Czechs, Slovaks and Society Members Score at WIPA 2000

By Henry Hahn, US Commissioner

For the first time since 1981, Vienna was host to the legendary WIPA event.Ű The previous onesŰ took place in 1881, 1933, 1965 and 1981.Ű This time the show was under the auspices of FEPA, the European Federation of Philatelic Societies,Ű and was dedicated to the celebration of the 150^th anniversary of the issuance of AustriaĚs first postage stamp.

Though WIPA was not a FIP (International Federation for Philately) sponsored show,Ű the difference could hardly be detected in this superb exhibit, held in ViennaĚs modern ňAUSTRIA CENTER˛, (Fig. 1), located just minutes by subway from ViennaĚs historic center.Ű The show took place from May 30^th through June 4^thŰ -^Ű a time period considered by some too short for viewing the 3,000 frames and visits to the large number of world-class dealers.Ű The facilities in the main pavilion were excellent, with plenty of seating, wide aisles, and good restaurants.Ű The accommodating staff was managed by Gerhard Dusska, Johann Brunner, Dr. Helmut Seebald and Horst Ziegler.Ű The General Commissioner was Kurt Wolfsbauer, the Secretary General was Klaus Proske and KR Erik Hanke handled Public Relations and Media.^ŰŰ Some minor shortcomings included lack of prominent signs causing some visitors to be lost or unable to find the exhibit they were looking for.Ű Another shortcoming included the fact that the frames were not numbered, except for a small slip at the beginning of each exhibit.Ű WIPAĚs 12-page frames appeared advantageous over the more conventional 16-page version, making viewing of the bottom rows far easier.

Postal History, Aerophilately, Maximaphily, Astrophilately, Revenue Stamps and Youth Philately were displayed in a separate pavilion, just a few steps away from the Main Pavilion. This pavilion was somewhat less elegant than the Main Pavilion, but more than adequate for the purpose. It also displayed the "jewels of philately", including the "Bordeaux Letter" (Mauritius), scarlet (Zinnoberroter) Mercury and other color varieties in multiples, the Swedish three Skilling Banco in yellow, the British Guyana, the only existing Austrian remnant from the 1937 Lakehurst disaster, rarities from the Berlin Postal Museum, Hawaiian Missionaries and others.

There were 39 Commissioners, including two from the United States (Ken Gilbart and Henry Hahn), one from the Czech Republic (Miroslav Langhammer) and one from Slovakia (Lubomir Floch). There were two (2) judges from the Czech Republic (Ladislav Dvoracek and Vladimir Viklicky) and one Czech member of the Expert Team (Pavel Pittermann). Knud Mohr, FIP President was Honorary Judge, Helmut Pfalz (Austria) was Jury President, Damian Laege (Switzerland) was Jury Secretary and Gerhard Kraner (Switzerland) was Jury Assistant. There were 33 jurors, 2 experts , and 4 apprentices (all 4 Austrian).

Participation by US, Czech and Slovak and other exhibitors displaying Czechoslovakia related material was relatively modest in comparison with the number of applications submitted. Only six (6) such competitive exhibits were accepted. On the other hand all literature exhibit applications were accepted, which numbered seventeen (17). At least one major Czechoslovakia related exhibit was withdrawn due to the political problem in Austria. The judging of Czechoslovakia related exhibits appears fair, and is listed below.

COMPETITIVE CZECHOSLOVAKIA RELATED STAMP EXHIBITS

COMPETITIVE CZECHOSLOVAKIA RELATED PHILATELIC LITERATURE EXHIBITS

The social events and lectures at WIPA were of excellent quality. A reception for officials, judges, commissioners and their wives at Vienna's "Rathaus" (City Hall) was festive and entertaining. The Palmares also took place at the Rathaus. The black tie affair was elegant, with an all-ladies orchestra providing lovely Viennese music. Speeches were short, and only Large Golds and the top awards were presented.

Clearly, Vienna once again demonstrated its ability to field an outstanding philatelic event, with superior exhibits, first class facilities, and a highly competent staff.