LONDON.- Spink & Son Ltd., the London based auctioneer and collectables dealer, is pleased to announce that it has acquired the Arthur Maury Philatelic Catalogues. Included in the sale are the rights to and control of the current stock and future editions of these books. The list includes the annual Timbres de France Catalogue, the first catalogue of postage stamps in the World, now in its 118th edition, together with the specialised editions covering Timbres de l'ex-empire francais d'Afrique; Timbres des Bureaux Francais, Anciennes Colonies, et zones d'Occupation ed Europe et Asie; Timbres de DOM-TOM and Timbres des principautes et Terres polaires, Andorre, Monaco, Saint-Pierre & Miquelon, T.A.A.F. Europa.

The Maury catalogues will continue to provide the highest level of detail for the stamps and covers of France and the French colonies. The initial focus will be to further enhance the information on the pre 1940 issues, and all later popular specialities. The aim is to broaden its appeal via engaging top collectors and dealers to produce the ultimate reference for France and Colonies in a style similar to the book, "Coins of England", which has been for many years the ultimate reference for coins of the British Isles.

Spink hopes to release the next edition of the France catalogue in the fourth quarter this year, and they are also starting work on a catalogue for South America where the demand amongst collectors for a good reference catalogue is also huge.

Olivier Stocker, Chairman and CEO of Spink commented, "We are delighted to have acquired this prestigious and unique list of titles, the Maury brand is legendary in French philately and it is our intention to continue to build the reputation of these catalogues worldwide as we add progressively more titles. At Spink we stand for both Tradition and Modernity, hence we hope that digital versions will also be available very soon for information on-the-go as a useful complement to the printed editions.