The wider world of philately
A brief digest of the people, gatherings, discoveries, exhibitions, and new issues making news across the world of stamps.
The U.S. Postal Service has commemorated Diwali with a new Forever stamp, unveiled at the Embassy of India in Washington, D.C. The issue honors the Hindu autumn festival, whose main observance in 2026 falls on Nov. 8, and adds another culturally significant subject to the nation’s commemorative stamp program.
USPS is issuing a new Diwali stamp on Oct. 21 in Washington, D.C. The stamp honors the autumn festival, recognized by millions of Hindus, Sikhs and other South Asian religious communities, and is the second USPS issue devoted to Diwali. It offers a meaningful new addition for collectors of contemporary commemoratives.
A celebrated Canadian 12-penny black cover will headline Eastern Auctions’ Nov. 20 Camellia PLC Collections sale. The 325-lot auction also includes Pence, Cents and Large Queen material, including holdings assembled by prominent Canadian philatelists. The sale brings important collections, some unseen for decades, back to the market.
Canada’s new Diwali stamp features a colourful illustration of hands stringing marigolds and mango leaves into a traditional torana, or decorative garland. Issued Oct. 19, the stamp also highlights the diya and offers collectors a visually distinctive issue connected with the Festival of Lights.
Jean-Jacques Tillard won both Grand Awards at CANPEX 2026, a national philatelic exhibition held in London, Ont. His multi-frame exhibit on Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon’s 1892–1908 “Group” type received 97 points and a large gold medal, the event’s highest score.
For more than four decades, Canadian volunteers have converted donated stamps, covers, and collections into humanitarian support through the Oxfam Canada Stamp Program. The program has raised more than $600,000 since 1980 and is preparing its 35th mail and email bid auction before closing.
A block of four 1959 St. Lawrence Seaway inverted-centre stamps, one of Canada’s best-known printing errors, will be offered in R. Maresch & Son’s upcoming auction. The sale also highlights a Newfoundland sheet, giving collectors several notable Canadian rarities to watch.
Sparks International’s auction features four specialized collections of Canadian stamps, postal history and military correspondence. Highlights include material from the Art Bunce collections of the 15-cent Large Queen and 1908 Quebec Tercentenary issues, making the sale relevant to collectors of Canada and British North America.
CANPEX 2026 will bring collectors, dealers and competitive exhibits to a national-level philatelic exhibition in London, Ontario, on Oct. 17–18. Hosted by the Middlesex Stamp Club, the event offers opportunities to view exhibits, browse the marketplace and meet fellow collectors.
Postal historian Ron Majors will examine Canadian postal rates and the stamps used on covers from 1859 to 1868. His online presentation, hosted by the British Empire Study Group, will use decimal-franked and stampless covers to explore what these items reveal about Canada’s pre-Confederation postal history.
USPS has released its Christmas Cookies stamps at the Smithsonian National Postal Museum in Washington, DC. The launch formed part of a Family Festival featuring children’s activities and a conversation with USPS art director Antonio Alcalá, giving collectors both an issue announcement and museum-event context.
USPS has issued a new Christmas stamp featuring the Madonna and Child, based on a painting held by the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The stamp was released without a ceremony, offering collectors a new seasonal issue with an art-museum connection.
