Topical (thematic) postage stamp collecting is the hobby of trying to identify and accumulate philatelic items related to a single "theme". (Another example can be seen on my pages about Chess on Stamps.) "Detective Fiction on Stamps" is a relatively small topic, but over two dozen countries have issued postage stamps (and other philatelic items) connected to or commemorating fictional detectives, their creators or cinematic portrayals. In some cases the stamps were specifically issued with the theme of detective fiction, notably the 1972 Nicaragua set for the Interpol anniversary: the 12 most famous fictional detectives, and the 1979 San Marino issue. Sometimes, as in the case of the Edgar Allan Poe, Georges Simenon, Ngaio Marsh or G.K. Chesterton issues, the stamps were in honor of the authors, without specific reference to their detectives. Still others commemorate screen actors, such as the U.S. Humphrey Bogart (Philip Marlowe / Sam Spade), and Clint Eastwood (Dirty Harry), or Great Britain Peter Sellers (Inspector Clouseau - The Pink Panther) issues. There are cartoon detectives, like Dick Tracy from the U.S., Roberto Alcázar and Pedrín from Spain, Detective Conan from Japan... Some items aren't quite detective stamps... Consider the British Royal Mail Agatha Christie Prestige Stamp Booklet -- for which no Agatha Christie stamp was issued, and the Sherlock Holmes £1 stamp booklets which, similarly, don't contain any Sherlock Holmes stamps... but they're postal items with relevance to the theme, and so they're included. (How far can this be stretched? How about a Canada stamp booklet with a silhouette of Sherlock Holmes on the inside of the cover!) Of course Sherlock Holmes is the champion, with a page of his own, The Philatelic Sherlock Holmes. Agatha Christie isn't far behind... But in all cases, whatever your interest, you'll find lots of information about the detectives, stories, authors, countries and stamps, as well as close-ups of the stamps themselves. So now, the game's afoot... Click on a country below to jump to its page... or use the Detective / Author Index to locate your favorite... Detective Fiction on Stamps

Country

Antigua & Barbuda 2000, Agatha Christie Belgium 1991, Blake & Mortimer (Edgar P. Jacobs) (comic strip) Belgium 1994, Georges Simenon (Inspector Maigret) Belgium 2003, Georges Simenon (Inspector Maigret) Belgium 2004, Edgar P. Jacobs, Blake & Mortimer (comic strip) Bhutan 1990, Nothumberland Hotel (Sherlock Holmes) Canada 1991, Sherlock Holmes on booklet cover Chad 1996, Clint Eastwood (Dirty Harry) Comoro Islands 1980, Sherlock Holmes Czechoslovakia 1969, G.K. Chesterton (Father Brown) Dominica 1991, Sherlock Holmes: Reichenbach Centennary Dominica 1996, 100 Years of Cinema: 10 Fictional Detectives Dominica 2000, Satyajit Ray France 1994, Georges Simenon (Inspector Maigret) France 1996, 6 Heroes of French Detective Fiction France 2003, Vidocq France 2004, Blake & Mortimer (comic strip) Funafuti/Tuvalu 1984, Locomotive "Sherlock Holmes" Great Britain 1985, British Films: P. Sellers (Inspector Clouseau - Pink Panther) Great Britain 1990, Agatha Christie commemorative cachet and postmarks Great Britain 1991, Agatha Christie Booklet Great Britain 1987-88, Sherlock Holmes booklet covers Great Britain 1993, Sherlock Holmes Great Britain 1997, Hound of the Baskervilles (Sherlock Holmes) Great Britain 2005, Inspector Morse Guernsey 1996, 100 Years of Cinema: 5 Fictional Detectives Guinea 1998, The Maltese Falcon (Sam Spade) Guinea 2001, Murder on the Orient Express (Agatha Christie) Guyana 1993, Sam Spade (The Maltese Falcon) Hungary 1948, Writers: Edgar Allan Poe (C. Auguste Dupin) India 1994, Satyajit Ray (Detective Feluda) Isle of Man 2003, Agatha Christie Isle of Man 2006, Agatha Christie Israel 1995, Cinema - 100 Years: P. Sellers (Inspector Clouseau - Pink Panther) Japan 2006, Detective Conan Mali 1994, Clint Eastwood (Dirty Harry) New Zealand 1989, Ngaio Marsh (Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn) Nicaragua 1972, 50th Anniv. of Interpol: 12 Most Famous Fictional Detectives Niger 1999, Clint Eastwood (Dirty Harry) San Marino 1979, 5 Fictional Detectives Sierra Leone 2001, Agatha Christie (Orient Express) Somali Republic 2000, Agatha Christie South Africa 2000, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) Spain 1998, Mortadelo and Filemón (comic strip) Spain 2000, Roberto Alcázar and Pedrén (comic strip) Switzerland 1994, Georges Simenon (Inspector Maigret) Turks & Caicos Islands 1984, Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes United States 1949, Edgar Allan Poe (C. Auguste Dupin) United States 1995, Dick Tracy (comic strip) United States 1997, Humphrey Bogart (Philip Marlowe, Sam Spade)

Detective / Author

Agatha Christie Antigua & Barbuda Dominica (Hercule Poirot, Miss Marple) Great Britain (Agatha Christie birthday - cachet and postmark) Great Britain (Agatha Christie booklet) Guinea (Murder on the Orient Express) Guernsey (Miss Jane Marple) Nicaragua (Hercule Poirot) Isle of Man (Agatha Christie's 'Manx Gold') Isle of Man Sierra Leone (Murder on the Orient Express) Somali Republic Uganda (Murder on the Orient Express) Arsène Lupin France Arthur Conan Doyle (Sherlock Holmes) Comoro Islands Dominica 1991 Dominica 1996 Great Britain 1987-88 booklet covers Great Britain 1993 Great Britain (Hound of the Baskervilles) Guernsey Nicaragua San Marino South Africa Turks & Caicos Is. Auguste Dupin Hungary (Edgar Allan Poe) Nicaragua United States (Edgar Allan Poe) Charlie Chan Dominica Guernsey Nicaragua Blake & Mortimer Belgium Belgium/France Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn New Zealand (Ngaio Marsh) Colin Dexter (Inspector Morse) Great Britain Dashiell Hammett (Sam Spade) Dominica Guinea Nicaragua Nicaragua (Humphrey Bogart) United States (Humphrey Bogart) Detective Conan Japan Dick Tracy Dominica United States Dirty Harry Callahan (Clint Eastwood) Chad Mali Niger Disney Disney Dorothy L. Sayers (Lord Peter Wimsey) Nicaragua Earl Derr Biggers (Charlie Chan) Dominica Guernsey Nicaragua Edgar Allan Poe (Auguste Dupin) Hungary Nicaragua United States Edgar Pierre Jacobs (Blake & Mortimer) Belgium Belgium/France Ellery Queen Nicaragua San Marino Erle Stanley Gardner (Perry Mason) Nicaragua San Marino Fantômas France Father Brown Czechoslovakia Nicaragua Feluda India Dominica Georges Simenon (Inspector Maigret) Belgium / France / Switzerland Belgium 2003 France Nicaragua San Marino G.K. Chesterton (Father Brown) Czechoslovakia Nicaragua Hercule Poirot Dominica Great Britain (Agatha Christie booklet) Nicaragua Inspector Clouseau (The Pink Panther) Dominica Guernsey Great Britain Israel Inspector Maigret Belgium/France/Switzerland (Georges Simenon) Belgium 2003 (Georges Simenon) France Nicaragua San Marino Inspector Morse Great Britain James Bond Dominica Lord Peter Wimsey Nicaragua Manfred Lee & Frederic Dannay (Ellery Queen) Nicaragua San Marino Mortadelo y Filemón Spain Miss Jane Marple Dominica Great Britain (Agatha Christie booklet) Guernsey Nero Wolfe Nicaragua San Marino Nestor Burma France Ngaio Marsh (Chief Inspector Roderick Alleyn) New Zealand Nick Charles Dominica Perry Mason Nicaragua San Marino Philip Marlowe Dominica Guernsey Nicaragua United States Raymond Chandler (Philip Marlowe) Dominica Guernsey Nicaragua United States Rex Stout (Nero Wolfe) Nicaragua San Marino Roberto Alcázar and Pedrín Spain Rocambole France Rouletabille France Sam Spade Dominica Guinea Guyana Nicaragua United States Satyajit Ray India Dominica Sherlock Holmes Bhutan Canada Comoro Islands Dominica 1991 Dominica 1996 Funafuti/Tuvalu (locomotive) Great Britain 1993 Great Britain 1987-88 booklet covers Great Britain (Hound of the Baskervilles) Guernsey Nicaragua San Marino South Africa (Conan Doyle) Turks & Caicos Is. Vidocq France

The cartoon is by the Danish cartoonist, Storm-P.
But who are these sleuths?

1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8 1. Porfiry Petrovic (Dostoevski) (Crime and Punishment) 2. Inspector Maigret (Georges Simenon) 3. Father Brown (G.K. Chesterton) 4. Sherlock Holmes (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle) 5. Hercule Poirot (Agatha Christie) 6. Inspector Cardby (David Hume) 7. Lord Peter Wimsey (Dorothy L. Sayers) 8. Reggie Fortune (H.C. Bailey)

Let me know if you have a different idea...

A few links!

Although there's not too much on the web
combining Detective Fiction and philately, but here's one that's close: The Mystery Box.

and you'll want to visit
The Mysterious Home Page:
A Guide to Mysteries and Crime Fiction on Internet

Other topical stamp pages at this site:

The Philatelic Sherlock Holmes
Chess on Stamps
Robert Louis Stevenson on Stamps
Anti-smoking on Stamps
Antoine de Saint-Exupéry

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