Stockbooks do away with the fiddle of fixing hinges and ensure there is no danger of marking the back of the stamp and it is a simple matter to move the stamps if a new page layout is required. All this being said for the purist there is nothing to match the flexibility of hinging to allow him to plan the page the way he wants it and shape its distinctive appearance. The beginner will probably want to follow the majority, traditional line
đang được dịch, vui lòng đợi..
