Cook Islands

The Cook Islands is an island group in the South Pacific, a nation now loosely associated with New Zealand.
 * Shortly after its annexation by Great Britain, the Cook Islands issued their first stamps in 1892.
 * With its administration handed over to New Zealand, overprinted New Zealand stamps were put into use not long after that.
 * In 1919, the country began using stamps overprinted or inscribed "Rarotonga", the name of the main island. This continued until 1931 when "Cook Islands" returned on the country's stamps.
 * Some overprinted New Zealand issues continued to be released through the 1940s, for the Commonwealth omnibus issues and for postal fiscal stamps.
 * The country became self-governing in 1965.

The stamp issuing entities of Aitutaki and Penrhyn Island are part of the Cook Islands.

\ File:Cook IS KGV surch.jpg|New Zealand stamp surcharged for the Cook Islands (1919). File:Cook Is palm.jpg|Issue of 1920 inscribed "Rarotonga". File:Cook Is sea cuke.jpg|Sea cucumber (1992). 

See

 * Aitutaki
 * Penrhyn Island

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