Abu Dhabi Post and Stamp History

Being currently part of the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Abu Dhabi was previously the largest of the seven emirates in the treaty states on the so-called “ Pirate Coast ” of East Arabia between Oman and Qatar . The treaty states as a whole occupied an area of ​​about 32 thousand miles² , of which 26 thousand were in Abu Dhabi. The capital of the principality was the city of Abu Dhabi , which is located on the island and was founded in 1761.

The name "Contracting States" arose as a result of international treaties concluded by them with Great Britain in 1820, which ensured a truce in the region and the fight against piracy and slavery . The contract expired on December 31, 1966. The decision to create the UAE was made on July 18, 1971, and a federation was created on August 1, 1972, although the inaugural UAE postage stamps were only issued on January 1, 1973.

Oil production began on the island of Das after exploration in 1956-1960. Das Island is part of Abu Dhabi, but lies far into the sea, about 100 miles north of land. Onshore oil production began in 1962. As a major oil producing country, the emirate of Abu Dhabi soon accumulated huge financial resources. Investments in long-term construction projects and the formation of the financial sector have led to the transformation of this area into a center of trade , which can retain its value even after the depletion of hydrocarbon reserves.

In December 1960, builders working on Das Island received stamps from British postal authorities in East Arabia, but mail was processed through a post office in Bahrain . The post was also stamped in Bahrain, so there was no clear indication that the letter arrived from Das Island.

On March 30, 1963, a British postal office was opened in Abu Dhabi, which issued its stamps after Sheikh Zayed objected to the use of stamps of the standard issue of the Treaty States. Mail from Das Island was still being processed in Bahrain, but was now canceled by the postage stamp of the Abu Dhabi of the Contracting States.

The first stamps of Abu Dhabi was a standard series on March 30, 1964 with the image of Sheikh Shahbat ibn Sultan al-Nahyan and the inscription "Abu-Dhabi" ("Abu Dhabi"). 11 denominations in common currency were issued. Denominations ranged from 5 new paises ( English naye paise ) to 10 rupees ( rupee ) ^[1] .

Despite the introduction of standard- issue stamps, stamps from the British Post Office were in use in both Abu Dhabi and Das until the end of 1966, when they were retired.

A post office opened on Das Island on January 6, 1966, after which the processing of mail in Bahrain ceased. Mail from Das Island was now processed in Abu Dhabi.

Upon the expiration of the contract with Great Britain at the end of 1966, Abu Dhabi introduced a new means of payment - fils and dinar ^[2] , and created its own postal administration, including a post office on the island of Das. Over the early issues, overprints were made in this currency and standard-issue stamps were issued that replaced them with the image of the new ruler, Khalifa ibn Zayed al-Nahyan .

Post issue was carried out until the introduction of the UAE stamps in 1973. After joining the UAE on 12 stamps of the standard issue that were in circulation only in the territory of this principality, an overprint of the abbreviation “UAE” (“UAE”) was made. ^[3]

In total, from 1964 to 1972, 95 postage stamps were issued by the emirate of Abu Dhabi. The latest episode released depicts the Dome of the Rock in Jerusalem .

At the turn of the 1970s, stamps of small Arab principalities became very famous among philatelists . The philatelic agencies concluded agreements and took under their guardianship the issue of postage stamps of these countries. As a result, a stream of beautiful stamps, which were distributed worldwide by philatelic trading companies, fell upon collectors . The phenomenon was called “ sand dunes ” , “dunes” or “Arabian madness” . In order to stop him, the International Federation of Philately has added to its “black lists” all stamps of the Arab Emirates, except stamps of Abu Dhabi, which were issued after May 1967. ^[4] Abu Dhabi issued a reasonable number of postage stamps annually and therefore is not considered a “dune”. ^[5]

• Abu Dhabi // Large Philatelic Dictionary / N. I. Vladinets, L. I. Ilyichev, I. Ya. Levitas, P. F. Mazur, I. N. Merkulov, I. A. Morosanov, Yu. K. Myakota , S. A. Panasyan, Yu. M. Rudnikov, M. B. Slutsky, V. A. Jacobs; under the general. ed. N.I. Vladinets and V.A. Jacobs. - M .: Radio and communications, 1988. - S. 7. - 320 p. - 40,000 copies. - ISBN 5-256-00175-2 .

• Contractual Oman // Philatelic geography (foreign countries): Reference book / L. L. Lepeshinsky. - M .: Communication, 1967. - S. 124-125. - 480 p.
• Countries Abu Dhabi - Charkhari // Stanley Gibbons Simplified Catalog. Stamps of the World. - 81st edn. - L. , Ringwood, UK: Stanley Gibbons Ltd. , 2015 .-- Vol. 1.- ISBN 0-85259-954-4 . (eng.)
• Rossiter S. , Fowler J. The Stamp Atlas: A Unique Assembly of Geography, Social and Political History, and Postal Information. - 1st edn. - L. , Sydney: Macdonald, 1986. - 336 p. - ISBN 0-356-10862-7 . (eng.)

• “Arabian Madness” - a chapter from the e-book “The World of Philately” V. A. Novosyolova (Smolensk) on the site of the Union of Philatelists of Russia “World m @ rock”
• Abu Dhabi Stamps and Postal History Website (Retrieved December 19, 2008)
• Rossiter, Stuart; Fowler, John & Wellsted, Raife. The Persian (Arabian) Gulf . Stamp Atlas . Sandafayre Stamp Auctions. Date of treatment April 13, 2009. Archived February 13, 2012.
• Abu Dhabi stamps in the Stanley Gibbons online catalog
• Stamps (inaccessible link) Abu Dhabi on the Stanley Gibbons website
• Abu Dhabi A — Z of postal authorities. Encyclopaedia of Postal History . Stampsite: The Encyclopaedia of Postal Authorities. - Information about Abu Dhabi brands in the database “Encyclopedia of the History of Mail. Encyclopedia of Post Offices. " Date of treatment October 25, 2009. Archived February 14, 2012.