In message
"Albumen" wrote:

[snip]
On to your question -- The NG listing has been a long time in coming and is
much appreciated by collectors of classical issues. In many cases the
antique gum can only be preserved only at the expense of the paper, and so
over time some tough choices have to be made. By including a NG category for
the classics it creates a market where none existed before, and puts the
hobby on better long term footing vis'a'vis' the balance between plague and
preservation.

My Sassone catalogue for Italy lists mint no gum values for the earlier
issues. I have a number where the presence of gum would have eroded my bank
balance enormously. I gave a display to a local society yesterday
and none of the displays showed the back of the stamps.....

I would far rather have a nice fresh mint no gum stanp than a tatty
copy with gum on the back.

--
Tony Clayton or
Coins of the UK : http://www.tclayton.demon.co.uk/coins.html
Values of Coins of the UK : http://www.tclayton.demon.co.uk/values/coins.html
Metals used in Coins : http://www.tclayton.demon.co.uk/metal.html
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