In 1919, the short-lived Free State of Fiume (now the city of Rijeka in Croatia) issued its own postage stamps after breaking away from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Here are some key details about the 1919 Fiume stamps:
Designs:
- Featured a very simple typeset design with just the name “FIUME” and denomination values.
- Early stamps were overprints on earlier Hungarian stamps reading “FIUME / 1919”.
- Later in 1919, new typographed designs were issued inscribed “REGGENZA / ITALIANA / DEL CARNARO”.
Denominations:
- The overprinted stamps provided values like 3, 10, 15 and 20 crowns/fillér.
- New typographed issues had values ranging from 1 centesimo to 10 lire.
Printings:
- The overprinted stamps used remainders of Hungarian issues printed in Budapest.
- New typographed stamps were crudely printed locally in Fiume.
Rarity:
- Most of the overprinted values had very limited print quantities, making them quite scarce today.
- The new typographed stamps were more plentiful but still had relatively low printings under 200,000.
Significance:
- These represented the first stamps issued for the nationalist revolt in Fiume led by Gabriele D’Annunzio.
- They are considered forerunners of the later stamps of the Italian Regency of Carnaro in this territory.
Despite their very basic designs and provisional nature, the 1919 Fiume stamps are extremely popular with collectors as rare artifacts of the complex struggles in this region following World War I. Their scarcity and historical significance drive much philatelic interest.
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