Andorra
Cinderella Issue of the C19th
Two examples of perforated cinderellas with an imperforate stamp in the centre
A five pesata denomination with the oval centre
design of the four high values in the set
Nestled in the Pyrenees between France and Spain, Andorra is a principality with nominal allegiance to the Spanish Bishop of Urgel and the President of France. The Andorran population used the postal services of Urgel in Spain and AX in France until a courrier service from Sant Julia was established in 1837. Domestic postal service was free but postage was necessary for mail entering the Spanish or French postal systems. Both French and Spanish postal administrations provide services and issue stamps for Andorra. The first Spanish stamps overprinted specifically for use in Andorra were issued 1928 and France issued stamps for its service in 1931.
Much earlier, a set of cinderellas appeared for "Republica de Andorra." They are inscribed correus in Catalan rather than correos in Spanish or postes in French. In Phantom Philately Melville notes that Le Timbre Poste had reported in May of 1896 that a French group had made plans to issue stamps for the principality. In his on-line catalogue, Evert Klaseboer shows a complete set of twelve stamps issued in either 1875 or 1896 depending on the source used to establish the date of issue. The stamps were actually the work of Plácido Ramón de Torres, an early Spanish stamp dealer based in Barcelona. The "RA" watermark on the stamps is explained by his use of paper that was left over from an earlier printing of counterfeit Argentinian stamps (Republica Argentina). In Andorra Andorre (Robson Lowe, 1974), W.A. Jacques attributes the design to Tomás Torrabadella, who also designed stamp albums for Torres. He also says that the local council endorsed the production of the stamps in protest against their poor postal service.
A detailed philatelic history of Andorra is available from the The Andorran Philatelic Study Circle.
Bibliography
Christer Brunström. "Andorra: Beyond the Catalogue." Stanley Gibbons Blog. 3 Sep. 2018.
Web. 11 Nov. 2018. https://www.stanleygibbons.com/blog/andorra-beyond-catalogue/.
Klaseboer, Evert. "Andorra." Preview of Stamps Catalogue CD. n.d. Evert Klaseboer. 26 Oct. 2012.
http://catalogue.klaseboer.com/vol2/html/andor.htm.
Kloetzel, James E. ed.
"Andorra." Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue. Sidney, Ohio: Scott Publishing, 2008.
Mackay, James. The Complete Guide to Stamps and Stamp Collecting. London: Hermes House, 2005.
Melville, Frederick John. Phantom Philately - A Descriptive List Of Stamps That Are Not What They Seem.
Worthington, Ohio: Janet van den Berg, 1950.
Rossiter, Stuart and John Flower. The Stamp Atlas. London: Macdonald and Co., 1986.
"Selected Articles from Valira Torrent." Valira Torrent. 9 Jun. 2002. The Andorran Philatelic Study Circle .
Web. 26 Oct. 2012. http://apsc.free.fr/vt-index.htm#topanchor.
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