A. J. Sefi
Alexander Joseph Sefi (1889 in St. Pancras, London[1][2] – 10 October 1934, in Kensington, London[3][4]) was an English philatelist and stamp dealer who signed the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists in 1933.[4][5]
Early life[edit]
Sefi was educated at the Merchant Taylors' School. Later, he spent three years conducting geological and scientific expeditions in Asia Minor, Syria and Arabia.[2]
Stamp dealing[edit]
Sefi worked in association with David Field who published several of his works. In 1921 he joined P.L. Pemberton and E.L. Pemberton as Sefi, Pemberton & Co. Ltd. Together, they donated the Sefi-Pemberton Cup to The Junior Philatelic Society, now the National Philatelic Society. The firm continued until 1956 when it was acquired by Robson Lowe.[6]
Philately[edit]
Sefi edited the Philatelic Journal of Great Britain from 1926, and also Philatelic World and The West-End Philatelist. He researched the silk thread issues of Switzerland 1854-62.[2] In philatelic literature, his magnum opus was his masterful "An Introduction to Advanced Philately...", re-issued in facsimile form by the Royal Philatelic Society London in 2010. At the time of his death, he was engaged with C.H. Mortimer in preparing a book on Jammu-Kashmir which was eventually published in 1937.[4] He won the Bates Prize at the 1923 Philatelic Congress of Great Britain in London, and the Congress Cup for his paper "Forgeries and Fakes" at the 1929 Birmingham Congress.[4] His philatelic interests were wide and he contributed numerous articles to philatelic periodicals.
Other[edit]
Sefi played bridge for England.[2]
Selected publications[edit]
- The Postage Stamps of Grenada. London: D. Field, 1912.
- King Edward VII Land. London: D. Field, 1912
- The Postage Stamps of Malta. London: D. Field, 1913.
- An Introduction to Advanced Philately, with special reference to typical methods of stamp production. London: Rowley & Rowley, 1926. (2nd edition 1932)
- The stamps of Jammu-Kashmir: including chapters on postal history, obliterations, post cards and telegraph stamps. London: Sefi, Pemberton & Co. Ltd., 1937 (with C.H. Mortimer).
References[edit]
- ^ "Search Results for England & Wales Births 1837-2006".
- ^ a b c d Who Was Who in British Philately Archived 13 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine Association of British Philatelic Societies 2010. Retrieved 16 August 2011.
- ^ "Search Results for England & Wales Deaths 1837-2007".
- ^ a b c d "The Late Alexander J. Sefi", The London Philatelist, Vol. XLIII, No. 514, October 1934, pp. 220-221.
- ^ "Search Results for England". www.findmypast.co.uk. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
- ^ "Reminiscences of a Stamp Dealer", The London Philatelist, Vol. XLIX, No. 583, July 1940, pp. 121-130.