philately Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is poss ...

, an omnibus issue is an issue of stamps by several countries with a common subject and which may share a uniform design. Omnibus issues have often been made by countries under common political control or groups of colonies due to the close co-operation required to produce the issue. Omnibus issues are to be distinguished from

joint issue A joint issue is the release of postage stamp, stamps or postal stationery by two or more countries to commemorate the same topic, event or person. Joint issues typically have the same first day of issue and their design is often similar or identica ...

s which are usually much smaller in scope.

The first omnibus issue

The first omnibus has been said to be the issue of 1898 by the Portuguese colonial empire to commemorate the quatercentenary of Vasco de Gama's

discovery of the sea route to India The Portuguese discovery of the sea route to India was the first recorded trip directly from Europe to the Indian subcontinent, via the Cape of Good Hope. Under the command of Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama, it was undertaken during the rei ...

. File:Portugal 1898 Mi 140 stamp (Departure at Belem 07.07.1497).jpg, Portugal File:Azores 1898 Mi 92 stamp (Departure at Belem 07.07.1497).jpg, Azores File:Madeira 1898 Mi 35 stamp (Departure at Belem 07.07.1497).jpg,

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

File:Portuguese Africa 1898 Mi 3 stamp (Departure at Belem 07.07.1497).jpg,

Portuguese Africa Portuguese Africa may refer to: *African territories of the Portuguese Empire: **Portuguese Cape Verde ** Portuguese Congo **Portuguese East Africa **Portuguese Guinea **Portuguese São Tomé and Príncipe **Portuguese West Africa ** Fort of São Jo ...

File:Portuguese India 1898 Mi 170 stamp (Departure at Belem 07.07.1497).jpg,

Portuguese India The State of India ( pt, Estado da Índia), also referred as the Portuguese State of India (''Estado Português da Índia'', EPI) or simply Portuguese India (), was a state of the Portuguese Empire founded six years after the discovery of a se ...

File:1898 Macau stamp used Hong Kong.jpg, Portuguese Macau File:Portuguese Timor 1898 Mi 52 stamp (Departure at Belem 07.07.1497).jpg, Portuguese Timor

British Empire and British Overseas Territories issues

Omnibuses have been particularly associated with stamps from the former British Empire, now the British Commonwealth, due to the large number of territories participating. Initially designs were identical for each colony with only the values, colours and colony names varying. Over time, however, a wider range of designs has been used within the same issue. The first issue was the Silver Jubilee issue of 1935.Sutton, R.J. & K.W. Anthony. ''The Stamp Collector's Encyclopaedia''. 6th edition. London: Stanley Paul, 1966, p.216. Many others have followed, usually on themes related to the British Royal Family, but also for subjects such as ''Freedom from Hunger'' (1963) and the ''1966 Football World Cup''. Not every colony necessarily participates in every issue, although the revenue produced by the stamps is a valuable source of income for many smaller colonies/countries which may have few other ways of raising funds. A list of British Omnibus issues is given below: 1935 - Silver Jubilee 1937 - Coronation File:Stamp of Aden - 1937 - Colnect 165126 - 1 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg,

Aden Aden ( ar, عدن ' Yemeni: ) is a city, and since 2015, the temporary capital of Yemen, near the eastern approach to the Red Sea (the Gulf of Aden), some east of the strait Bab-el-Mandeb. Its population is approximately 800,000 people. ...

File:Falkland Islands Coronation Stamp.jpg, Falkland Islands File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1937 - Colnect 120 - 1 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg,

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1937 - Colnect 269022 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg, Seychelles File:1937 3d Coronation stamp of Swaziland.jpg,

Swaziland Eswatini ( ; ss, eSwatini ), officially the Kingdom of Eswatini and formerly named Swaziland ( ; officially renamed in 2018), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. It is bordered by Mozambique to its northeast and South Africa to its no ...

File:Turks and Caicos Islands 1937 coronation stamp.jpg, Turks and Caicos Islands 1945-1946 - Peace and Victory 1948-1949 - Silver Wedding File:Stamp of Aden - 1949 - Colnect 165142 - 1 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Johore - 1948 - Colnect 533313 - 1 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg, Johore File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1948 - Colnect 142 - 1 - Royal Silver Wedding Anniversary.jpeg,

File:Gold Coast Stamp 1948, George VI and Elizabeth.jpg, Gold Coast File:Stamp of Kedah - 1948 - Colnect 473027 - 1 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg, Kedah File:Stamp of Kelantan - 1948 - Colnect 604405 - 1 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg, Kelantan File:Stamp3 of Borneo.jpg,

North Borneo North Borneo (usually known as British North Borneo, also known as the State of North Borneo) was a British Protectorate, British protectorate in the northern part of the island of Borneo, which is present day Sabah. The territory of North Borneo ...

File:Stamp of Penang - 1948 - Colnect 708636 - 1 - King George VI and Queen Elizabeth.jpeg,

Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the Malay ...

File:Stamp of Sarawak - 1948 - Colnect 306191 - Royal Couple.jpeg, Sarawak File:Stamp of Selangor - 1948 - Colnect 709730 - Silver marriage jubilee of King George VI - Queen Elizabeth.jpeg, Selangor File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1948 - Colnect 269032 - Silver wedding.jpeg, Seychelles File:Stamp of Zanzibar - 1949 - Colnect 413503 - 1 - Royal couple.jpeg, Zanzibar 1949 - Universal Postal Union File:Bermuda 1949 Mi 125-128 stamps (75th anniversary of the UPU).jpg, Bermuda File:Tonga 1949 Mi 87-90 stamps (75th anniversary of the UPU).jpg, Tonga File:British Somaliland 1949 UPU stamps.jpg,

British Somaliland British Somaliland, officially the Somaliland Protectorate ( so, Dhulka Maxmiyada Soomaalida ee Biritishka), was a British Empire, British protectorate in present-day Somaliland. During its existence, the territory was bordered by Italian Soma ...

File:Dominica 1949 Mi 112-115 stamps (75th anniversary of the UPU).jpg,

Dominica Dominica ( or ; Kalinago: ; french: Dominique; Dominican Creole French: ), officially the Commonwealth of Dominica, is an island country in the Caribbean. The capital, Roseau, is located on the western side of the island. It is geographically ...

File:Sierra Leone 1949 Mi 171-174 stamps (75th anniversary of the UPU).jpg, Sierra Leone File:The Gambia 1949 Mi 143-146 stamps (75th anniversary of the UPU).jpg,

Gambia The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...

File:Nyasaland 1949 Mi 89-92 stamps (75th anniversary of the UPU).jpg, Nyasaland File:St. Lucia 1949 UPU stamps.jpg,

St. Lucia Saint Lucia ( acf, Sent Lisi, french: Sainte-Lucie) is an island country of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean. The island was previously called Iouanalao and later Hewanorra, names given by the native Arawaks and Caribs, two Amerin ...

File:Jamaica 1949 Mi 147-150 stamps (75th anniversary of the UPU).jpg, Jamaica 1951 - University 1953 - QEII Coronation File:Stamp of Aden - 1953 - Colnect 255499 - 1 - Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg,

File:1953 Coronation Bechuanaland Protectorate stamp.jpg, Bechuanaland Protectorate File:Basutoland 1953 Coronation stamp.jpg,

Basutoland Basutoland was a British Crown colony that existed from 1884 to 1966 in present-day Lesotho. Though the Basotho (then known as Basuto) and their territory had been under British control starting in 1868 (and ruled by Cape Colony from 1871), th ...

File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1953 - Colnect 155 - 1 - Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg,

File:Queen Elizabeth II Coronation Stamp HK 1953.jpg, Hong Kong File:Stamp of Johore - 1953 - Colnect 398630 - 1 - Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg, Johore File:Stamp of Kedah - 1953 - Colnect 699426 - 1 - Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg, Kedah File:Stamp of Kelantan - 1953 - Colnect 699427 - 1 - Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg, Kelantan File:Malta-Queen-Elizabeth-II-Coronation-Stamp-1953.jpg, Malta File:Stamp of Penang - 1953 - Colnect 399185 - 1 - Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Perak - 1953 - Colnect 400110 - 1 - Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg,

Perak Perak () is a state of Malaysia on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula. Perak has land borders with the Malaysian states of Kedah to the north, Penang to the northwest, Kelantan and Pahang to the east, and Selangor to the south. Thailand's ...

File:Stamp of Perlis - 1953 - Colnect 699428 - Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg, Perlis File:Pitcairn 1953 01.jpg,

Pitcairn Islands The Pitcairn Islands (; Pitkern: '), officially the Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands, is a group of four volcanic islands in the southern Pacific Ocean that form the sole British Overseas Territory in the Pacific Ocean. The four isl ...

File:Timbre_SteLucie_E2_couronnement_1953.jpg,

File:Stamp of Sarawak - 1953 - Colnect 306213 - Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg, Sarawak File:Stamp of Selangor - 1953 - Colnect 399659 - Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.jpeg, Selangor File:Seychelles_1953_coronation_stamp.JPG, Seychelles File:Queen stamp Sierra Leone.jpg, Sierra Leone File:Queen Elizabeth II Virgin Islands stamp.jpg, Virgin Islands 1953 - Royal Visit 1958 - West Indies Federation File:St. Vincent 3c West Indies Federation stamp 1958.jpg,

St. Vincent Saint Vincent may refer to: People Saints * Vincent of Saragossa (died 304), a.k.a. Vincent the Deacon, deacon and martyr * Saint Vincenca, 3rd century Roman martyress, whose relics are in Blato, Croatia * Vincent, Orontius, and Victor (died 305) ...

1963 - Freedom From Hunger File:Stamp of Aden - 1963 - Colnect 352646 - 1 - Protein Foods.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1963 - Colnect 188 - 1 - Freedom from Hunger.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Sarawak - 1963 - Colnect 306413 - Protein Food.jpeg, Sarawak File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1963 - Colnect 307290 - Protein Foods.jpeg, Seychelles File:Stamp of Zanzibar - 1963 - Colnect 413564 - Freedom from Hunger.jpeg, Zanzibar 1963 - Red Cross Centenary 1964 - Shakespeare 1965 - International Telecommunication Union File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1965 - Colnect 198 - 1 - International Telecommunications Union Centenary.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1965 - Colnect 307295 - ITU Emblem.jpeg, Seychelles 1965 - International Cooperation File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1965 - Colnect 200 - 1 - International Co operation Year.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1965 - Colnect 307297 - International Cooperation Year.jpeg, Seychelles 1966 - Churchill Memorial File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1966 - Colnect 203 - 1 - Winston Churchill.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1966 - Colnect 307298 - Churchill - St Paul´s Cathedral.jpeg, Seychelles 1966 - Football World Cup File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1966 - Colnect 208 - 1 - World Cup Football Championship - England 1966.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1966 - Colnect 307301 - Jules Rimet Cup.jpeg, Seychelles 1966 - U.N.E.S.C.O Issue File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1966 - Colnect 220 - 1 - 20th Anniversary of UNESCO - Education.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1966 - Colnect 307304 - 20th Anniversary of UNESCO - Education.jpeg, Seychelles 1966 - World Health Organisation File:Stamp of Gibraltar - 1966 - Colnect 215 - 1 - New WHO Headquarters Building.jpeg,

File:Stamp of Seychelles - 1966 - Colnect 307302 - Headquarters Geneva.jpeg, Seychelles 1966 - Royal Visit to the Caribbean 1972 - Royal Silver Wedding 1973 - Royal Wedding Princess Anne 1974 - Churchill Centenary 1977 - Royal Silver Jubilee 1978 - 25th Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth's Coronation 1980 - Queen Mothers 80th Birthday 1981 - Charles and Diana Royal Wedding 1982 - Princess Diana 21st and other Birthdays 1985 - Life and Times of Elizabeth the Queen Mother 1990 - Queen Mother's 90th Birthday 1997 - Queen Elizabeth Golden Wedding

French omnibus issues

1931 - Colonial Exposition File:HauteVolta1931.jpg, French Upper Volta File:ExpositionColonial1931.jpg,

French Sudan French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with France ...

1937 - International Exposition in Paris File:RFExpositionColonial1937.jpg, French Indochina 1938 - Pierre and Marie Curie 1939 - Rene Caillie 1939 - New York World's Fair 1939 - 150th Anniversary of the Revolution 1942 - Protection of the Infants 1942 - Colonial Education Fund 1944 - Marianne Red Cross 1945 - Felix Eboue 1946 - Victory Anniversary 1946 - Chad to the Rhine 1949 - UPU Anniversary 1950 - Tropical Medicine 1952 - Military Medals 1954 - Liberation Anniversary

Other omnibus issuers

The omnibus remains popular with countries whose philatelic marketing is handled by the

Inter-Governmental Philatelic Corporation The Inter-Governmental Philatelic Corporation, or IGPC, is a philatelic agency that represents over 70 different countries in the design, production, and marketing of postage stamps. It also assists postal administrations with the running of their ...

as it enables those countries to market their stamps into the lucrative United States and European thematic stamp market by featuring subjects popular in those countries. These issues have, however, been criticised for not being relevant to the culture of the participating countries, for instance stamps featuring Disney characters issued by poor African countries.

Commercialisation

While most earlier omnibus issues were genuine attempts to help a group of countries celebrate an anniversary or event, the fact that these became popular with stamp collectors tempted issuing authorities to bring out more stamps than would have otherwise been thought necessary. These were often heavily marketed. Murray, Robert. ''1981 Royal Wedding Omnibus Stamp Collection''. http://www.stamp-shop.com/1981-royal-wedding.html

References