In 1957, Iran issued a stamp honoring the Centenary of the Birth of Robert Baden-Powell, the founder of the Boy Scouts (Scott #1073). 85,000 stamps were issued, and Scott '10 prices it unused at $ 8.50. I continue to favor Boy Scout Topicals, especially those issued by countries for which I feel bullish about the stamp market. Worldwide membership of the Boy Scouts is estimated at 25 million, and Scouting topicals are extremely popular internationally. The Boy Scouts of America even promote the hobby with a stamp collecting merit badge.
Note that a common defect found on many Iranian stamps of the '50s is badly toned, "gloppy" gum. When purchasing #1073, endeavor to select examples with clean gum.
Stamps of Iran are not widely collected at present, partly for political reasons and partly because of the ubiquity of fakes among the early overprinted issues. Nevertheless, it is an oil-rich nation (ranked second in both oil and natural gas reserves) of 76 million people, and there are signs that many of them are becoming fed up with the corrupt and reactionary theocracy that is isolating Iran from the rest of the world. Furthermore, it is beginning to diversify away from its dependence on oil into other industries, such as biotech, nanotech, and pharmaceuticals, and it has the potential to develop a thriving tourism sector, should it institute reforms and begin to improve its image.
