I acquired a bunch of Canada stamps. Mostly plate blocks and sheets. A bunch of them are wrapped in plastic. Did a prior collector do this to preserve them or is this how they were issued?
The bottom example is a so-called 'Presentation Pack' and these are normally issued with a plastic wrapper. One word of caution, over time as the plastic dries out, it shrinks and can warp the contents (at least that's what happened to some GB ones I have from the 1970's collected as a kid in London).
Thank you George. As I have been going through everything, there are many Presentation Packs. Some of them have three fold brochures that match the stamps. I was assuming they are issued that way but we all know about "assume". Good to have some confirmation.
Full sheets, Matched set of plate and inscription blocks, and presentation packs were all sold sealed in plastic. The sheets normally had a stiffener in the plastic pack as did the plate & inscription blocks. I have not seen any that have "warped" like some of the GB stamps in presentation packs. The sad part is that the Canadian stamps, although mint and good for postage, sell for about 50% or less of face value. It is hard to get enough 8 cents stamps on an envelope to pay the current 92 cent first class domestic rate. The US rate is 1.30, and the international rate is 2.71.
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