Does anyone know if using a 3% hydrogen peroxide solution to test stamps for sulphur damage will damage the stamp long term? Or affect its value?

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51Studebaker

Dialysis, damned if you do...dead if you don't
12 Dec 2020
09:39:00am

re: Hydrogen peroxide to test stamps

Many of us have used it for years without any obvious negative impact but the truth is that we really do not know how many times a stamp can be exposed to hydrogen peroxide before negative impact is introduced. In my tests, leaving a stamp for a long period of time in hydrogen peroxide can cause color loss. This is consistent with my experience in using hydrogen peroxide in a textile mill as a bleaching agent. (You can do an online search for “hydrogen peroxide bleaching agent”.)

We all want to be good stewards of the philatelic material we own. Towards this end, it may be that a bath in fresh, clean, cool water is the best approach for the majority of collectors. Lastly, maintaining a stamp’s patina should not be considered a bad thing (and in many other hobbies this is now becoming predominate). We all show our age as time goes by!

Lastly if a person is selling a stamp that they have altered the appearance on, there should be disclosure of this fact.
Don

 
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