September 19, 2002
CANADIAN WEB SITES EARN FIP DISTINCTION

The 2002 Worldwide Philatelic Website competition sponsored by the Fédération Internationale de Philatélie (FIP) earned high awards of distinction for the only two Canadian submissions.

The Canadian Postal Archives merited top prize for Best Web Site - Official Class. The judges "were delighted" to have for the first time exhibits in the Official Class, that is, sites sponsored by Postal Administrations.

Neil Donen of Victoria, British Columbia received one of two Top 5 % Site Awards for his 1935 Silver Jubilee of George V. Donen's award was also given Felicitations for the incredible quality of the research on the site. Both winners are authorized to display a distinctive logo.

Other FIP Web Site awards are for 3-Star-Sites, 2-Star-Sites, and Certificates of Participation.

Charge J.G. Verge, President of The Royal Philatelic Society of Canada, says "The RPSC is proud of these singular accomplishments." He said "they set an example for excellence that others will want to emulate."

The Canadian Postal Archives site is a first class effort which allows viewers to have access to all stamps of Canada and the Provinces. There are also search engines that are linked to the Philatelic Library's catalogue database, to a database relating to post offices, and to a database on Canadian stamps.

Thousands of digitized documents are available in this treasury of Canada's philatelic heritage. There are also philatelic games for all ages and numerous links to such sites as The RPSC, BNAPS, APS, the British Library Philatelic Collections, and directories of numerous philatelic museums and libraries as well as to postal administrations around the world.

Neil Donen's web site is dedicated to the 1935 Silver Jubilee stamp omnibus issued to commemorate King George V of Great Britain. It is of particular interest because of King George's great interest in stamps. It has resource information on all the countries that issued stamps, pictures of variations and flaws, and information on the King George V Silver Jubilee Study Circle and its journal The Flagstaff.

Both sites are visually attractive and extremely easy to manoeuvre by even the most amateur web searcher.

These were the only Canadian submissions among the 30 entries from 17 countries in the 2002 FIP Web Site Evaluation. The evaluation was completed by nine accredited literature judges, plus a consultant, from six countries in Europe and North America under the leadership of Francis Kiddle, Chairman of the FIP's Commission for Philatelic Literature.

Information on the 2003 Website competition is now available at the FIP's website: www.f-i-p.ch. Webmasters are encouraged to enter their site in next year's competition. Information on The RPSC can be had by e-mail at info@rpsc.org or by visiting the Society's website at www.rpsc.org.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Michael O. Nowlan 506-357-2698
Carol S. Law 416-979-8874