COSTA RICA

COSTA RICA.

Visit of the President of the Republic to Cocos Island on June 24, 1978.
View of the island from the sea.
Airmail. First stamp in a set of 5, issued in minisheet on 30.04.1979.
Face value: 90 cents of Costa Rican colón.
Printed by Casa Gráfica, San José.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 38 x 28 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1019.
- Scott No. C737.
- StampWorld No. 1024.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1121.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA727.

Cocos Island (Spanish: Isla del Coco) is an island in the Pacific Ocean administered by Costa Rica, approximately 550 km (342 mi; 297 nmi) southwest of the Costa Rican mainland. It constitutes a district of Puntarenas Canton of Puntarenas Province. With an area of approximately 23.85 km² (9.21 sq mi), the island is more or less rectangular in shape, measuring about 8 km × 3 km (5 mi × 2 mi) with a perimeter of around 23.3 km (14.5 mi). The landscape is mountainous and irregular; the highest point is Cerro Iglesias, at 575.5 m (1,888 ft). The entirety of Cocos Island has been designated a Costa Rican National Park since 1978, and became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1997. In addition, it is included in the list of Wetlands of International Importance. It has no permanent inhabitants other than Costa Rican park rangers. Access by civilians is very limited; tourists are allowed ashore only with permission of island rangers, and are not permitted to camp, stay overnight or collect any flora, fauna or minerals from the island. Cocos Island was annexed by Costa Rica in 1832 by decree of the Constitutional Assembly of the newly independent country.

COSTA RICA

COSTA RICA.

Paying your taxes means progress.
Río Frío Railroad Bridge.
Airmail. Third stamp in a set of 5, issued on 11.12.1980.
Face value: 2.10 Costa Rican colones.
Printed by Casa Gráfica, San José.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1095.
- Scott No. C812.
- StampWorld No. 1100.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1206.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA794.

The Río Frío railroad bridge, 466 m (1,529 ft) long, was the longest in Central America. It crossed the Chirripó Norte (or Sucio) River in the vicinity of Río Frío de Sarapiquí, east of the Heredia Province (northern Costa Rica), not far from the border with Nicaragua. It was built between 1978 and 1982. However, in February 1996 the raging waters of the river undermined the foundations and a section of the bridge collapsed, rendering it unusable.

COSTA RICA

COSTA RICA.

Economic development and social progress.
Irrigation canal in Guanacaste.
Airmail. Last stamp in a set of 10, issued on 05.05.1982.
Face value: 4.05 Costa Rican colones.
Printed by Casa Gráfica, San José.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 35 x 35 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1159.
- Scott No. C871.
- StampWorld No. 1164.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1263.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA852.

Guanacaste (Nahuatl: Kwahnakastlan) is a province of Costa Rica located in the northwestern region of the country, along the coast of the Pacific Ocean. It is bordered by Nicaragua to the north. The province covers an area of 10,141 km² (3,915 sq mi) and as of 2022, had a population of 404,774. Guanacaste's capital is Liberia. In pre-Columbian times, most of the province's territory was part of the Kingdom of Nicoya (Nahuatl: Nekok Yaotl). Since 1787, a large part of the territory of the current province was a Spanish colonial political-administrative unit with the name of Partido de Nicoya; Through a plebiscite held on July 25, 1824, said territory decided to join the State of Costa Rica, and in 1835 it was renamed the Department of Guanacaste. In the 1980s, infrastructures began to be built, such as the canal represented on the stamp, to favor the development of agriculture. Currently, the economy of the province is based mainly on tourism and agricultural activities.

COSTA RICA

COSTA RICA.

Columbus Day.
16th century map of Costa Rica.
Stamp issued in 26.10.1987.
Face value: 30 Costa Rican colones.
Printed by Casa Gráfica Ltd, San José.
Printing: Offset lithography.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 1338.
- Scott No. 392.
- StampWorld No. 1338.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 1463.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 491.

Christopher Columbus reached the Atlantic coast of Costa Rica on September 25, 1502, on his fourth voyage. According to his diaries, there was a lot of gold in the territory, which prompted the adventurers to undertake other explorations and served as a pole of attraction for the colonizers. The initial expeditions of Diego de Nicuesa and Alonso de Ojeda on the Atlantic coast were followed by that of Vasco Núñez de Balboa, who reached the Pacific Ocean in 1513 after crossing the Isthmus of Panama. Other conquerors followed. In 1562, Juan Vázquez de Coronado toured the entire Costa Rican territory and was appointed mayor of Costa Rica and Nueva Cartago. Vázquez de Coronado is known as the true conqueror of Costa Rica for the pacifying role that he played alongside the indigenous people, gaining their trust and support. Costa Rica was since 1574 the southernmost dependency of the Captaincy General of Guatemala, part of the Viceroyalty of New Spain, a situation in which it remained until its Independence from the Spanish Empire (September 15, 1821).

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Thanks to Dragan Buškulić for his contribution (https://worldofstamp2.wordpress.com/).

COSTA RICA

COSTA RICA.

Centennial of the annexation of Nicoya, Guanacaste.
Map of Guanacaste Province.
First stamp in a set of 7, issued on 16.07.1924.
Face value: 1 cent. of Costa Rican colón.
Printing: Lithography.
Printed by American Bank Note Co., New York.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 120.
- Scott No. 129.
- StampWorld No. 128.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 149.
- Yvert et Tellier No. 126.

Nicoya is currently a canton in the province of Guanacaste (northwest of Costa Rica, next to the border with Nicaragua), populated by about 25,000 people. On July 25, 1824, after 185 years of autonomy, the Nicoya district, made up of Nicoya, Santa Cruz and the town of Guanacaste (now Liberia), decided to annex the State of Costa Rica, which had proclaimed its independence in September. from 1821.

COSTA RICA

COSTA RICA.

Costa Rican Electrical Industry.
Cachí Dam.
Airmail. Last stamp in a set of 6, issued on 24.04.1967.
Face value: 50 cents of Costa Rican colón.
Printed by Fotolit Ltda., San José.
Printing: Offset lithography.
Size: 34 x 27 mm.

Catalogs
- Michel No. 710.
- Scott No. C442.
- StampWorld No. 715.
- Stanley Gibbons No. 762.
- Yvert et Tellier No. PA 434.

The Cachí (Represa de Cachí) dam is located in the course of the Reventazón River, specifically in the Ujarrás Valley, near the town of Cachí (Cartago province). The first unit of the hydroelectric plant, managed by the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (Instituto Costarricense de Electricidad, ICE), came into operation on May 7, 1966, and the second, on January 12, 1967. The dam forms a reservoir, known as Lago de Cachí, 3.24 km² (1.25 sq mi).