The

postal history Postal history is the study of postal systems and how they operate and, or, the study of the use of postage stamps and covers and associated postal artifacts illustrating historical episodes in the development of postal systems. The term is att ...

San Marino San Marino (, ), officially the Republic of San Marino ( it, Repubblica di San Marino; ), also known as the Most Serene Republic of San Marino ( it, Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino, links=no), is the fifth-smallest country in the world an ...

can be traced to October 7, 1607, with the introduction of public postal services. The republic's postal needs were handled by a post office in nearby

Rimini Rimini ( , ; rgn, Rémin; la, Ariminum) is a city in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It sprawls along the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia (the ancient ''Ariminu ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

; the first San Marino post office opened in 1833.

History

When postage stamps were introduced in the mid-19th century, San Marino signed a postal treaty with Italy to use Italian stamps for its mail. On March 2, 1877, a new agreement was signed between the two countries that enabled San Marino to issue its own stamps. StampSanMarino1894Michel23

The first San Marino postage stamps were a

definitive stamp A definitive stamp is a postage stamp that is part of the regular issue of a country's stamps, available for sale by the post office for an extended period of time and designed to serve the everyday postal needs of the country. The term is used in ...

s consisting of two designs covering seven denominations. The stamps, which depicted the coat of arms of the republic with the

Three Towers of San Marino The Three Towers of San Marino are a group of towers located in San Marino. Located on the three peaks of Monte Titano in the capital, also called San Marino, they are depicted on both the national flag and coat of arms. First Tower The Guai ...

Monte Titano Monte Titano ("Mount Titan") is a mountain of the Apennines and the highest peak in San Marino. It stands above sea level and is located immediately to the east of the capital, San Marino. It was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2008 ...

(except the 2-centesimi stamp), were created by the design firm Fratelli Pellas in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

and printed on Italian watermarked paper by the Officina Carta e Valori in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

. The first

Commemorative stamp A commemorative stamp is a postage stamp, often issued on a significant date such as an anniversary, to honor or commemorate a place, event, person, or object. The ''subject'' of the commemorative stamp is usually spelled out in print, unlike def ...

s were introduced in 1894. Over the years, the attractive designs and unusual shapes – many are triangularly shaped – of San Marino's stamps have been extremely popular with philatelists around the world. It is estimated that 10% of the republic's revenue is generated by the sale of its postage stamps to international collectors. The government of San Marino has the world's only philatelic minister of state, Simone Celli, who carries the title (in Italian) ''La Segreteria di Stato per le finanze, il bilancio e la programmazione, l'informazione, i rapporti con l'azienda autonoma di stato filatelica e numismatica'' (State Secretariat for Finance, Budget and Planning, Information, Relations with the Autonomous Philatelic and Numismatic Company).

List of people on stamps of San Marino

Luciano Pavarotti Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...

, operatic tenor (2010) *

Andrea Palladio Andrea Palladio ( ; ; 30 November 1508 – 19 August 1580) was an Italian Renaissance architect active in the Venetian Republic. Palladio, influenced by Roman and Greek architecture, primarily Vitruvius, is widely considered to be one of th ...

, architect (2008) *

Concetto Marchesi Concetto Marchesi (1 February 1878 – 12 February 1957) was an Italian politician. He represented the Italian Communist Party in the Constituent Assembly of Italy from 1946 to 1948 and in the Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is ...

, freedom fighter (2008)

References

External links

* Catalogue of meter stamps of San Marino on

Wikibooks Wikibooks (previously called ''Wikimedia Free Textbook Project'' and ''Wikimedia-Textbooks'') is a wiki-based Wikimedia project hosted by the Wikimedia Foundation for the creation of free content digital textbooks and annotated texts that any ...

Philatelic Database
ex ''Stamp News Australasia''
UFN, Ufficio Filatelico Numismatico
{{Portal bar, Europe, Philately Communications in San Marino Philately of San Marino

History

List of people on stamps of San Marino

Further reading

See also

References

External links