Bolívar is a

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

. It was one of the original nine states of the "United States of Colombia". Bolivar is in the north of the country, extending from the coast at Cartagena near the mouth of the

Magdalena River The Magdalena River ( es, Río Magdalena, ; less commonly ) is the main river of Colombia, flowing northward about through the western half of the country. It takes its name from the biblical figure Mary Magdalene. It is navigable through much of ...

, then south along the river to a border with Antioquia.

Postage stamps

Bolívar issued its own

postage stamp A postage stamp is a small piece of paper issued by a post office, postal administration, or other authorized vendors to customers who pay postage (the cost involved in moving, insuring, or registering mail), who then affix the stamp to the fa ...

s from 1863 to 1904. Most of them feature portraits of

Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios (24 July 1783 – 17 December 1830) was a Venezuelan military and political leader who led what are currently the countries of Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Panama and B ...

, and most are commonly available, although as with all the Colombian states, surviving uses on

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

are scarce.

Sources

Stanley Gibbons The Stanley Gibbons Group plc is a company quoted on the London Stock Exchange specialising in the retailing of collectable postage stamps and similar products. The group is incorporated in London. The company is a major stamp dealer and philat ...

Ltd: various catalogues
Encyclopaedia of Postal Authorities
* Rossiter, Stuart & John Flower. ''The Stamp Atlas''. London: Macdonald, 1986.

External links

Colombia-Panama Philatelic Study Group
Philately of Colombia Bolívar (state) {{philately-stub br:Timbroù Stadoù-Unanet Kolombia fr:Timbres de l'État de Bolívar