Postage stamps and postal history of Monaco
Encyclopedia
Postal history
Postal history is the study of postal systems and how they operate and, or, the study of postage stamps and covers and associated material illustrating historical episodes of postal systems...
of Monaco
Monaco
Monaco , officially the Principality of Monaco , is a sovereign city state on the French Riviera. It is bordered on three sides by its neighbour, France, and its centre is about from Italy. Its area is with a population of 35,986 as of 2011 and is the most densely populated country in the...
can be traced to the principality’s first postmark in 1704. Stampless covers are known with both manuscript and handstamp postmarks for Monaco and Fort d'Hercule (1793-1814 French occupation); as the principality was once much larger, postmarks of the communes of Menton and Roquebrune prior to their 1848 secession might also be included. Monaco used Sardinian stamps from 1851 until 1860, when by the Treaty of Turin, Sardinia ceded to France the surrounding county of Nice and relinquished its protectorate over Monaco; French stamps with Monaco or Monte-Carlo postmarks were used thereafter. Two forms of cancellation are known for the French period. With the first, the postmark is on the cover away from the stamps; an obliterator with an identifying post office number 4222, or later 2387, inside a diamond of ink dots cancelled the actual stamps. The second applied the postmark directly on the stamps, as both a date stamp and cancel. All of these postal forerunners, particularly usages of Sardinian stamps with Monaco cancels, are far more valuable than the same stamps postally used in the issuing countries.
The first Monegasque postage stamps were issued on July 1, 1885, and featured the image of Prince Charles III of Monaco.
In 1937, the principality responded to a growing interest from philatelists by creating a Stamp Issuing Office. The 1949 accession of Prince Rainier III led to increased importance for the principality’s philatelic issues. During his reign, the prince was personally involved in all aspects of the design and format of the principality’s philatelic issues, and he was quoted as stating that stamps were “the best ambassador of a country.” The prince was a noted philatelist and his collection was the basis of Monaco’s Museum of Stamps and Coins.
Monaco joined the Universal Postal Union
Universal Postal Union
The Universal Postal Union is an international organization that coordinates postal policies among member nations, in addition to the worldwide postal system. The UPU contains four bodies consisting of the Congress, the Council of Administration , the Postal Operations Council and the...
in 1955 and PostEurop
PostEurop
PostEurop is the association of European public postal operators, one of the constituent unions of the Universal Postal Union. PostEurop was created in 1993 to simplify the exchange of mails in Europe, a task previously undertaken by the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications...
in 1993. Monaco’s postage stamps, which are tied to French postal rate, continue to be popular among collectors and are considered to be a source of revenue for the principality.