Canadian Philately - The Stamps and Postal History of Canada 1851 to Present by Brixton Chrome

Today marks the first in a series of many posts about what has become not only one of the most popular definitive issues for Canadian specialists, but in the world. It is on a par with the Machin Heads of the United Kingdom, in terms of complexity, for the six years that it was current. The Machin Heads are of course, much more extensive, having been in continuous use for 50 years now, but the Centennial Issue is remarkably complex for a series that lasted for only six years. Five to six years is the average life span of a modern definitive issue, but usually most definitive issues that run this long do not yield anywhere near the number of collectible varieties that this one does. This is one of those issues that you can collect for 40 years, and think at the end of that time that you know it inside and out, and just when you think you have discovered all that there is to discover, another aspect that you either didn't consider to be significant, or just didn't notice will su...

Overview Between 1963 and 1966, during the life of the Cameo definitive issue, Canada issued no fewer than 39 commemorative stamps, that in my opinion, are some of the most attractive of the modern engraved issues. Bi-colour, or in some cases, tri-colour printing has featured more prominently during this period, although most of the stamps are still monocoloured. However, the range of colours used seems to be greater, and the colours themselves are brighter than the stamps of the 1950's. This is actually one of my favourite periods in modern Canadian philately, particularly the Provincial Emblems series that was issued between 1964 and 1966. This later set was remarkable in at least two respects: (1) it was a political statement designed to emphasize the importance of Canada's unity in direct response to the growing separatist movement in Quebec, and (2) it was the first set to feature provincial flags and coats of arms.  Lester Pearson was the prime minister during the peri...