1903 Guardiola
Validity: Jan 1903 - December 1907, circulated with Medina for a year.
American Bank Note Company of New York
perf 12, engraved,
white woven paper,
yellowish gum
Remainders - almost a million mint Guardiolas were wholesaled directly to American dealers in 1908 along with hundreds of thousands of mint remainders of the train issue.
Counterfeits - Counterfeit permitase control marks exist. BH81C was not used on this stamp. There are many beautiful BH81Cs available on this issue but they are part of Toledo's frauds.
Guardiola, the "Tiger of Honduras," replaced
Cabañas of the 1893 issue, but was murdered by his own body guards in 1862.
General José Guardiola, an uneducated military man, was born in Tegus in 1815. He was placed in the presidency by the invading Guatemalan army. His friendship with the British led them to return the Bay Islands and Mosquitia to Honduras in exchange for Honduras' fabricated title to Belize. (It was Guatemalan territory at the time!).
Less Common cancels
The I7 cancel was used strictly in Puerto Cortés for 2 years. The OD cancel was used on the Guardiola and Medina issues.
Numbered ABNC presentation plate proof C-518
D2 cancel with letter "T" indicating postage due
Cover displaying credentials of the infamous Eusebio Toledo, Director of the Honduran post office. It bears an early BH71 cancel and an early OD postmark.
The government sale of hundreds of Guardiola sheets directly to stamp dealers in the United States made the value of mint Guardiola's next to worthless. Used copies are another story entirely.
FORGED CANCELS ON GUARDIOLAS
BH71F
This cancel is generally seen on the used, high value Guardiola issues, but shows up also on the occasional Medina issue. The only difference is the size of the font. The counterfeit is 2.5 mm tall as opposed to 3mm. It is best to determine this cancel by direct comparison with a BH71 as shown below.
BH81CF
This is a very common cancel on the Guardiola issue. Notice how the font is very angular. The letter "O" appears to be a square unlike a genuine BH81C which was not officially introduced until 1909.
Dash and Bar
Double Circle
Seven Bars
-Explorations and Adventures in Honduras by William Wells. N.Y. 1857
-Honduras 1903-1910 Guardiola and Medina Issues in Congress Books, by Roger Schnell. August 2006
pps. 149-163.
-Postage Stamps of Honduras in The Stamp Lover by L. Crouch. July 1912 pps.31-32.
4/24
