COVER N. 292 - CÔTE D'IVOIRE

Postmark: Agence Postale de Grand-Bassam 25.07.2023

Posted on the 25th July; Received on the 13th August 2023

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Côte D'Ivoire... although written in French,  the name of this western African country bordering the Atlantic and encircled by Liberia, Guinea, Mali, Burkina Fasso and Ghana  is  another reminiscence of the  Portuguese presence along the coast of Africa, dating back to the 15th century, since it is but a direct translation into the language of the colonising power, of the name by which the area was known and referred to by my fellow countrymen: Costa do Marfim.

It is also self-explanatory, since ivory was abundant in the region, due to the vast populations of elephants that once roamed its forests. Not anymore, since ivory, as we all know, was (and still is) a highly coveted commodity, what led to a huge decrease in the numbers of the great pachyderm in its natural habitat in all Africa, from millions to about 450.000, today. 

Thankfully, there are perfectly good substitute materials to produce piano keys....

Eric keeps on surprising me with covers from the most unexpected places.... Thank you so much, Eric, for another tick in the countries list! 

Stamps, Left to right:

- Issued on 17SEP1963 as part of a four stamp set (10; 20; 45; 50 CFA Franc) dedicated to the fauna of Côte d'Ivoire, the 50 Franc depicts a King Colobus (Colobus polykomos), a primate whose distinctive feature is the fact that the thumb is underdeveloped being replaced with a short stump, giving the impression that the hand has but four fingers. It is distributed along an atlantic strip that encompasses Senegal, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea, Sierra Leone, Liberia  and the Ivory Coast, and the IUCN lists it as an endangered species.

- The Soubré dam, on the river Sassandra, was inaugurated on 2 November, 2017, thus becoming the main electric power production facility in Côte d'Ivoire.

Issued on the date of the dam's commissioning, 02NOV2017, the 250 CFA F stamp is part of a 2 stamp set (100; 250 CFA F) celebrating the event, illustrated with photographs of this important infrastructure.

- The centenary of the death of the inventor of the humble piece of paper that guarantees that a letter will travel from A to B, Sir Rowland Hill (1795-1879), was remembered by Cote d'Ivoire with the emission of a five stamp set (60; 75; 100; 1500; 300 CFA F) in both perforated and imperforated versions, all illustrated with the effigy of the honoured personality, a reproduction of a stamp and the image of a locomotive. The 60 F imperforated stamps on the cover, feature a British one pound stamp with the effigy of Queen Victoria, issued in 1882, and a LNER Class A4 steam locomotive, from 1927.

- On 01SEP2019, the Côte D'Ivoire Postal Administration issued a three stamp set (50; 200 and 500 CFA F) celebrating the 20th anniversary of the Express Mail Service - EMS.

This was a joint issue that had some 30 countries participating in the project, although it is uncertain if all that had committed to issue the stamp, actually did so.

- On the occasion of the Strategic Conference of the Union Postale Universelle held in Geneva in 2015, the Postal Administration of Côte d'Ivoire issued, on 27AUG2015, a two stamp set (250 and 500 CFA F), both identical except for the denomination.

The stamps feature a photo of the restored old Post Office building of Grand-Bassam, which was the capital of the French colony of Côte d'Ivoire between 1893 and 1896, the building itself dating back to this period.

The old town of Grand-Bassam wherein the Post Office is located, is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the UN organisation acknowledging its exemplary nature as an old colonial town. Sadly, as in so many places around the globe,  many of the buildings are showing signs of neglect and dire need for restoration.

- On 22NOV2005, the Postal Administration of Côte D'Ivoire issued a set of four stamps (30, 70; 80; 250 CFA F) plus a souvenir sheet (1000 CFA F, with a single stamp equal, but for the denomination, to the 80 Franc stamp), themed on  kings and chiefs of local ethnic groups.  The 80/1000 franc stamp, dedicated to Yacouba, Baoulé and Abron chiefs, closes the nice set of stamps used on the cover.

The postmark informs us that the letter was mailled from the current post-office at Grand-Bassam, since the historic one no longer acts as such.