Qatar
Sheik Ahmad bin Ali al Thani Definitives of 1968
Sheik Ahmad bin Ali al Thani Definitives of 1968
Before the discovery and exploitation of oil reserves, Qatar was best known for its pearl diving industry with fishing and trade being the other sources of wealth. A British protectorate from 1916, Qatar did not have a regular postal service until a British Postal Agency was established in Doha in August 1950. The stamps of Muscat were used until April 1, 1957 when they were replaced with Queen Elizabeth II definitives overprinted "Qatar". Overprinted British stamps were replaced with Qatar's first stamps with original designs featuring Sheik Ahmad bin Ali al Thani, a dhow, a peregrine falcon, an oil derrick and a mosque. The definitive issue of 1968 depicted a wider variety of local scenes. All values depict Sheik Ahmad bin Ali al Thani but the intermediate values depict local scenes including a dhow (35 dirham), the desalinization plant (40 dirham), a loading platform and an oil tanker (60 dirham), Qatar Mosque (70 dirham), the clock tower in Doha market place (1 riyal), Doha Fort (1.25 riyal) and a falcon (1.50 riyal).
Qatar is a peninsula on the west coast of the Arabian Sea, east of
Saudi Arabia, south of Bahrain and west of the United Arab Emirates.
Bibliography
Nomad. "Qatar Gazette." Gibbons Stamp Monthly. Nov. 1966: 39-41.
"Qatar." Standard Postage Stamp Catalogue. 2015.
Rossiter, Stuart and John Flower. The Stamp Atlas. London: Macdonald and Co., 1986.
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