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STAMPS AND THEIR HISTORY - OLYMPIC STAMPS FROM SPANISH ANDORRA 1972

added on August 4th, 2006

by Rudolf Mahnert, Germany

The first commemorative stamp to be issued by the Spanish Postal Administration of Andorra was the Europe-CEPT stamp on May 2, 1972. Before that date, a number of 70 definitive stamps had been issued.
Nobody knew about the fact that this stamp would be issued, even the Spanish press informed very late about the issuing date.
200.000 stamps were printed, by far too few for a demand of about 800.000. Speculation with this stamp and high prices were the consequences.

Mr Antonio Ripoll from Barcelona tells us: “Many buses with hundreds of collectors, dealers and greedy people came from Spain to Andorra. Quite a lot of people brought their sleeping bags and stayed in front of the post office all night long.”

Mr Miguel Abad, a stamp dealer from Andorra, remembers: “When I passed by the post office at five o’clock in the morning, at least 150 people were already there waiting for the doors to be opened at 9.00 am.”

25 sets were sold to every individual. Of the 440.000 sets printed 100.000 were sent to Andorra to be sold at the main post office. Many of the “lucky buyers” sold their “treasures” immediately to waiting dealers for five times the face value.

At noon a big glass window, which separated the post office from a shop, was broken by the multitude, and several persons were injured. Police officials closed the post office and everybody had to leave the premises. At around four in the afternoon it was re-opened, this time under surveillance of some policemen. About an hour later the 100.000 sets available at this location were sold out.
Today this issue has a catalogue value of about US$ 1.00.

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