Walker, three others to sign Roll of Distinguished Philatelists

Four collectors were recently elected by the Philatelic Congress of Great Britain to sign the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists.

W. Danforth Walker of the United States, Wolfgang A. Maassen of Germany, and Robert I. Johnson and Christopher M.B. King of the United Kingdom were chosen for the honor, according to the announcement in the April issue of The London Philatelist, published by the Royal Philatelic Society, London.

Walker was recognized for his collections of British Borneo and Romania and for his research on the island of Grenada, which he began collecting in 1971.

He received the American Philatelic Society’s Champion of Champions award in 1996 for his exhibit “Grenada: 1751-1911.” This exhibit also won three large golds in international exhibitions.

An article by Jane Moubray in The London Philatelist mentions Walker’s generous service to philately, both in the United States and for the International Federation of Philately, known as the FIP, as well as for other organizations.

Maassen is a collector specializing in Brazil and philatelic literature, and the author of many books.

His latest work, Milestones of the Philatelic Literature of the 19th Century, was cowritten with Vincent Schouberechts and published by the Club de Monte-Carlo for the 2013 exhibit.

Johnson’s collections include Great Britain’s Two Penny Blue stamp, postal history of the King George V era, Cape of Good Hope rectangular issues and more. He has also contributed published research in the form of articles and books on British postal rates, the postal history of Iraq and India express post.

King is the current president of the Royal Philatelic Society London. Much of his collecting and research has focused on Scandinavian stamps and postal history, especially Schleswig.

The Roll of Distinguished Philatelists was established in 1921 by the Philatelic Congress of Great Britain with the approval of King George V, who was the first signatory. Not including the newly elected members, 364 philatelists from 40 countries have achieved this distinction. Ten signatories are from the United States.

The signing ceremony is planned for July 12 at Cloth Hall in Ypres, Belgium, during a joint meeting of the Royal Philatelic Society London and the Belgian Academy of Philately. The event is supported by the Philatelic Congress of Great Britain.