Books

Books, Magazines etc. on Egyptian Philately

Several editions of the Zeheri catalogue - a master-work for its time in black and white - were issued from Egypt, the last in 1972, the 9th edition. A supplement was issued in 1978. Well sought-after, it being the "bible" until Smith and Balian, it has now been replaced by Balian, the Nile Post, and Egypt Stamps Handbook although there remains a tendency to use Zeheri catalogue numbers simply through familiarity over many years.

Printed on high quality paper with coloured illustrations of all Egyptian stamps up to January 1998, Leon Balian's catalogue contains all the varieties known and quantities printed, and prices the stamps in Egyptian pounds. Still in print, with further extensions promised by the author. Additions and corrections have been published in the QC.
In 2007 Stamps of Egypt Book 2 was published updating the stamps issued upto then from 1998, updates on prices and a section on the French Post Office Stamps etc.

The Nile Post, by Joseph Chalhoub with considerable contributions by Charles F. Hass, was published in 2003. It is sharply focused on stamps. Starting with the 1866 issue, essays, proofs, and a large number of plate and perforation varieties are listed in detail (selected essays, colour trials, and rarities of some issues are collected in a huge separate section, in colour). This thorough treatment is maintained throughout, even to the issues of the twenty-first century. The items are priced in US dollars. The "Royal" proofs of Kings Fuad and Farouk (with drastically skewed perforations, or imperforate on thin card with "Cancelled" on back) are listed and errors in the earlier catalogue by George Lee corrected. Stamps for the British Forces in Egypt in the 1930s and 1940s are properly included, with many well illustrated plate varieties and new information on the make-up of the overprinting forms for the 1935 Silver Jubilee commemorative. Included are the stamps and postal stationery of Egypt overprinted for Sudan, in a listing rich with detail. The collaboration with Charles Hass shows up strongly in this section, as also in the sections on Official stamps and on the French post offices. His unmatched experience and expertise with overprints are clearly evident. The results of his unpublished research are a valuable part of the treatment of overprints.

Egypt Stamps Handbook by Magdi M. Abdel-hadi. self-published; Cairo, 2010. Vol. I, 717 pp., Vol. II, 636 pp. all in colour, that almost every plate flaw or other variety is illustrated with enlargements.

Volume I begins with an extensive introduction in which basic philatelic features are clearly explained, along with the various special terms that apply to Egyptian philately (e.g., royal proofs). Watermarks are shown very nicely, as are the filigrees that occur on a few stamps and envelopes. Then come the essays and the non-commemorative stamps (650 pages of them!), including the first issues of Sudan, the Gaza Strip. The Suez Canal Co, and the French post offices. Control numbers are listed, and then three appendices: the various printings of the King Fuad and King Farouk issues, the 1933 air mail printings, and the colour trials of the "King of Egypt and Sudan" overprints.

Volume II covers unissued stamps, commemorative stamps, miniature sheets and the postal stationery of Egypt and Sudan. The large production of commemorative issues in recent years makes this volume especially lengthy. A useful feature is the inclusion of the size of the sheets and the layout of the panes. It is good to see a clear exposition of the origin of the 2004 Prestige Booklet, and illustrations of the covers and interleaves of the other booklets.

	Several editions of the Zeheri catalogue - a master-work for its time in black and white - were issued from Egypt, the last in 1972, the 9th edition. A supplement was issued in 1978. Well sought-after, it being the "bible" until Smith and Balian, it has now been replaced by Balian, the Nile Post, and Egypt Stamps Handbook although there remains a tendency to use Zeheri catalogue numbers simply through familiarity over many years.
	Printed on high quality paper with coloured illustrations of all Egyptian stamps up to January 1998, Leon Balian's catalogue contains all the varieties known and quantities printed, and prices the stamps in Egyptian pounds. Still in print, with further extensions promised by the author. Additions and corrections have been published in the QC. In 2007 Stamps of Egypt Book 2 was published updating the stamps issued upto then from 1998, updates on prices and a section on the French Post Office Stamps etc.
	The Nile Post, by Joseph Chalhoub with considerable contributions by Charles F. Hass, was published in 2003. It is sharply focused on stamps. Starting with the 1866 issue, essays, proofs, and a large number of plate and perforation varieties are listed in detail (selected essays, colour trials, and rarities of some issues are collected in a huge separate section, in colour). This thorough treatment is maintained throughout, even to the issues of the twenty-first century. The items are priced in US dollars. The "Royal" proofs of Kings Fuad and Farouk (with drastically skewed perforations, or imperforate on thin card with "Cancelled" on back) are listed and errors in the earlier catalogue by George Lee corrected. Stamps for the British Forces in Egypt in the 1930s and 1940s are properly included, with many well illustrated plate varieties and new information on the make-up of the overprinting forms for the 1935 Silver Jubilee commemorative. Included are the stamps and postal stationery of Egypt overprinted for Sudan, in a listing rich with detail. The collaboration with Charles Hass shows up strongly in this section, as also in the sections on Official stamps and on the French post offices. His unmatched experience and expertise with overprints are clearly evident. The results of his unpublished research are a valuable part of the treatment of overprints.
	Egypt Stamps Handbook by Magdi M. Abdel-hadi. self-published; Cairo, 2010. Vol. I, 717 pp., Vol. II, 636 pp. all in colour, that almost every plate flaw or other variety is illustrated with enlargements. Volume I begins with an extensive introduction in which basic philatelic features are clearly explained, along with the various special terms that apply to Egyptian philately (e.g., royal proofs). Watermarks are shown very nicely, as are the filigrees that occur on a few stamps and envelopes. Then come the essays and the non-commemorative stamps (650 pages of them!), including the first issues of Sudan, the Gaza Strip. The Suez Canal Co, and the French post offices. Control numbers are listed, and then three appendices: the various printings of the King Fuad and King Farouk issues, the 1933 air mail printings, and the colour trials of the "King of Egypt and Sudan" overprints. Volume II covers unissued stamps, commemorative stamps, miniature sheets and the postal stationery of Egypt and Sudan. The large production of commemorative issues in recent years makes this volume especially lengthy. A useful feature is the inclusion of the size of the sheets and the layout of the panes. It is good to see a clear exposition of the origin of the 2004 Prestige Booklet, and illustrations of the covers and interleaves of the other booklets.