COLLECTING FOR BEGINNERS

The continued growth of online auctions and our confidence in bidding online has made buying stamps at auction a popular way to add to a collection, but it’s not without its risks as collecting newcomer Laura McInerney explains in this month’s ‘newbie’ column

In ancient Rome, legal scholars argued whether the price paid at auctions ought to be void if someone had succumbed to ‘bidder’s heat’, or , as it was called at the time. Evidence that madness had overtaken the crowd came from the fact that prices had inflated beyond their is a worry. Though it’s frankly no surprise that auctions usually lead to higher prices. They are designed that way.