A is for Aden and Z is for Zanzabar


A is for Aden and Z is for Zanzibar... Now what is between? For the world wide classical era philatelist and stamp collector, a country specific philatelic survey is offered by the blog author, Jim Jackson, with two albums: Big Blue, aka Scott International Part 1 (checklists available), and Deep Blue, aka William Steiner's Stamp Album Web PDF pages. In addition, "Bud" offers commentary and a look at his completely filled Big Blue. Interested? So into the Blues...

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Angola

Quick History

Update Links

Located in South Central Africa, this former Portuguese colony (16th century-1975) is now bordered by Namibia, Zambia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The Atlantic Ocean is on Angola's western border. Diamonds and oil make up 60% of Angola's economy.

Recent map of Angola
Angola, the Portuguese colony, was located between the Belgian Congo and South West Africa, and the colony had a population of 3,400,000 in the 1930s. The capital is Luanda. The first stamp issue was in 1870.

1898 Scott 52 100r dark blue/blue 
"King Carlos"
Into the Deep Blue
The 2011 Scott Classic Specialized album has, for Angola 1870-1938, 341 major descriptive numbers. Of those, 189 are CV <$1-$1+, or 55%. Angola appears to be a bit more expensive (especially the earlier stamps) than many Portuguese colonies, but still quite reasonable.

A closer look at the stamps and issues
1000 Reis = 1 Milreis
100 Centavos = 1 Escudo (1913)
100 Centavos = 1 Angolar (1932)
1893-94 Scott 29 25r green "King Carlos"
The 1870-77 "Portuguese Crown" issue and the 1886 "King Luiz" issue preceded the "King Carlos" issue, pictured above. They are moderately expensive, and I don't have any at the moment, so I will say no more about them here.

The 1893-94 eleven stamp "King Carlos" issue can be found with chalky or enamel paper, and different perforations. Consequently, Scott has many minor numbers for these stamps.

1898 Scott 40 10r yellow green "King Carlos"
The "King Carlos" vignette seen for virtually all of the Portuguese colonies is found here as a 1897-1905 22 stamp set. This postmark has an April 21, 1901 date with an "Angola" cancel.

1902 Scott 83 15r brown
Stamps of 1898, Overprinted
A 1902 four stamp release with the "Provisorio" overprint is illustrated here.

1911 Scott 89 5r orange yellow
Stamps of 1898-1903 Overprinted
With the change in government in Portugal, a 15 stamp set was released in 1911 overprinted.

1912 Scott 105 10r gray green "King Manuel II"
Overprinted in carmine or green
A 10 stamp set with the "Manuel II" visage was also overprinted in 1912. Of interest, this Angola issue is only found overprinted.

1914-26 "Ceres" Issue
Scott 130 5c blue- two colors
A very large 40 stamps "Ceres" was released between 1914-26. If one wishes to parse the issue further, it comes in chalky and ordinary paper, and two perforations. And the 5c "blue" clearly comes in different colors- bright blue, and deep blue. In fact, earlier Scott catalogues gave the "deep blue" color the Scott 129 number. But that number is dropped in the current catalogue- I wonder why?

1914 Scott 161 20r gray violet
Overprinted Type "c"
A 10 stamp issue was released in 1914 with this script overprint-  which is different than the 1911 overprinted issue. Re-check your Angola overprints for different types. ;-)

1919 Scott 219 1/2c on 75r bister brown
In 1919, a group of six stamps were surcharged as shown. CV is $1-$2, so one will find these in collections.

1932 Scott 256 85c rose "Ceres"
Another large 21 stamp issue with a remodeled "Ceres" was produced between 1932-46. For the two Ceres issues (1914-26, 1932-46), 47 stamps are CV <$1-$1+.

1938 Scott 290 10a blue violet
Vasco da Gama Issue
An 18 stamp Vasco da Gama issue for Angola, a common design type used for many Portuguese colonies, was released in 1938.

1938 Scott 293 1.75a deep blue 
"Marble Column and Portuguese Arms and Cross"
For the visit of the President of Portugal, a three stamp set was issued in 1938.

Postage Due 1904 Scott J1 5r yellow green
Portuguese colony postage dues are quite generic, as one can tell. The earlier 10 stamp 1904 set is valued in Reis, while the identical (in appearance) 1921 10 stamp set is valued in Centavos.

Deep Blue
1914-26 Ceres Issue in Deep Blue
Deep Blue (Steiner) has 21 pages for Angola, and includes a space for all the major Scott numbers. The many minor numbers found in Scott for the earlier issues (1870-94) due to different paper and perforations do not have designated spaces. One will need some quadrilled pages if one wishes to parse these earlier issues.

1912 Scott 111 200r dark green/salmon "King Manuel II"
Overprinted in carmine or green
Big Blue Picture
On three pages, Big Blue (1969), beginning essentially in 1898 ( although does have 2 stamp spaces for 1894),  has 109 stamp spaces and 4 blank spaces for a total of 113 stamp spaces.
The 2011 Scott Specialized catalogue has, from 1898, 307 stamp descriptions.
Big Blue has 37% coverage.

Indeed, Big Blue has some nice runs of stamps from Angola. There is just one problem. Angola's Stamps are cheap. By my count, from 1898, and using valuations up to $4 ( Many considerably less expensive), an additional 116 stamps could be added. That would bring  75% of Angola's stamps within reach.. There is a good chance these stamps will show up in collections, so supplementary pages are advised. Scott numbers below.

(Scott 47,50,51,52,56,58,82,87,93,96,97,98,99,100,101,102,109,110,111,112,113,114,143,145,152,153,159,160,161,163,164,167,178,181,182,183,184,185,186,187,188,192,193,194,195,196,198,199,200,201,202,203,204,208,209,210,211,213,214,215,217,218,219,220,221,222,224,226,227,228,229,234,235,236,237,238,239,247,260,263,264,265,267,268,269,270,271,272,273,286,287,288,289,290,291,292,C7,C8,C9,J5,J7,J8,J15,J17,J18,J19,J26,J27,J28,J29,J30,P1,RA5,RA6)

But Angola's stamp issuing history begins in 1870, 24 years before Big Blue takes up two stamp coverage in 1894. There are 36 major varieties from 1870-1898, with 75 total varieties when perforations and stamp paper are considered. Even here, I found 12  varieties (In Scott 1,3,7,8,9,19,21,26,27,29,39) for $4 or less. If you want to collect a country on the cheap, Angola might be it!

1914 Scott 163 75r red violet  
Type "c" overprint, green
Big Blue Checklist (1969 Big Blue edition)

1894 King Carlos
30a ( or 30, 30b,30c) ($2+-5+)
Blank space: suggest 25 (or 25a,25b) ($1+)

1898 King Carlos
Scott 38,39,40,41,43,44,46 (<$1)

1902 overprinted "provisorio"
83,84,85 (<$1-$1+)

1903 King Carlos
42,45 (<$1-$1+)

1911 overprinted "republica"
88,89,90,91,92,94,95 (<$1-$2+)

1912 King Manuel overprinted "republica"
103,104,105,106,107,108 (<$1-$1+)
Blank space: suggest 109 ($1+)

1914-26 Ceres
Update note: The 1914-26 "Ceres" issue presented here is based on the 2011 Scott Classic Specialized 1840-1940 catalogue. But the 2014  catalogue revises the listings into 1914 "chalky paper" Perf 15 X 14; 1915-22 "ordinary paper" 15 X 14; 1921-26 "ordinary paper" 12 X 11 1/2; and 1921-25 'glazed paper" 12 X 11 1/2 major number categories. It also gives a minor number to the 5c pale blue.
Here are the "old" numbers....
118,119,120,121,122,123,124,125,126,127,128,130-deep blue, 130-bright blue, 131,132,133,134,135,136,137,139,140,141,142,144,146,148,149,151,154 (<$1-$1+)
Two blank spaces: suggest 138,155 (<$1)
Note: Scott 1947 catalog broke down the todays Scott 130 5c Blue Ceres into two colors:deep blue and bright blue. To fill the two spaces with todays Scott 130, look for these two shades.

1914-26 Ceres (Updated)
Here are the current catalogue numbers for the BB spaces...
Denomination and color/ Current numbers / (Old number)
1/4c olive brown: 118 or 134 or 156 (Old: 118)
1/2c black: 119 or 135 or 157 (Old: 119)
1c blue green: 120 or 136 or 158 (Old: 120)
1c yellow green: 137 (Old: 121)
1 1/2c lilac brown: 121 or 138 or 158C (Old: 122)
2c carmine: 122 or 139 or 158D (Old: 123)
2c gray: 158E (Old: 124)
2 1/2c light violet*: 123 or 140 or 158F (Old: 125)
*Includes violet and dark violet colors
3c orange: 141 or 158G (Old: 126)
4c dull rose: 142 or 158H (Old: 127)
4 1/2c gray: 158I (Old: 128)
5c “deep blue”: blue 124 or 143 or 158J (Old 130 blue-deep shade)
5c “bright blue”: pale blue 143a or 158Ja (Old 130 blue – light shade)
6c lilac: 144 or 158K (Old: 131)
7c ultramarine: 145 or 158L (Old: 132)
7 1/2c yellow brown: 125 or 146 or 158M (Old: 133)
(Next Page)
8c slate: 126 or 147 or 158N (Old: 134)
10c orange brown: 127 or 148 or 158O (Old: 135)
12c olive brown: 149 or 158P (Old: 136)
12c deep green: 158Q (Old: 137)
15c brown rose: 128 or 151 (Old: 139)
20c yellow green: 129 or 152 or 158S (Old: 140)
24c ultramarine: 158T (Old: 141)
25c chocolate: 158U (Old: 142)
30c gray green: 153 or 158V (Old: 144)
40c turquoise blue: 158W (Old:146)
50c light violet: 158X (Old: 148)
60c dark blue: 158Y (Old: 149)
80c pink: 154 or 159A (Old: 151)
1e deep blue: 159D (Old: 154)
15c plum (blank space): (150 or 158R) (Old: (138))
2e dark violet (blank space): (155 or 159E) (Old: (155)) 

1932 Ceres
243,244,245,246,247,248,250,251,252,253,254,255,256,257,258,259 (<$1-$1+)

1938 Vasco da Gama
274,275,276,277,278,279,280,281,282,283,284 (<$1)
One blank space: suggest 285 (<$1)

Air Post
1938
C1,C2,C3,C4,C5,C6 (<$1)

Postage Due
1904
J1,J2,J3 (<$1)

1911
J11,J12,J13,J14 (<$1)

1921
J21,J22,J23,J24,J25 (<$1)

Postal Tax
1925
RA1,RA2,RA3 (<$1)

1929
RA4 ($1+)

Postal Tax Due
RAJ1,RAJ2,RAJ3 (<$1)

The 1947 Scott standard catalog has the same numbering system for Angola, except as noted with the Scott
130.

1938 Scott 271 5c on 80c emerald
Surcharged in black
Kinds of Blue
The 1997 edition and the 1969 edition are identical.
Compared to the 1969 edition...

Addition ( 1947 and 1941 editions)
1926 Ceres issue
Scott 150 60c deep rose ($45) !

Deletions (1947 and 1941 editions)
1914-26 Ceres issue
Scott 134 8c slate (<$1)
Scott 135 10c orange brown (<$1)
Scott 140 20c yellow green ($1+)

1938 Scott C2 20c  purple
Common Design type
Bottom Blue Line
As noted, Angola is an inexpensive country.  Big Blue could have doubled the number of stamps without too much difficulty.Better insert those supplementary pages.

Note: Map appears to be in the public domain.
Note: The "Into the Deep Blue" section, and the scans were added March, 2014.

Links
Angola - Bud's Big Blue

Like comments!

5 comments:

  1. The 2016 version of the Scott Classic catalog has broken the Angola Ceres issue into four sections.

    1914 - Chalky Paper - Perf 15 x 14
    ====================
    118 1/4c olive brown
    119 1/2c black
    120 1c blue green
    121 1 1/2c lilac brown $2.75
    122 2c carmine $3.75
    123 2 1/2c violet
    124 5c blue
    125 7 1/2c yellow brown $2.75
    126 8c slate $2.75
    127 10c orange brn $2.75
    128 15c brown rose $3.00
    129 20c yel green $1.75
    130 30c brown, green $2.50
    131 40c brown, pink $2.50
    132 50c orange, sal $7.50
    133 1e green, blue $5.00

    1915-22 - Ordinary Paper
    ====================
    134 1/4c olive brown
    135 1/2c black
    136 1c blue green
    137 1c yellow green
    138 1 1/2c lilac brown
    139 2c cramine
    140 2 1/2c dark violet
    141 3c orange $29.00
    142 4c dull rose
    143 5c blue $1.25
    144 6c lilac
    145 7c ultra
    146 7 1/2c yellow brn
    147 8c slate
    148 10c orange brn
    149 12c olive brown
    150 15c plum
    151 15c brown rose
    152 20c yel green $5.25
    153 30c gray green
    154 80c pink $1.00
    155 2e dark violet $3.25

    1921-26 - Perf 12 x 11 1/2
    ====================
    156 1/2c olive brown
    157 1/2c black
    158 1c blue green
    158C 1 1/2c lilac brown
    158D 2c carmine
    158E 2c gray
    158F 2 1/2c lt violet
    158G 3c orange
    158H 4c dull rose
    158I 4 1/2c gray
    158J 5c blue
    158K 6c lilac
    158L 7c ultra
    158M 7 1/2c yellow brown
    158N 8c slate
    158O 10c orange brn
    158P 12c olive brn
    158Q 12c dp green
    158R 15c plum
    158S 20c yel green $1.60
    158T 24c ultra $1.40
    158U 25c choc $1.25
    158V 30c gray grn
    158W 40c turq blue
    158X 50c lt viole
    158Y 60c dk blue
    158Z 60c dp rose $60.00
    159A 80c pink $1.00
    159B 1e rose $1.00

    1921-25 - Glazed Paper - Perf 12 x 11 1/2
    ====================
    159C 1e rose $1.00
    159D 1e deep blue $2.00
    159E 2e dark violet $12.50
    159F 5e buff $12.50
    159G 10e pink $27.50
    159H 20e pale turq $120.00

    ReplyDelete
  2. The 1997 version of the Big Blue album contains 32 spaces. With the exception of the last two, each space is labeled with increasing face-value and color.

    Perhaps the following is a better suggestion for each of the spaces.

    1/4c (no color) 118
    1/2c black 119 / 135 / 157
    1c blue green 120 / 136 / 158
    1c yellow green 137
    1 1/2c lilac brown 138 / 158C / 121($2.75)
    2c carmine 158D / 122($3.75)
    2c gray 158E
    2 1/2c light violet 158F
    3c orange 158G / 141($29)
    4c dull rose 142 / 158H
    4 1/2c gray 158I
    5c deep blue 124-blue / 158J-blue / 143-blue($1.25)
    5c bright blue 124-blue / 158J-blue / 143-blue($1.25)
    6c lilac 144 / 158K
    7c ultramarine 145 / 158L
    7 1/2c yellow brown 146 / 158M / 125($2.75)
    8c slate 147 / 158N / 126($2.75)
    10c orange brown 148 / 158O / 127($2.75)
    12c olive brown 149 / 158P
    12c deep green 158Q
    15c brown rose 151 / 128($3)
    20c yellow green 158S($1.60) / 129($1.75) / 152($5.25)
    24c ultramarine 158T($1.40)
    25c chocolate 158U($1.25)
    30c gray green 153 / 158V
    40c turquoise blue 158W
    50c light violet 158X
    60c dark blue 158Y
    80c pink 154($1) / 159A$1)
    1e deep blue 159D($2)
    empty
    empty

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good work Al. Now I won't need to do this myself. ;-)

      I've more or less left the "old" numbers in the checklist for the "Ceres" issue for the various Potuguese colonies, as Scott was rolling out the new numbers changes a bit each year through 2016.
      And many collectors only had catalogues with the old numbers in them. But I plan to obtain a 2017 1840-1940 Scott catalogue, and then will systematically add the new numbers to the checklist also for the Portuguese colony countries.

      Delete
  3. I finally hit my Waterloo about the Ceres update. I've started to go back and separate them by perforations (I'm drawing the line at the papers), so the 12 x 11 1/2 stamps that don't have a space are being relegated to 'extras' page. I lost 14 in Angola and 6 in the Azores, but I feel better about myself...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, separating out by perforation is relatively easy.
      Have fun Joe!

      Delete