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How should I sort a stamp collection?

By country first, then by year of issue within each country. That's the order catalogues, albums and dealers use, so anything you look up later will match.

Within a year, follow catalogue order rather than inventing your own. If you collect topically, sort by subject and then by country, and keep a note of the catalogue number anyway, because that's the language buyers speak.

• Sorted, unmounted material lives in a stockbook until you decide where it belongs.
• Mounted material goes on album pages, with mounts for unused stamps.
• Duplicates go into glassine envelopes, labelled by country and catalogue number.
• Covers are stored upright in cover boxes or sleeves, never folded.

What should a stamp inventory record?

Enough to identify the stamp and to prove what you had: catalogue number, a short description, condition, what you paid, a current estimate, and where it's stored.

Add a photo for anything valuable, and record certificate numbers for expertized stamps. See stamp condition grades for consistent condition wording.

Spreadsheet, software or app?

A spreadsheet is free and flexible, dedicated software handles catalogue data and valuations, and a phone app is fastest for capturing stamps as you sort. Many collectors use an app to capture and a spreadsheet as the master record.

What should I do with duplicates?

Keep them sorted in glassine envelopes by country. Duplicates are what you trade at clubs, sell in lots, or use to upgrade when you find a better copy.

Don't throw duplicates away, and don't let them clog your album. When a duplicate is in better condition than the one on your page, swap them and move the weaker copy to the trade pile. Bulk duplicates sell best as country lots. See how to sell stamps.

Why does an inventory matter?

Because it's what insurers, executors and buyers ask for. A collection with a clear list and photographs is quicker to insure, easier to divide fairly and faster to sell at a fair price.

It also protects you from buying the same stamp twice, and it shows which parts of the collection carry the value. For inherited albums, a list is the first thing to build. See inherited a stamp collection and how to value a stamp collection.

How do I tackle a big unsorted accumulation?

In passes. Sort roughly by country first, without stopping to research anything, then by era within each country, and only then look up individual stamps. Trying to do all three at once is why boxes stay unsorted for years.

1. Pass one: split everything into country piles, and one pile for “no idea”. Speed matters more than accuracy here.
2. Pass two: within each country, split by era or reign, using the monarch, currency or design as the clue.
3. Pass three: identify individual stamps, starting with the oldest pile, and set aside anything that looks scarce.
4. Pass four: mount the keepers, glassine the duplicates, and record what you've kept.

Work in short sessions with a clear table, good light and tongs. An hour of sorting done properly beats an afternoon of sorting that ends with stamps in a heap because you ran out of patience.