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Introduction
Objective of this exhibit is to show
the stamps, varieties (essays, proofs etc.), errors and usages of the
principal issues of the Kingdom of Egypt (1922-1953), including rarities
once belonging to the Palace Collection.
The Kingdom of Egypt was created by a
treaty with Great Britain concluded in 1922 and providing for Egypt’s
independence. It made the
then ruler, Sultan Ahmed Fouad, the first King of Egypt under the name
Fouad I. Great Britain, however, retained the right to station troops
in Egypt and refused to consider Egyptian claims to the Anglo-Egyptian
Sudan. The British
protectorate was maintained until the promulgation of a new treaty in
1936, which promised the eventual withdrawal of British troops. King Fouad
I was succeeded by his son Farouk I.
In 1937 a further step toward sovereignty was accomplished by an
agreement (which went into effect in 1949) to end extraterritoriality
there.
After World War II Egypt actively
opposed the UN partition of Palestine in 1948 and, joining its forces with
the other members of the Arab League, sent troops into the Negev to be
bitterly repelled by the Israeli forces.
In 1951, the Egyptian Parliament abrogated the Condominium
Convention (1899) and declared sole Egyptian sovereignty over Sudan with
King Farouk I as King of both countries. This, however, had little effect
in Sudan, since the British did not recognize it and continued to govern
the country. A year later
(1952), the military, headed by General Muhammed Naguib, took power by
coup. King Farouk I abdicated
in favour of his infant son, Ahmed Fuad II, but in 1953 the monarchy was
abolished and a republic was declared.
Egypt was the
first non-colonial African country to issue, and later print, its own
stamps, and was one of the first to employ photogravure as a method of
stamp printing. A pioneer in
the use of Airmail had also the fortune of having its Kings, Fouad I and
his son Farouk I, avid philatelists.
They both amassed one of the richest and finest stamp collections
in the world, which, after the proclamation of the republic, was
confiscated and publicly auctioned (1954).
Thus, philately in Egypt was among the most important of all and
the quality of the stamps issued during this period (1922-1953) one with
the highest standards ever.
During the period under examination
the following printing processes have been employed to produce Egyptian
stamps and postal stationary: typical
typography, classic recess, photogravure, lithography and embossed
printing. The printers of
Egyptian stamps included: “The
Government Printing Works”, in Boulac, Cairo, “Thomas De La Rue &
Co. Ltd”, London, “Harrison & Sons Ltd”, London, “Nederland
Rotogravure Maatschappaij”, Holland and “The Survey Department of
Egypt”, at Giza, Cairo.
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