This page contains links to websites that I consider interesting to stamp collectors.
They are in English, unless otherwise indicated with a flag picture, e.g. Dutch: Dutch.

Feel free to .

What you will not find here:

  • Generic resources like translation sites, (historical) maps, dictionaries, picture upload sites
  • Stamps for specific countries, periods, events
  • Auction, vendor, club and forum sites
  • Software, paper catalogues

Sections:
Stamp collecting general
Sites that help in identifying stamps
Fakes, forgeries, other 'stamps'
Techniques and knowledge (production)
Techniques and knowledge (collecting)
Machins
Swapping
Auctions and finance
Other

Date of last update: 29 mar 2016

Youtube videos are marked with movie icon

Wikipedia is (of course) a very good place to look up (any) stamp information. Start with the postage stamp page and follow the links from there, or enter your search term.
I have included some major Wikipedia links on this page.
If you are looking for information about stamps from specific countries, do not forget to go to the Wikipedia language version of that country. As an example: searching for the "Schwarze(r) Einser" stamp on the English site will bring you to a one-screen long English page, but doing the same on the German site gives you 4 times as much information (if you can read German, of course).

Stamp collecting general, starter pages

Home Hobbies: Stamp Collecting
What is Thematic Philately? (Svend Waever's blog)
Tools for stamp collectors
The Project Gutenberg eBook of What Philately Teaches, by John N. Luff
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Building a Stamp Collection
Preserving your stamps

Sites that help in identifying stamps

Note: None of the so called 'catalogs' is complete, but they contain valuable info nonetheless
Stamp collecting terms
FreeStampCatalogue
List of country name etymologies (Wikipedia)
Inscriptions Overprints On Stamps
Stamps in Europe (Europeanstamps.net)
WADP Numbering System
List of enclaves and exclaves
Flags of the World
Kenmore stamp finder
ISWSC Worldwide Stamp Identifier
Lynn's Stamp issuing entities of the world
Global Name Changes Since 1990
Sandafayre Stamp Atlas
Stamp expertizing - stamp expert mark
Hidden Datestamps, Cancellations and Embossed Images Revealed

Fakes, forgeries (and countermeasures), other 'stamps'

Philatelic fakes and forgeries (Wikipedia)
Is It Real? Avoiding the Hazards of Fakes and Forgeries
List of Lables Purporting to be Stamps (Salm No. 4)
Fakes, Counterfeits and Bogus Stamps
Stamp Collectors Against Dodgy Sellers (SCADS)
World index of stamp forgeries, by country
Certificates of authenticity
Illegal stamps (Wikipedia)
Cinderella stamps (Wikipedia)
Where is it? A list of illegal and local unofficial stamps

Techniques and knowledge (production)

The gravure printing process
Hologram stamps - how they are made
Color in philately

Techniques and knowledge (collecting)

How to automate mass scanning of stamps
How to measure stamp perforation
The importance of condition
Removal & Preservation of Self Adhesive Postage Stampsmovie icon
Soaking stampsmovie icon
RetroReveal - Convert images into other color spaces to reveal hidden features

Machins

Deegam Machin Handbook
GBStamps.com - The Machin FAQ
Machin Colour List
Machins Great Britain (by Adminware Corporation)

Swapping

AllStampsParadise stamp exchange
Tambr - Persian Iranian Stamps - Swap Stamps with Collectors from all over the world

Auctions and finance

Auctions - Part I - Bidding and Buying
Auctions, Part II: Consigning and Selling
I Inherited a Stamp Collection, Now What?
Inheriting a stamp collection
What to do when you inherit stamps
Guide to Selling a Stamp Collection

Other

What is cherrypicking (about coins, but applies to stamps as well)
Exponet - virtual philatelic exhibition
The Invention of the Postage Stamp
Fancy cancels (Wikipedia)
Stamp atlas (Sandafayre)
Postzegels met bijnamen Dutch
Postzegelontwerpen Dutch
World P.E.A.S The World Philately as Educational Aid to Society project
The language of stamps Messages embedded in the orientation of stamps
The Stamp that Almost Caused a War