Two philatelists exhibited their unique collection of stamps on the final day of an expo here yesterday.
Stamp collectors, Alok K Goyal and Atish Kumar Jain, showcased a whopping variety of 700 stamps at the 'Coin Expo 2015', organised by Kerala Numismatic Society in Kochi.
The collection saw stamps in unique shapes of football, fish, turtles, penguins and birds. The exhibition also showcased uniqueness in the material the stamps were printed on - from woods and clothes to metals like silver and gold.
The odd collection comprised night glow stamps and thermo-sensitive stamps, which protect them from the harmful rays of the sun.
"We are representing various world postal authorities in India. Mainly we are offering unusual stamps and coins to Indian collectors. Unusual means the stamps which are not of normal variety. Normally stamps are of rectangle shape and on paper but unusual stamps, they are of different shapes, different materials have been put on stamps. They are made of different materials. The smelling stamps, then (stamps which) glow in the night. There are various kinds of stamps. New technology people are using on stamps to increase knowledge among the people," said Goyal.
He added that though he had presented a proposal in front of postal department of India to consider the usage of unusual stamps, he was not sure if it would be accepted as the rules are quite rigid in India.
Apart from stamps, the three-day expo also showcased coins, old currencies, medals, treasure pots and postal cards from around the world.
A huge range of coins, some dating back to third century BC and some silver coins believed to be from the era of Jesus Christ were also on display.
Coins belonging to Mughal, Chola, Nawab and British era were up for display, along with coins used in the Roman dynasty and old dynasties in China, Korea, Africa and other parts of the world.
