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Venezuela – the final specialized catalogue for 2022

Asofilca Venezuela Specialized Stamp Catalogue
The ASOFILCA Catalogue of the Stamps of Venezuela

Just as I’d pressed ‘send’ on my recent post about new Latin American catalogues, along comes yet another (very welcome) reference work.

This time, it is Venezuela’s turn.

The last generation of specialized catalogues of Venezuela were originally published by Juan Jose Valera. He had been releasing updated editions since 1964 and old copies can very occasionally be found on the second hand market

Valera sold the rights to his catalogue to Aurelio Blanco who published his first specialized edition in 1988 (an excellent buy if you can find one) and his final Venezuelan catalogue in 2009. This later edition is somewhat easier to find but not really detailed enough to warrant the ‘specialized’ moniker.

This new Catalogo de Las Estampillas de Venezuela picks up the baton where Valera and Blanco left off with the introduction of a detailed, full color catalogue, starting from the first issue in 1858 and taking us right up until the beginning of 2022.

In common with the recent catalogues from Nicaragua and Peru, this Venezuelan catalogue is also digital only, providing easy distribution and straightforward editing for future revised editions as more information comes to light.

Asofilca Venezuela Specialized Stamp Catalogue
Page extract showing the 1896 Miranda ‘Map Issue’. Pricing is noticably higher than Scott, particularly on the tete-beche varieties. But also worth noting that Scott (and the other main publishers) pricing can often be artificially held down by issues that have been heavily forged…such as these

There is good coverage of varieties which are easily identified in a smaller, colored font and numbers printed are available for the majority of issues. Officals and perfins have their own extensive section, followed by an in-depth treatment of the well-known Escuelas issues and subsequent postal-fiscals.

To put this in to context, the Scott Specialized gives us forty-seven entries for the 1st Escuelas series of 1871-76. In contrast, this new catalogue provides no less than two-hundred and seventy-six entries, each individually valued. A fantastic resource for the specialist.

Asofilca Venezuela Specialized Stamp Catalogue
Fabulous treatment of the Escuelas with a wealth of varieties to look out for

Postal stationery, aerogrammes, telegraphs and a good section on the popular Venezuela Locals are all covered. Pricing is in $US and is significantly higher than Scott in many places. The key ‘Bolivar Negro’ stamp of 1900, for example, clocks in at a bullish $10,500.

The catalogue is authored by Carlos Romero and published by the Asociacion Filatelica de Caracas, better known as ASOFILCA, the predominant collector’s society in Venezuela.

The catalogue is commendably available as a free download and can be accessed here.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Nick Smith says

    16th March 2023 at 11:14 am

    Hello

    Can I buy the
    Venezuela Specialised Catalogue. Catalogo Especializado de Estampillas. Valera please ?

    Kind regards
    Nick

    Reply
    • Nick Smith says

      16th March 2023 at 11:19 am

      I have tried to use the download link , but it seems to have been removed.
      Is the catalogue still available via a download link, or can I buy the catalogue please. Thank you
      Kind regards. Nick

      Reply
      • Nick Salter says

        27th March 2023 at 11:06 am

        You’re right; the original download link appears to be disabled so I’ve removed it from CLA. If it gets re-instated then I’ll add it back to the website.

        In the meanwhile, if you’d like a copy of the catalogue, drop me an email and I will send you one.

        Reply
  2. Jim Moore says

    30th March 2023 at 9:28 pm

    Greetings.

    Kindly advise availability and pricing of Catalogo de Las Estampillas de Venezuela, by Carlos Romero.

    Plz confirm this catalogue is only available in digital format, not traditional print.

    Thank you.

    Reply
    • Nick Salter says

      31st March 2023 at 6:34 pm

      There is no charge for this catalogue Jim: it is free to download. There is no hardcopy equivalent.

      I have updated the link above so that the latest copy can be downloaded. If there are further revisions then the link may need updating once again. Get in touch if you are struggling to download it; bear in mind that this is a 300MB file.

      Reply

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