First day commemorative covers and pane of three mint stamps, New Caledonia

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TitleFirst day commemorative covers and pane of three mint stamps, New Caledonia Date10th February 1988About this objectThe object consists of two first day covers and three mint stamps, published by Noumea R. P. post office of New Caledonia and Dependencies on 10 February 1988, commemorating the bicentenary of the disappearance of Jean-François de Galaup, comte de Lapérouse.

The object provides a philatelic lens to the history of Lapérouse’s voyage and demonstrates the interest in understanding La Pérouse’s final days two hundred years after his disappearance in Vanikoro in 1788.

The Stanley Gibbons catalogue number for the stamp is #823Object No.2017.11-1:5Physical descriptionThe artwork featured in the cachet and stamp shows L’Astrolabe and La Boussole, the two ships under Lapérouse’s command in his 1785-1788 expedition, sailing towards an island. Printed in blue ink, the image is placed against the background of a map showing Australia’s East Coast, with a pink compass rose, and dotted lines connecting Botany Bay, New Caledonia and Vanikoro. The composition is complemented by a portrait of Lapérouse above the sailing ships. The text on the bottom left corner of the artwork reads ‘ASSOCIATION SALOMON’, likely associated with the organisation founded by Alain Conan in 1981, dedicated to elucidating the fate of Lapérouse’s vessels.

The inscription on the cachet reads: ‘NOUVELLE-CALEDONIE ET DEPENDANCES’, ‘BICENTENAIRE DE LA DISPARITION DE L’EXPEDITION LA PEROUSE’ and ‘PREMIER JOUR D’EMISSION’ (first day of issue). The cancellation on the cover is inscribed with ‘PREMIER JOUR / BICENTENAIRE DE LA DISPARITION DE L’EXPEDITION LA PEROUSE / 10 FEV. 88 / NOUMEA R. P.’

The Lapérouse portrait on the stamps is curiously similar to the one in the cachet, but different, and bears the inscription ‘RF’, representing République Française. The inscriptions, ‘NOUVELLE-CALEDONIE ET DEPENDANCES’ and ‘BICENTENAIRE DE LA DISPARITION DE L’EXPEDITION LA PEROUSE’ run along the left and bottom margins. Each stamp is marked with ‘36F’ and ‘POSTES 1988’ on the top right corner.

The pane includes three mint stamps contiguous with perforations in between, and selvage featuring patterns of waves, printed in blue ink.CreatorNoumea R. P.Place madeNew Caledonia and Dependencies MaterialpaperSourceLa Perouse MuseumOrganisations (Detailed entries)La Perouse Museum (La Perouse, N.S.W.)Production notesThe Stanley Gibbons catalogue number for the stamp is #823

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First day commemorative covers and pane of three mint stamps, New Caledonia