Colombia-Panama Philatelic Study Group, was founded in July 1983, the 200th anniversary of the birth of Simon Bolivar, the liberator of Colombia and its first president.  COPAPHIL is affiliate #142 of the American Philatelic Society since August 1985.  The purpose of COPAPHIL is to promote the philately of Colombia and Panama. 

Last Updated October 4, 2011

ANOUNCEMENT:

• Our latest Mail Sale #34 closed on June 10, 2011. Included were 217 lots of stamps and covers and an additional 73 lots of literature, including many rare items. The list of Prices Realized includes a number of unsold lots which will be available until November 30, 2011 at the minimum bid. See the list of lots for descriptions and images. Click "Mail Sales" at the left for additional information on COPAPHIL's mail sales.
  

• COPAPHIL sadly reports the passing of founding member David Leeds on April 18, 2011.

• COPAPHIL notes with sorrow the passing of its founder Jim Cross on December 21, 2010. Jim will be sorely missed. He not only brought our group into exisistence, but also served as its first president and edited our journal COPACARTA for 25 years. Jim was passionate about the philately of Colombia and Panama and was always willing to share his knowledge. He was a dedicated researcher and leaves behind a long list of published articles for future generations of collectors to learn from.

• Congratulations to COPAPHIL members on their awards at NAPEX 2010 (list to follow shortly). Santiago Cruz's exhibit "SCADTA - The Pioneer Years 1920-1922" received the NAPEX Grand Award. The exhibit also received the Colombia Panama Philatelic Study Group Walter Blell Memorial Award and the American Air Mail Society Grand Award. There were several seminars and the show was a great success. Numerous members enjoyed an excellent dinner at the nearby Wildfire Restaurant.
  
  
• Congratulations to COPAPHIL members on their awards at London 2010. Twenty members and friends also enjoyed a dinner get together at the show, arranged by Malcolm Bentley.
  
  
• At WESTPEX, Alfredo Frohlich's exhibit "Republic of Colombia - International Mail 1886 - 1899" was awarded the
  WESTPEX Grand Award, a US $20 Double Eagle gold coin. The exhibit also received the Postal History Society Medal for
  Best Postal History and the COLOMPHIL Award for Outstanding Study of South & Central American Philately.
  Santiago Cruz received a Gold Medal for his "COLOMBIA - Department of Antioquia 1886 - 1904".
  The WESTPEX 2010 Palmares has full details.

• Hugo Goeggel was honored by being asked to sign the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists. In its May 2010 issue, the London Philatelist stated,
  "The Roll of Distinguished Philatelists was established in 1921 by the Philatelic Congress of Great Britain with the approval of His Majesty King George V who was the first Signatory. An invitation to sign the Roll is regarded as the world's pre-eminent philatelic honour."
  The article goes on to state, "Hugo Goeggel is the leading philatelic expert in Colombia and Latin America having exhibited both classic issues and airmails with distinction." The pertinent page of the London Philatelist has the full statement.

• PANAMA POSTAL MARKINGS HANDBOOK, 2d EDITION:
  
  The second edition of the Panama Postal Markings Handbook, by Jim Cross, is now available. This edition includes additional markings and revised dates of use for markings which were not in the first edition, which contained markings used through 1950. In addition it contains markings used from 1950 thru 1980. It contains 320 pages with 2329 markings. It will be printed by the same printer who prints and distributes COPACARTA and will be printed upon demand. The largest section is devoted to town postmarks, 1029 markings on 130 pages. The next largest section is devoted to registration marks, 390 markings on 57 pages.
  
  The book will be delivered comb bound. The following are postpaid non-member prices. Members may order a copy at a significantly lower price; the discount is more than the cost of a year’s membership. (Member pricing can be found on the application on the web site. This is a major member benefit so please consider joining us.
  
  • For mailing within the United States ..... $35.00 (add $3 if paying by Paypal)
  • For mailing to Canada ..... $40.00 (add $3 if paying by Paypal)
  • For mailing to the rest of the world ..... $50.00 (add $4 if paying by Paypal)
  • Payment must be made in US dollars drawn on a US bank or by Paypal.
  • To order, contact Allan Harris, 26997 Hemmingway Ct, Hayward, CA 94542-2349 or copaphilusa@aol.com.

• The Smithsonian National Postal Museum Library has several resources for the Colombia/Panama Student.
  A summary of pertinent resources has been created to highlight these resources. Please note that their new website is still being developed and you may find changes.
  
  
• The latest exhibit page was added on May 18. Click "Exhibit" at the left to see our latest featured exhibit and the previous exhibits.
  It is hoped that we can add at least 2 new exhibit pages every month. We need your help to make this happen. Please send scans (jpg of at least 150-dpi) to the webmaster (email address on Contact page) of your best exhibit pages or of other special items of interest. Thanks for your help.
  
  
• A new Handbook is available "The Stamps of Panama 1878-2007: Vital Statistics"
  160 pages of vital information including postal rates, authorization decrees, and numbers printed
  • Introduction
  • Chapter I: the regular stamps
  • Chapter II: the air mail stamps
  • Chapter III: the back-of-the-book stamps
  • Chapter IV: the postal rates
  Copies are $21.95 plus postage: US $3.50 media mail, $4.95 priority mail; Canada 1st class $6.55; elsewhere $13.00. Payment must be made in US dollars drawn on a US bank. Overseas orders may be paid by Paypal with $2.00 additional. Contact Allan Harris, 26997 Hemmingway Ct, Hayward, CA 94542-2349 or copaphilusa@aol.com