ROYAL PHILATELIST

Gisborne Times, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 12769, 27 January 1936, Page 3

ROYAL PHILATELIST

LATE KING’S' FAVORITE. HOBBY. King George's favorite indoor recreation was stamp-collecting. The responsibilities of kingship lessened his opportunities for pursuit of the hobby but did not reduce the liveliness of his interest in it. The curator of his collections is himself a. famous collector but his Majesty gave personal attention to his stamps whenever he could, and did a good deal of research work. He has read papers, in person, to members of the Royal Philatelic Society, of which he was president for 14 years before his accession to the throne. It was as a midshipman on service abroad that the King laid a strong foundation for the splendid collection of the stamps that he owned. On several occasions later he was pleased to accept presentations of stamps. As a wedding-gift, the Philatelic Society, London, gave him a rare selection in 1893. When he toured the Empire in 1901 presentations were made by the Maharajah of Kashmir, the philatelists of Malta and Sydney, the Government of Tasmania, and the Qommonwealth of Australia. Twice the Canadian Government presented him with albums containing special issues of that Dominion. The Maharajah of Nepal presented a collection of the stamps of Nepal when his Majesty visited the Coronation Durbar in 1911. King George’s collection was confined to the postal issues of Great Britain, the British Dominions, and Egypt. It contained some exceedingly rare specimens. One of the gems of the ( collection, though, was presented by King George to the National Philatelic War Funds auction in September, 1915. At various times portions of the collections have been exhibited in England.