Monday, February 21, 2011

Anjouan

1892 1c black/blue & 2c brown/buff 
"SULTANAT  D'ANJOUAN"
Anjouan is missing from the 1997 Big Blue edition list of countries, although it is in my 1969 and other  editions. (Update; See Al Layton's comment- Anjouan is now (2016) back in the '97 BB copyright pages from Amos.)

Quick History
Anjouan is one of the Comoro islands in the channel between Madagascar And Mozambique. It was a French Colony with a population of 20,000 in 1912. The capital was Mossamnondu.  This French colony  issued stamps between 1892 and 1912. Madagascar then issued stamps; and  finally the Comoro islands issued stamps after 1950.

Into the Deep Blue
The 2017 Scott Classic Specialized 1840-1940 catalogue has, for Anjouan 1902-1907, 30 major number descriptions.

Of those, 16 are CV $1+ -$6+, or 53%. Anjouan is a bit expensive (Classic French Colony), but a representative collection should be available.

A closer look at the stamps and issues
100 Centimes = 1 Franc
1892 Scott 3 4c claret/lavender
"Navigation and Commerce"
Anjouan only had two issues: the 1892-1907 "Navigation and Commerce" issue, and the 1912 surcharged issue. The surcharged issue (11 stamps) can be found with different minor number spacing between the surcharge figures - be aware.

The 1892-1907 issue had 19 stamps, and has the familiar "Navigation and Commerce" motif of many French colonies.

The name of the colony is either in blue or carmine ink.

1902 Scott 4 5c green/greenish
For the 1892-1907 issue, eight stamps are CV $1+-$10+.

Deep Blue
1892-1907 Issue in Deep Blue
Deep Blue (Steiner) has one page for the stamps of Anjouan. All of the Scott major numbers have a space. For the surcharged issue of 1912, the minor number stamps (11) that have the alternate spacing between the surcharge figures do not have spaces. One may need a separate quadrilled page for those.

Big Blue Picture
On two lines of one page ( located just before Ascension in my 1969 edition) are seven stamp spaces.
In the 2011 Scott Specialized 1840-1940, there are 30 major varieties listed.
Big Blue has 23% coverage.

The stamps in the 1969 Big Blue are inexpensive ($1+-$2+), and there are least five additional stamps ( 24,25,26,27,29) that could be added for $1+-2+.

Big Blue Checklist (1969 Big Blue)

1892
1,2,3 ($1+-2+)

1912
20,21,22,23 ($1+)

Anjouan (Comoros) in the Indian Ocean
Kinds of Blue
The country is not in the 1997 edition.
The 1941, 1947 and 1969 editions DO have the stamps listed above.
A little more about the location of Anjouan in the Albums...
'69-After Armenia, before Ascension.
"47 & '41-After Angola.

Big Blue Bottom Line
The country is not in the 1997 edition.  That is a shame as the stamps are fairly inexpensive.

Note: Anjouan is back in the '97 edition, and with increased coverage! -See Al Layton's comment.

Note: Map in public domain.

Update note (November, 2016): The "Into the Deep Blue" section was added.

Links
Anjouan - Bud's Big Blue

Have a comment?

6 comments:

  1. I found your very helpful blog while trying to find Anjouan in Big Blue. Thank you for your efforts! Have you any ideas why Anjouan is missing?

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  2. I don't know for sure, but I have a theory. ;-) As the '69 and '97 editions are completely identical in other respects (as far as I know) for content, I believe Anjouan was simply overlooked. Yes, forgotten. :-)

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  3. I got my copy of the Big Blue album from AmosAdvantage about 2 weeks ago (Part 1A1, Item no 801A140, copyright 1955, 1964, 1969, 1991, 1994, 1997). It DOES contain a page for Anjouan.

    It consists of:
    "Unwatermarked 1892" (13 stamps)
    "1900-07" (6 stamps)
    "1912" (11 stamps

    http://blackcoffeemug.com/download/anjouan.jpg

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    Replies
    1. Al- good to know it is back in the '97 edition. The earlier '97s did not include Anjouan. It always seemed to me that it was simply overlooked, rather than deliberate. I will make an update note to the blog post.

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    2. BTW, the "new" page for Anjouan in the '97 BB edition looks like it was taken from a Scott Specialty album, rather than a copy of the earlier BB Anjouan page.

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  4. Al- Congrats on getting the '97 edition from Amos recently!
    Have fun!

    ReplyDelete