Week #2017.07 on SébPhilatélie

The main event this past week in Montpellier is the first day of sale of a stamp in the artistic series: a painting View of the Village by Frédéric Bazille (1841-1870), a talended impresionist born in a trade family of the city.

The Frédéric Bazille stamp (via Phil-ouest.com).

Sunday 12 February: Some "patients" of the RPSL Expert Committee.
On 9 February the conference at the Royal Philatelic Society London was a presentation of some false stamps and fraudulent alteration of stamps and letters by Chris Harman, Chairman of the RPSL Expert Committee.

The group of volunteering specialists assure collectors and dealers that the items are what they are thought to be. And, listening to Chris Harman, some frauders are very ressourceful: the most striking example to me was a 1847 U.S. letter whose stamp and cancels looked genuine (and quite valuable) until it was proven that the year in the correspondence was tampereed (from "1841") in order to hide the perforated stamp was added much later.

But the exhibit and the conference present a large range of problems to be aware of, from classics to modern, and from Britain to contemporary China.

Monday 13 February: Shouldn't an international registered letter be signed for?
A little day to day mystery: why didn't I have to sign for a registered letter from French Polynesia? Are the French postal employee so smartly equipped that the view of the postman's notice and your identity card is sufficient?

Service letter from the French Polynesia Philatelic Service postmarked 19 January 2017 that is an (discreet) international registered letter.

By Friday I know: I had to sign the postal clerck's smartphone for a registered package from the United Kingdom.

Wednesday 15 February: The location of the stamp, the maximum card creator's problem.
Preparing for the first day of sale of the Bazille stamp, I bought postage card of the painting at the Museum Fabre shop... but on Friday where should I put the stamp without spoiling the picture?

Friday 17 February: A first day of sale in a so philatelic post office.
A summary of the discovery of the Bazille stamp, made enjoyable by the crew of Montpellier Préfecture post office.

The historic town center post office had continued to provide philatelic service at the counter despite the atmosphere of service productivity of the last decade: the Post Office Direction wanted the shortest period for a clerck to serve a consumer while the Stamp Post Office (Phil@poste) wished to deliver the philatelic subscription by mail... Let's say the traditional clientele of collectors haven't been happy ever since.

But in Montpellier Préfecture, the two philatelic clerks were added to the workforce of the main office with a little trick: whenever a customer for stamps appears, he is served immediately by the philatelic clerk on duty... without disturbing neither general service nor time and money profitability it would seem. In fact philatelic counters are reappearing... by order from the top.

This first day of sale inside this post office is a victory of service to collectors. Thank you, postmen!

Sunday 19 February: Algeria's 2017 philatelic program commented in El Watan.
The Algerian newspaper El Watan continued to print a weekly chronicle on philately, both new issues and thematic of Algeria. To be found every Thursday with the help of the weekly column menu.

Émis le neuf février, ce timbre célèbre l'anniversaire de la reconnaissance du tamazight, les langues berbères, comme langue officielle en Algérie (Algérie Poste).

The last article by Arslan Selmane, on 16 February, announced the main issues of the stamp programme for 2017, in the critical way the chronicle is always.

But this year there are good points and a lot of hope: 2 singer women to be honored, military battles of the Algerian history, touristic views, return of minisheets,...

On my side of the Mediterranean, in the middle of a very strange and nervous presidential campaign (we Frogs are now debating the good and bad points of colonisation when one of our candidate visit Algiers), I wonder how the Battles stamps will be received by part of the French public... But the French post issuing a 55th anniversary of the ceasefire in Algeria next month, I think the trouble will stay among French people.