From May 25th to May 28th, 2023, the World Philatelic Exhibition IBRA 2023 was held in Essen, Germany, under the auspices of the World Philatelic Organization FIP. Alongside the exhibition, a philately fair was also organized, lasting the same number of days as the exhibition itself. Both events were organized at a high level, and visitors came from all over the world.

Every morning, before the opening at 10 a.m., a crowd of philately enthusiasts gathered in front of the entrance to the halls, and this crowd mostly remained engaged in the event until the closing at 6 p.m. The philatelic fair brought together a significant number of postal operators from different countries, auction houses, philatelic material manufacturers, large and small traders. This abundance offered visitors diverse opportunities to fully immerse themselves in philately enjoyment.

Exhibitors from all over the world took part in the philatelic exhibition, and therefore it was an excellent occasion where many exhibitors decided to visit it and see their exhibit live. More than 60 national commissioners were present at the exhibition, and almost the same number of jury members were present. The jury definitely had their hands full, as they evaluated 809 exhibits, and their conclusion was that the quality of the exhibits itself was very high, as 64 large gold medals and 196 gold medals were awarded.

As with every previous world philatelic exhibition, exhibitors from Serbia also participated in this one. To our great satisfaction, excellent results were achieved, demonstrating once again that Serbia can take pride in its representatives, both the older and the younger generation. These are the results achieved:

91 – GOLD + SPECIAL PRIZE,
Vladimir Milić
The Yugoslav Inflation 1989-1994: Influence on Postal Rates, (Class 10. Modern Philately – 1980 to date).
This exhibit was also rated as the best in class, and Vladimir received a special award for research.

91 – GOLD,
Nikola Ljubičić
Stationery of Serbia 1873 – 1900, (Class 4. Postal Stationery)

88 – LARGE VERMEIL,
Aleksandar Krstic
Ottoman Cancellations of West Balkans 1840-1912, (Class 3B. Postal History: Europe)

80 – VERMEIL,
Bogdan Petrović
Revenue stamps of the Occupation of Serbia 1941-1944, (Class 9. Revenue)

The achieved results are an excellent prelude to the international philatelic exhibition BALKANFILA XIX, which will be held again in Belgrade this year, after a full 46 years, from 12-14. October 2023. At the same time, we invite everyone to visit the exhibition.