Emil Tamsen

Emil Carl Christiaan Tamsen (2 January 1862 – 30 July 1957) was a South African philatelist, who was entered on the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists in 1921. He was also a signatory, in 1932, to the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists of Southern Africa. Tamsen was an expert in the stamps of Transvaal, about which he researched and wrote, and he was one of the founders in 1894 of the Johannesburg Philatelic Society.

Early life Tamsen was born in Naby, Schleswig-Holstein, Kingdom of Denmark, on 2 January 1862, at that time part of Denmark. He was the son of Franz August Tamsen and Friedericke Schuffman. He became a naturalised citizen of the South African Republic (the Transvaal Republic or ZAR). who also introduced adhesive stamps there, and Isaac van Alphen, Postmaster General during the Second Republic. He bought the contents of the dead letter office and "in ransacking the contents he added treasure after treasure to his collection".

Auctions The success of Tamsen's activities may be gauged by the fact that he sold over £7000 worth of stamps in London between 1899 and 1905, which represented only part of his collection and stock, The second Tamsen sale was through the same auctioneers 9–10 January 1900 and included fine Cape triangulars. His Bechuanaland was sold on 10 May 1900 through the same firm.

Writing Tamsen was a regular writer for Stanley Gibbons Monthly Journal and its successor Gibbons Stamp Weekly, both predecessors of the current Gibbons Stamp Monthly. He wrote of the latest stamp finds in the Transvaal and elsewhere in Southern Africa, and gave reports on the health, or otherwise, of philatelic societies in the region. In November 1904 he wrote from Nylstroom that it was not easy to report on current philatelic events when the nearest collector lived 100 miles away.

Publications From cover to cover. Privately produced and circulated, 1940. (With Park Smith)

Personal life Tamsen married Clara Pauline Richter (1866–1963) and they had a son, Adolph Carl Tamsen (1892–1961). Tamsen died on 30 July 1957 in Pretoria.