THE THEME FROM THE QUEEN’S GAMBIT

Have you watched The Queen’s Gambit yet? The Netflix series has been a huge hit and in recent months has prompted thousands of viewers to start playing chess, the subject of the seven-part drama. Apparently the game is enjoying a huge surge in popularity thanks to the TV show and to the lockdown, with us all looking for things to do indoors. It’s not too dissimilar to the latest chapter in the story of stamp collecting, which has also seen many newcomers come into the hobby over the past year.

It strikes me that both pastimes will appeal to similar people – they’re both steeped in history and have a calming, absorbing quality – and it’s no surprise that there are many chess stamps for us to look out for. I think this may be my next collection. I’m no grandmaster, but perhaps I can excel at the philatelic side of things!

As our article on chess stamps (page 72) reveals, a collection can easily tell a story about our world. A quick study of the first chess stamps issued, in the 1940s and 1950s, reveals the popularity of the game in what we knew as the Eastern Bloc, we can also chart the global scale of the game through stamps, and reflect on how the game has until recently been dominated by men. It’s all there, in the stamps.

In the past, collecting by theme has been thought of as a poorer cousin to traditional country collecting, but it’s just not the case. Thematics can be just as informative and engaging. As ever, exactly what you add to your collection, adn the story you want to tell, is all down to your own tastes, preferences and interests.

There are so many themes out there! So I’d love to hear what you collect and what you’d like to see covered in our regular thematics articles. Now, time to start my search for that Bulgarian chess stamp from 1947, oh, and I’d like Finland’s 1952 single value too… so many stamps, so little time!