Philately

Atatürk’s first anniversary

by Kaya DORSAN

Having celebrated the 82nd anniversary of its establishment on October 29, the Republic of Turkey commemorated its founder, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, on November 10, the 67th anniversary of his death.

The anniversary of Atatürk’s death has been marked by the issue of special stamps once every five years since 1953. But the first stamp series issued in memory of Atatürk was printed back in 1938, just after his death, as a mourning series. These stamps were produced by partially overprinting definitive stamps bearing Atatürk’s portrait which were in use in the postal service at the time.

The overprint, made in one day at a printing house in Ankara, carried the date November 21, 1938, written on a horizontal thick black line. This was the day when Atatürk’s body was brought from Istanbul to Ankara and interred at today’s Ethnography Museum.

First miniature sheet

A splendid commemorative series was planned for Atatürk in 1939. The Courvoisier Printing House in Switzerland was commissioned to print a series consisting of a commemorative miniature sheet and eight stamps. However the printing house was only able to deliver the 2 ½, 6 and 12 ½ kuruş stamps in time for November 10. Accordingly, only these three stamps could be issued on the actual anniversary of Atatürk’s death. The other denominations and the miniature sheet were put on sale on January 3, 1940.

The miniature sheet of 100 kuruş was a first in Turkey. Since then, more than 60 miniature sheets have been printed on various themes.

Birth date riddle

The year when Atatürk was born is known as 1881. However, the stamps printed on the first anniversary of his death give his date of birth as 1880. Is this an error? Or is it a calculation mistake made when the Arabic calendar was replaced by the universal calendar?

There are many philatelists in Turkey who collect only the stamps of Atatürk. One of them may have solved this riddle by now.

(DIPLOMAT  -  November 2005  -  Ankara)