The Home for Our Hobby
WW2 War Effort Bantams.
Tony Howgrave-Graham, President of SACS, provides one of the best collections of Union of SA WW2 Small War Effort (aka ‘Bantams’) ever to be assembled. This comprehensive display of colour shades, perforations, slogans, printings, retouching, flaws, errors and varieties makes a most useful free philatelic reference work. Click here to view it.
Paleophilately: Letter from Richard Owen, London, to Sir Henry Barkly, Cape Town, 1876
Given the dearth of contributions from SACS members, this excellent article from Michael Kogan breathes welcome, if prehistoric, fresh air into our website. Its blend of science, history and philately provides a new direction for stamp collecting and postal history. Read more.
Auction 60 – Closed
Our first Auction of 2025 contains a strong range of South African Union stamps, including examples of the scarce Darmstadt Trials, left. A pre-occupation letter from General Sir David Baird, the 1806 British conqueror of the Batavian Cape, is ex-Robson Lowe. View PRICES REALISED here.
Anglo-Boer War Society Meeting
The last Anglo-Boer War Philatelic Society meeting in London was an unexpected treat, an enoyable and convivial time that began with an excellent lunch followed by a discussion in which remarkable postal history was passed around for members to examine. Viewing postal history seldom gets more intimate than this. Read more.
Stampex London 2024: Well worth a visit!
Stampex, the UK’s premier philatelic exhibition in past years, has suffered criticism ever since Covid saw visitor numbers decline. It has now downsized and changed. Steve Hannath met up with Simon Peetoom, right, at Stampex and came away full of enthusiasm for an event that has rediscoverd its mojo as an unpretentious stamp fair. Read more.
SACS Meeting: Letchworth 28/09/2024
This was an upbeat meeting. Keith Perrow (Postage Dues) and new member Danna Strydom (1885 ZAR Vurtheim issue) provided an excellent start. Ian Shapiro’s Open Class display on the 1947 Royal Visit was based largely on a trove of “wonderful things” found in South Africa. Ian is seen here holding his favourite item, a letter written by Princess Elizabeth (later QE2) to her headmaster while on the White Train in SA. Read more.
PFSA President Gawie Hugo goes stamping in London
Steve Hannath took the opportunity to join Gawie and his daughter Ilse in London to enjoy some Saturday stamping while polishing up his Afrikaans and strengthening relationships between South Africa’s PFSA and the UK’s South African Collectors’ Society. Read more.
Zoom Meeting 14/09/2024 – A report on what you missed!
Tony Johnson, Editor of The Springbok and SACS Zoom Master, co-ordinated this well-attended meeting across three continents. Any distance between Hugh Amoore RDPSA in South Africa, Keith Klugman RDPSA in the USA, and Rob Lester in the UK evaporated as we joined together in Zoom time and space to celebrate SACS as the ‘Home for our Hobby’. Read more.
In Memoriam:
Paul van Zeyl RDPSA 1950 – 2024
It is with great sadness that we announce the loss of Paul van Zeyl RDPSA, a cherished member of SACS since 1979. Read more.
Our first SACS meeting in the new Kenilworth venue
Our most recent Society two-day meeting was held at the Holiday Inn, Kenilworth, on the 30th June – 1st July 2024. It was an enjoyable philatelic occassion attended by some 20 members. Most displayed material and or entered nine pages into the Abell Trophy One Frame Competition. A full report on the weekend’s proceedings with links to displays is available here.
The Union-Castle Line’s Kenilworth Castle
As befitted the new venue, Tony Howgrave-Graham, above, provided a short display on the Union-Castle mailboat, the Kenilworth Castle, (1904 – 1936). After she collided with a destroyer during WW1 some passengers and seamen took to a lifeboat that overturned in rough seas. A harrowing letter from a stoic nurse describes her terrifying ordeal in the water at night. Read more.
Ka Boom! An Exhibition Mystery Solved!
Endorsed by ZAR State President Paul Kruger, the ‘International Industrial Exhibition’ of 1896 was planned to take place in Johannesburg. Its doors never opened. The reason for its cancellation has long mystified Rob Lester, Chairman of SACS. He now has a plausible explanation for why this event never took place. Read more.
How to Quickly Detect Fake Cape Triangles
Fake Cape Triangles were largely produced as ‘space-fillers’ for old-time collectors who could not afford the real thing. Oneglia’s 1/- green ‘triangle’ shown here is one of the better examples of the forger’s craft. Fortunately, there is a quick and easy way to identify it as an obvious fake. Read more.
Affordable South African Philatelic Study Booklets
South African stamp collectors can choose from range of 42 Study Booklets, many of which are based on award-winning philatelic displays and collections compiled over many years by leading experts in their field. They are a source of expert advice and reference published by Rob and Lyn Lester on behalf of SACS. Read more.
Journal > Archive: A Great Leap Forward
Old copies of The Springbok contain a wealth of knowledge. To make this accessible we have converted scans of the earliest issues (1953 – 1961) into to a search-friendly format that allows you to find information by using search terms like ‘Bantams’ or ‘interprovincials’, etc. The philatelic wisdom of yore is now yours. Read more.
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2025 Meetings
Letchworth
Saturday 12th April,
Saturday 30th August.
Read about our last get-together.
Kenilworth
Sunday & Monday, 1st & 2nd June.
Why, When and Where?
Welcome to Kenilworth!
New Open Meeting
Saturday & Sunday, 1st & 2nd November.
Read more!

What’s New
New SA stamp
President Cyril Ramaphosa is celebrated on a new issue. Click here to find out more.
Study Booklet
A new expert Study Booklet, “The South West Africa Campaign 1914-1915 – Prisoners of War” by Tony Howgrave Graham is now available. Click here to find out more.
Auction 60
Auction 60 now closed. View prices realised.
The Springbok October 2024
Latest issue of the Society journal.
New Displays
Concentration Camps of the SAW
Zululand Stamps & Postal History.
View displays.
A New Fun Competition
Find out more …
The Otto Peetoom Philatelic Legacy Website
Find out more …