Dunes (stamps)

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Dunes in philately refers to the many editions of stamps produced in the Trucial States (today the United Arab Emirates or UAE). The stamps, printed in great profusion in the 1960s and early 1970s, are mostly near-worthless today. [1]

Contents

History

An Ajman "Dunes" stamp of 1972, as with all of these collector's editions, irrelevant in subject matter to the state they purport to originate from. Viktor Patsayev 1972 Ajman stamp.jpg
An Ajman "Dunes" stamp of 1972, as with all of these collector's editions, irrelevant in subject matter to the state they purport to originate from.

Britain managed the Trucial States' external relations (a result of the 1892 "Exclusive Agreement" treaty), including the management of posts and telegraphs - the states were not members of the UPU - the Universal Postal Union). The Government of India opened its first post office in Dubai in 1941 and its operation was taken over by British Postal Agencies, a subsidiary of the GPO (General Post Office) in 1948. Stamps of the time were British stamps surcharged with rupee values, until in 1959 a set of "Trucial States" stamps was issued from Dubai. [2]

In 1963, Britain ceded responsibility for the Trucial States' postal systems to the Rulers of the Trucial States. An American philatelic entrepreneur, Finbar Kenny, saw the opportunity to create a number of editions of stamps aimed at the lucrative collector's market and in 1964 concluded a deal with the cash-strapped emirate of Ajman to take the franchise for the production of stamps for the government. Kenny had made something of a specialty out of signing these deals, also signing with the Ruler of Fujairah in 1964, [3] and getting involved in a bribery case in the U.S. over his dealings with the government of the Cook Islands. [4]

These stamps, luridly illustrated [5] and irrelevant to the actual emirates they came from (editions included "Space Research" and "Tokyo Olympic Games", with two odd editions issued from Umm Al Qawain including "British Kings and Queens" and, with summer temperatures in Umm Al Qawain reaching 50 °C, "Winter Olympics"), became known collectively as "dunes". [1]

Value

Manama post office in December 2017. Manama Post Office.jpg
Manama post office in December 2017.

The sale of postage stamps was for a short time a lucrative trade for the emirates, most of whom (with the exception of Abu Dhabi, which struck oil in 1965) had few other sources of revenue. Revenues of up to £70,000 for the poorer states fell, however, to £30,000 with the inevitable saturation of the market. [6] Their sale by 1966 constituted the main source of revenue for the northern Trucial States. [2]

Their proliferation eventually devalued them and, because of this, many popular catalogues today do not even list them. [7]

Among these editions, following the opening of a "post office" in Manama on 5 July 1966, were nine editions published from 'Manama, Dependency of Ajman'. [8] Few collectors would realise Manama was a remote agricultural village consisting of a few adobe houses on a plain overlooked by the Hajar Mountains.

Kenny's arrangements ended when the United Arab Emirates was formed in December 1971. [9]

See also

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Sheikh Khalid bin Ahmad Al Qasimi was the Ruler of Sharjah, a Trucial State and now one of the United Arab Emirates, from 1914–1924 and Ras Al Khaimah from 1914–1921. He acceded on the death of Saqr bin Khalid Al Qasimi. His rule was tumultuous and unpopular, marked by internecine conflicts and public discontent and saw the final disintegration of the Al Qasimi's joint rule over Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah. Deposed as Ruler of Sharjah in 1924, he went on to become ruler of Dhaid and Kalba and a highly influential figure in the Shamaliyah.

Sheikh Ahmad bin Abdullah Al Mualla was the Ruler of Umm Al Quwain from 1873 to 1904. He led Umm Al Quwain through a turbulent period in the Trucial Coast's history, with conflicts against neighbouring emirates and almost constantly shifting alliances. On two occasions these conflicts led to him being found to breach the terms of the 1853 Perpetual Maritime Truce with the British. This notwithstanding, he was a signatory to the 1892 Exclusive Agreement, which bound the Trucial Sheikhs and the British together in a protectorate.

Sheikh Abdullah bin Rashid Al Mualla II was Ruler of Umm Al Quwain from 1922 to 1923, one of the Trucial States, today the United Arab Emirates (UAE). His short rule was dominated by fears of a coup by his uncles and was brought to an abrupt end by the machinations of his cousin.

Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi was the Ruler of Ajman, one of the Trucial States which today form the United Arab Emirates (UAE), from 1816–1838, leading a force of 50 men to take control of the town from members of the Al Bu Shamis tribe who had settled there and also at Al Heera. At the time, Ajman was a dependency of Sharjah. Five years after his establishment at Ajman, the fort was taken by the Darawisha Bedouin who were removed by the action of the Ruler of Sharjah, Sheikh Saqr bin Sultan Al Qasimi.

The Bani Qitab is a tribe of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Sultanate of Oman. The singular form of the name, Al Ketbi, is a common family name in the Northern UAE today. Consisting of a settled southern section and a nomadic northern section, the tribe was long influential in the conduct of affairs in the interior of the Trucial States. The Northern branch mostly settled in the inland towns of Dhaid and Al Falayah.

Humaid bin Rashid Al Nuaimi II was the ruler of Ajman, one of the Trucial States which today form the United Arab Emirates (UAE), from 1891–1900.

References

  1. 1 2 Healey, Barth. "STAMPS; Historic Collections from the Trucial States" . Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  2. 1 2 Donald, Hawley (1970). The Trucial States. London: Allen & Unwin. p. 183. ISBN   0049530054. OCLC   152680.
  3. ↑ "Agreement between Mohammed Al Sharqi and Finbar Kenny". Oh My Gosh. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  4. ↑ "Stamp Firm Stuck In Bribery Case". Toledo Blade. 3 August 1979. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
  5. ↑ "Dune Stamps - Really So Bad?". artonstamps.org. Retrieved 27 September 2018.
  6. ↑ A Special Correspondent (3 March 1969). "Stamps are now the money-spinners". The Times (Supplement on the Union of Arab Emirates, Page XIV).{{cite news}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  7. ↑ Carlton, R. Scott (1997). The International Encyclopedic Dictionary of Philately. Krause Publications. p. 173. ISBN   9780873414487.
  8. ↑ Wilson, Graeme (2010). Rashid, Portrait of a Ruler. UAE: Media Prima. pp. 169–171. ISBN   9789948152880.
  9. ↑ Crompton, Paul (9 November 2016). "Stamps tell the UAE's story". Gulf News. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
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