COVER N. 422 - GUYANA

Postmark:  G.P.O.C Guyana Georgetown Philatelic Bureau 03.01.2024 

Posted on the 3rd January; received on the 12th March 2024

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And yet a newcomer to the list of countries represented here in my blog. Again, thanks to the generous help of The Flying Dutchman.   Hartelijk dank voor de brief uit Guyana, Eric.

Guyana is not one of those countries we hear mentioned often in the news. The former British colony which gained independence in 1966, making it the only country in Southern America with English as its official language, (although most people speak Guyanese creole) was recently under the spotlight, though…

Oil... Guyana is rich in oil, which it has been using to speed up its development, making it one of the fastest growing economies in the world (although the distribution of the generated wealth does not seem to be on par with the double digit economic growth - 49% in 2020). 

Turns out much of that oil exists offshore in waters off the coast of Essequibo, an area that is roughly 2/3 of Guyana's territory and which has been disputed by its neighbour, Venezuela.

The sovereignty over Essequibo is now under analysis of the International Court of Justice, but a decision will probably take a long time to surface. Meanwhile, last year, Guyana held an auction for oil exploitation rights in the Essequibo region and this prompted Nicolas Maduro, Venezuela’s strongman,  to react, promoting a national referendum over the annexation of Essequibo and threatening to invade the region.

Things have since deescalated when Maduro and Guyana's President Mirfaan Ali met in St. Vincent and the Grenadines and agreed not to resource to force to settle the dispute, which should be solved according to international law... 

Let us see where this will lead, in the future....oil is such a powerful substance, even in these days of energetic transition....

Stamps, left to right:

- Soccer... the sport of sports some say, and a very popular theme all around the world, philatelically also, I guess, given the number of  existing soccer related issues ...

On the occasion of the FIFA World Cup 2006, held in Germany, Guyana issued, on 26SEP2006, a four stamp set (80; 100; 160; 300 Guyanese Dollars)  themed on the origins of the sport, which, it seems, can be traced back to some 2000 years ago, in China.

The 160 dollar stamp on the cover is illustrated with a drawing of Tsu Chu players, this being the designation of the original Chinese football game.

- The four 1.2 Dollar se-tenant stamp set with images of locomotives was issued on 03AUG1987. On the same date, the same four stamps were also issued in a souvenir sheet form with a vignette in the middle, showing what looks to be an early  train station...., These stamps were issued multiple times during the year, in other generic colours, namely, dull blue and maroon.

- Disney characters...a classic.... Issued on 24FEB1995, the Policeman Mickey is part of an eight 35 Dollar stamp set, issued in minisheet format, designated "Public Service Workers - Disney Characters at Work", which also included a 200 Dollar souvenir sheet featuring Horace as a politician....

- Flowering plants of Guyana was the theme to an interesting definitive series which ran for several years. The 1972 issue, dating of 19SEP1972, comprised six values, the 20 cent stamp being used on the cover. It is illustrated with the image of a Paphinia cristata, an orchid species that is endemic to northern South America.

The postmark hails from Guyana's Capital, Georgetown.