Brazil : 01a Early issues - Dom Pedro II

When Napoleon occupied Portugal, the Portugues royal famil Bragança, left for Brasil. John VI, ruled over Brasil, Portugal and the Algarve region. After Napoleons defeat, John VI became emperor of Brasil but Peter I, his son, became regent.
On september 1822, Brasil was declared independent, and Peter I took the emperial crown.

In 1831 he was succeeded by his son, Peter van Alcântara Johan Karel Leopold Salvator Bibianus Frans Xavier de Paula Leocadius Michaël Gabriël Rafaël Gonzaga of Bragança....
hmm... let's call him Dom Pedro II.

Dom Pedro II became emperor at the early age of 6 ! Peter I (Dom Pedro I) had to return to Portugal because his sister, Maria II of Portugal, had to deal with a civil war, back in Portugal.
At the age of 14 he was considered wise enough to become emperor and full leader of Brasil.
He remained head of state until 1889, after ruling Brasil for 58 year. after his abdication, Brasil became a republicDom Pedro II died two years later in Paris (France).

Dom Pedro II - age 22

Dom Pedro II - age 61

In 1866, the first stamps with the face of Dom Pedro II were issued.
Each stamp was printed in sheets of 100.

10 Reis

20 Reis

50 Reis

80 Reis

100 Reis

200 Reis

500 Reis

Many of these old stamps are damaged, unfortunatly.
Most stamps are issued on white paper, some have blue shades at the back, they are worth much more.
The most interesting stamp of this set, is the 100 (cem) reis.
There are 4 types known.

Some help on finding out which stamps you might have :
(ligeiramente) aberto = (slightly) open(ed)
fechado = closed
interrompida  = interrupted
única = single
duplas = double

Type 1

Type 1a

Type 1b (most expensive one)

Type 2

Brazil : 00 Early issues - Intro 2

The third famous series and the fourth ones are similar.

The 'italic' design was 'straightened' and therefore this set is known as the 'verticals' (verticais).
Another name for this 1850 issue, is the 'cat-eye' series; after oxes and goats (or snakes), this is a more gentle name.

As there are numerous forgeries, I took some examples of the stamps, found on internet.

real 'verticais'

fake 'verticais' ?

fake 'verticais' ?

The last set in this 'intro' are similar to the third set, but more colourful.
No wonder they are called the 'coloridos'.

a real 'colorido'

Again here, lots of forgeries are found.
Original stamps have a clear design, no blurry lines, but an expert eye is needed to find the real stamps among the 'better' forgeries.

fake 'coloridos'

fake or disputed 'verticais' and fake 'coloridos'

Brazil : 00 Early issues - Intro 1

It's easy to make a blog with stamps you find all around the internet.That's why I'm only posting stamps that are in my collection.
However, in this topic of Brazilian stamps, I can't skipp the 'most famous' of them all. I.e. the first series of stamps.
Secondly, there are so many forgeries among those stamps, that you almost need to be an expert to distinguish right from wrong.

The shown stamps are not mine, and were taken from the internet.
It's a small summary of the first sets, and some 'fine' examples of the fake items that are sold, or might be in your possession.

Brazil was the second country that issued stamps.
The black penny was issued in 1840, the first Brazilian stamp in 1843!

The design of the first brazilian issue, was inspired by banknotes issued by the Imperial Bank of Brazil before. Long time was assumed that the stamps were printed in London, as the notes were also printed by Perkins, Bacon & Company. However, in 1841 Brazilian customs authorities had confiscated an engraving printing press and that this press was used by the Brazilian Mint. By the end of December 1842, all necessary equipment was bought to allow the Mint to start producing their own stamps in Rio de Janeiro.

Brazil 1843 - real 'bull's eye' stamps - internet picture

The typical round shaped design of the first stamps gave this issue the world know name of the 'bullseye' stamps (olhos de boi).
They were printed until 1844 and therefore relatively long in use. Genuine ones however are very expensive and only few collectors have 'real' copies.

In 1890 an 1891, a lilac reprint was made.

Brazil bull's eye reprint  - real - internet picture

The second issue is called the 'goat eye' (or also 'snake eye'), but because of the itallic printint of the numbers, brazilians prefer to call them "inclinados".

I have some 'inclinados' in my collection but probably all fake.
Real stamps are clearly printed, lines are complete, and not blurry.
Some forgeries are such bad copies that they are easy to recognise. Other are way more difficult to distinguish.

internet picture - real brazilian 'inclinado'

internet picture - real brazilian 'inclinado'

internet picture - real brazilian 'inclinado'

internet picture - fake 'inclinado'

internet picture - fake 'inclinado'

internet picture - fake 'inclinados'

internet picture - fake 'inclinados'

internet picture - fake 'inclinado'

Theme : Esperanto 09

Centennials are always good for stamp collectors.
As there is always a country that dedicates a set of stamps to a special event.

Suriname honoured Zamenhof and the Esperanto movement with a set of 3 tasteful stamps, at the occasion of the 100th anniversary of Esperanto.
Since Suriname used to be part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, until its independence in 1975, Dutch is spoken in this Central American Republic.

Therefore you can read "100 jaar Esperanto" (100 years of Esperanto) on the first stamp.

On the 60 cent stamp, the green star, "la verda stelo" is shown.
This is the symbol of Esperanto, as long with the mirrored E "ЄЭ" on the 3rd stamp, which is a more recent design.

The 110 cent stamp shows a world map with two white doves holding a flag, symbolising world peace.

The Suriname stamps have suffered a lot, since they were one of the first Esperanto stamps I bought, long time a go. They have survived exhibitions in high school, when I presented my hobby to my school friends.

100 years of Esperanto by Suriname